Reality Check: Vivo Offers Logitech Brio Webcam

I’ve used the Logitech’s Brio webcam since its introduction. It’s been mentioned hereabouts many times, including a detailed review. It’s a solid product. Recommended.

That said, given the pandemic, Logitech webcams have been hard to get over the past year. The sudden surge in work & school-from-home has created massive demand for webcams and headsets. Brand name products were in very short supply in Q3 & Q4-2020. The shortage seems to be easing up now.

When inventory was low or non-existent, companies like VoIP Supply offered off-brand or generic products for prices very close to the big brand names. Now that the situation is easing up, real Logitech products are once again available. Although, don’t expect many discounts.

This brings me to the real reason for this post. An ad for a Logitech Brio appeared in my Facebook feed today. Reseller Vivo, based in Utah, was offering it for $199, reportedly marked down from $218.

I find them offered on Amazon for $186, making the Vivo offer not unreasonable.

The imagery used in the ad is what caught my attention. It’s an obvious fake. Maybe “fake” is a bit harsh. Let’s just say it’s a mock-up. Definitely created in Photoshop.

I have done such things many times, especially to make an arbitrary image look like a laptop screen or monitor content. The complete lack of on-screen controls is a dead giveaway.

Looking closer, the webcam is mounted in such as way to overhang the bezel of the laptop’s display. That’s physically impossible. Brio comes with a removable mount that sits atop the display.

Further, the USB 3.1 connection is on the rear face, centered along bottom edge of the webcam. Thus the webcam must sit above the display. It simply cannot ride as low as shown in the picture.

Does this matter? No, of course not. I’m just being picky. Some artist created this mock up, probably without knowing too much about the product. I just think it’s silly and unnecessary to portray the camera in this manner.