MagicCamera 8.9

Adds frames or replaces the backgrounds in the images and videos captured with your webcam. Also works with real-time streams on MSN, Yahoo Messenger, Skype, Aim, etc.

MagicCamera can overlay video effects on a webcam’s image in real time. Moreover, it can be set as source for multiple video chat applications, such as Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, AIM and Skype. Luckily, it lets you use your webcam in 32 external applications at the same time. It is also a good thing that it supports every type of camera.

I would not say that this program is not easy to use; yet, I feel that there is still a lot to do in terms of its interface design; mostly because it looks outdated and its visual elements lack a coherent arrangement.

The most outstanding advantage of this program is the availability of an extensive list of more than 1000 effects, including frames, distortions, filters, text captions and masks. Luckily, you can use various of these effects simultaneously. I really liked the effects grouped under Scene. The program is said to be one of the most efficient in transforming video using low resources. However, probably because working with video in real time requires a lot of hardware power, some of these effects did not work as expected in my computer. In this respect, the background effects were a total disaster.

All in all, MagicCamera may add a little fun to your video chats. Moreover, it allows taking snapshots as well as sending or recording sounds with its virtual sound card. The program is free to try without any restrictions.