Windows 10: webcam/camera question

If I start my webcam then later close the program using webcam the light indicating that it is on, or at least available/tide to a program. The only way I can have access to the webcam again is to put computer to sleep/hibernation or re-boot. The 'active' light remains on. If I go to task manager, it does not show webcam as active or running.I installed some new webcam software but that did not change the behavior.

:)

 

Reusing old laptop webcam as USB camera

I took the webcam from an old Compaq 620 laptop and after a few wire connections I can connect it to the USB port

For a few seconds it is detected as HP Webcam 2.0 in device manager under Cameras (which also shows the built in Webcam for this laptop), but then after a while the Device Manager window refreshes and the webcam from the old laptop goes under the node Imaging Devices and it is listed as HP Universal Camera Driver. The old laptop is broken so I cannot test it again, but if I remember correctly it's webcam used to shown as HP Webcam 2.0 as well, in device manager

However, the problem is that the external USB camera is not detected by any application. I have tested using online webcan test sites (eg, Webcam Test) and using Skype's camera settings window (it shows a preview of the selected webcam), but in both cases I can only see the built in webcam on the detected cameras list

Since the USB camera initially shows up as HP Webcam 2.0 for a few seconds initially (when auto installing drivers for the first time), if I manage to open skype's audio settings window within that period, the USB webcam does show up in the detected cameras list, but by them it will have become detected as HP Universal Camera driver and disappears from the skype camera list.

I have seen blogs and videos online of other people using their old laptop webcams as external USB webcams, so this should be possible for at least some models. Since it is consistently detected as a USB device I am supposing the connections are correct as well. I do have 4 diodes connected in series to the USB +5V line before it goes to the camera, and each diode drops about 0.5 V, so the camera is only seeing about 3 V. Since USB detection works up to the driver auto-installation point I am assuming power isn't an issue.

Is there anyway to test whether this webcam works as a USB webcam or not? Could this just be an issue of finding the correct drivers? Once this gets detected as HP Universal Camera Driver in the device manager, going to driver upgrade and auto-searching online only says the best driver is already installed. I have also tried searching for compaq 620 webcam windows 10 drivers but they don't seem to be available. Is there some kind of generic driver that should always work with any camera? Could this be a windows 10 issue? Would this work on linux? I'm not sure how to test webcams on Linux though.

EDIT:

I found possible drivers here:

HP Compaq 620 Drivers Download for Windows 10, 8.1, 7, Vista, XP

I could not find camera drivers for Windows 10 in HP's official page. This new linked page claims the camera driver is for Windows 10, and says the device name is HP Webcam [2 MP Fixed], which is what I expect, downloading the driver downloads files whose name implies camera device is manufactured by realtek. While using the webcam in my old laptop before I never recall Realtek being associated with anything to do with the webcam (this name was associated with the network card only) and looking at the PCB of the webcam itself doesn't indicate it is related to realtek in any way. Would it be risky to try and install this driver anyway? The new laptop is also an HP with the webcam being detected as Asus. I just don't want the drivers for the USB webcam to interfere with the built in one.

EDIT 2:

I installed drivers from the link above. The camera now shows up under Imaging Devices (not sure why it does not show up under Camera like the built in webcam) node as HP Webcam 2.0. It is also detected by applications such as skype (shows up in camera setup window's detected cameras list) but if I select the webcam skype just hangs up and I need to force close it from the task manager. If I disconnect the webcam the built-in webcam shows up and skype runs normally. The driver download link above comes with a webcam testing utility called "RsCap.exe". This utility also shows the usb webcam in it's list, but hangs if I select and try to preview the webcam. If I disconnect the webcam the built in webcam previews normally and is pretty fast.

I booted the computer using a USB live install of puppy linux and used the built in USB scanning tool to scan for everything connected to USB. This is what it shows regarding the usb webcam and the built in webcam.

Built in webcam:

Usb webcam:

Is there anyway to use this usb webcam?

 

Unable to open camera 0xa00F4271(0x8007001F)

Hi Jawad,

Please answer this question to assist you better.

• What is the make and model of your computer?
• Which troubleshooting steps are you referring to?
• Does this issue occurs in any particular app e.g. Skype?

Try to use the camera on different apps or websites and check if it works fine. Refer the link below and follow the troubleshooting steps suggested.

Windows can't find or start the camera:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-10/can-not-find-start-camera-webcam

Do let us know if you are able to use Camera. Thank you.

 

Laptop Camera

Thanks for updating us on the results of the troubleshooting steps that you have completed. Since the built-in webcam is still not working correctly and the same error code 0xA00F4244 (0xC00DABED) is still appearing, we suggest that we check the camera privacy
settings to see if the camera access is turned on. Kindly follow the steps below to check the camera privacy settings:

• Press the Windows key + I to open the Settings app.
• Near the top of the Settings app window is the search box, kindly type the word "webcam" or "camera".
• From the list of results choose Camera privacy settings.
• Make sure that "Let apps use my camera" toggle is set to On.

We look forward to your response once you complete the steps.