Who buys a webcam anymore? I’ve shared this sentiment for a long time. But after a year of doing video interviews on an average MacBook camera, I conceded that a proper webcam might be beneficial here. Enter the Jabra PanaCast 20, which solved my problems.
I became an instant admirer of the PanaCast 20’s impressive video quality, although I’m less of a fan of the mount design. It’s also a pretty pricey unit, but let’s see if it’s worth those dollars.
Jabra PanaCast 20 review
What’s good?
As mentioned, the Jabra PanaCast 20 is really packing in the picture department. With 4K resolution and a 13 MP camera, it easily blew my HD MacBook webcam out of the water.
You really can’t appreciate the power of 4K until you see it side-by-side with HD, and it’s this that really makes a camera like the PanaCast stand out. I’m almost uncomfortable with the detail it captures.
I also particularly appreciated that the PanaCast 20 could automatically focus and adjust to fit the level of light in the room.
This is something you don’t always get control of with an in-built webcam, but I always had peace of mind with the PanaCast that whenever I was on camera, things were automatically taken care of.
Another intriguing feature that I formed a love-hate relationship with was the PanaCast 20’s intelligent zoom. This feature essentially allows the camera to focus and move with you as you change positions. If you lean into the side of the frame, the camera will automatically follow you and frame up so that you’re in the centre of the image again.
It’s a fun feature to play around with and was often quite useful. But on the other hand, it could also become distracting, both for myself and the others on my calls.
Luckily, if you want to disable intelligent zoom, there’s a Jabra Direct app that allows you to easily switch the feature off and adjust the picture size as you like it. The app also allows in-depth control of picture quality elements like brightness, saturation, sharpness and contrast, which is a game-changer for camera fanatics.
Design-wise, the Jabra PanaCast 20 is small, compact and aesthetically pleasing. It fits in the palm of your hand and uses one USB-C cable to connect to your device. A neat little zip case is also provided in the box to pack your webcam up at the end of the day or travel with it as needed.
One more thing that deserves calling out is the Jabra PanaCast’s privacy shutter. A small shield is built right into the camera design, allowing you to block the camera with the touch of a finger when not in use.
We’ve all no doubt heard the stories about webcams being hacked, so providing a privacy shutter is a useful addition for peace of mind.
What’s not so good?
The Jabra PanaCast 20 does have a couple of drawbacks, the most major of which for me was the mount design.
In order to mount the camera on your laptop or monitor screen, the Jabra Panacast has a small flat ramp that pops out from the bottom of the frame and a hinge that allows it to hook onto the top of your screen.
I found this to be an incredibly clumsy design choice. Often I’d set up the webcam and find it was wobbly, incorrectly angled or precariously balanced. I never had confidence that it wouldn’t fall from a casual knock and, as someone who packs up their laptop every night, it was a hassle to set it up and position it anew every morning.
The placement of the USB-C power outlet at the bottom of the device also means you don’t have the option to lay it flat. There’s no reason the power cord couldn’t be placed at the rear of the webcam, so this seemed like an odd decision to me. I could probably forgive the fiddly hinge if I could set the PanaCast atop a stack of books or something in my office instead, but alas, the cord placement prevents this.
As mentioned, the movements of the intelligent zoom of the PanaCast can get a little distracting, so while it’s a neat feature, I found myself turning it off more than I had it on.
The price of the Jabra PanaCast is also a bit of a sticking point. $559 RRP is an eye-watering amount to pay for a webcam, even with all the fancy bells and whistles it provides.
Really this price is only justifiable for people who spend the majority of their life on video calls and need a decent camera to back them up.
If you’re a streamer, vlogger or engage in a lot of video presentations, the features of the PanaCast 20 may justify the price. But for anyone else, you can probably resort to a cheaper option.
Jabra PanaCast 20: The verdict
We spend so much of our lives on online calls these days that a decent webcam really can make a huge difference.
There’s no doubt the Jabra PanaCast 20 is the superior choice when compared with the standard in-built webcam of most laptops. Its picture is stunning, the AI adjustments are incredibly useful, and it’s compact and portable with an easy set-up process.
But it’s not without issues, particularly that fiddly mount design. Unfortunately, if you’re dropping upwards of $500 on something like this, you want it to be pretty close to perfect, so take into consideration these factors before spending your money.
The Jabra PanaCast 20 is a top-tier webcam with a price to match, but it might be worth it for those needing a really decent camera upgrade for their online lives.
You can buy the Jabra PanaCast 20 now from Jabra.
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