{"id":2042,"date":"2021-03-01T20:22:17","date_gmt":"2021-03-01T20:22:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/?p=2042"},"modified":"2022-12-27T01:40:47","modified_gmt":"2022-12-27T01:40:47","slug":"cheap-elgato-camlink-alternative-amazing-20-capture-card","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/cheap-elgato-camlink-alternative-amazing-20-capture-card\/","title":{"rendered":"Cheap Elgato Camlink Alternative &#8211; Amazing $20 Capture Card"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>If you have came to this article chances are, you&#8217;re setting up your stream on a budget. First off, that&#8217;s the best way to do it! Your personality will attract visitors not your camera gear or nano leaf in the background.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However what if I told you that you didn&#8217;t have to fork out $150 on an Elgato camlink to get an amazing DSLR image on your stream.<br><br><strong>Over the past week I have been testing<\/strong> out a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/AVERYN-Upgraded-Streaming-Compatible-Nintendo\/dp\/B08T8TLPHN\/ref=sr_1_15?tag=getonstream06-20&amp;dchild=1&amp;keywords=capture%20card&amp;qid=1614628862&amp;sr=8-15&amp;geniuslink=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">cheaper $20 capture card<\/a> that has shocked me in its performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I also put together a video below breaking down this camlink alternative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"THE BEST CHEAP $20 CAPTURE CARD 2021 - ELGATO CAMLINK ALTERNATIVE\" width=\"770\" height=\"433\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/0tsWApsEpP4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Camlink Alternative<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>This little beauty right here is the most popular cheap camlink alternative. When I first saw it on Amazon I probably scrolled right past it and completely ignored it&#8217;s existent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I went straight to the Camlink and honestly haven&#8217;t had any problems however it would have been nice to save $130.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Since I started this blog I thought it would only be right to test out some of the cheapest capture cards on the market and see how they hold up against the competition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So I ended up ordering this<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/AVERYN-Upgraded-Streaming-Compatible-Nintendo\/dp\/B08T8TLPHN\/ref=sr_1_15?tag=getonstream06-20&amp;dchild=1&amp;keywords=capture%20card&amp;qid=1614628862&amp;sr=8-15&amp;geniuslink=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"> $20 HDMI Video Capture card<\/a> from Amazon. There is a ton of sellers selling the exact same capture card under different names but ultimately they&#8217;re all selling the same Chinese made Capture card.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>My initial thoughts were that this thing is going to be horrible. Honestly I didn&#8217;t even think it would work but I had to test it out for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Setting Up The HDMI Video Capture &#8211; $20 Cap Card<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>When you open the capture card you will be presented with a USB like device. It&#8217;s the only item you will receive in the box. You will also need an HDMI to HDMI mini to connect your camera to the capture card.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"687\" src=\"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-1024x687.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2046\" srcset=\"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-1024x687.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-300x201.jpg 300w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-150x101.jpg 150w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-768x515.jpg 768w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-270x180.jpg 270w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78.jpg 1431w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Connect your HDMI mini cable to your camera and the input side of the capture card then plug the USB into your computer.<br><br>Fortunately there is no long drawn out software installation process. You can instantly jump into your streaming software such as Streamlabs or OBS and get this into your scene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once you have opened Streamlabs you can select: <em><strong>Add Source &#8211;&gt; Video Capture Device &#8211;&gt; USB Capture Device<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You should now see your HDMI input form your <a href=\"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/how-to-flip-your-camera-in-streamlabs\/\">camera on your Streamlabs<\/a> scene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"574\" src=\"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/6a857932f32aa6f7e0c3a56779e9ca37-1024x574.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2047\" srcset=\"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/6a857932f32aa6f7e0c3a56779e9ca37-1024x574.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/6a857932f32aa6f7e0c3a56779e9ca37-300x168.jpg 300w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/6a857932f32aa6f7e0c3a56779e9ca37-150x84.jpg 150w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/6a857932f32aa6f7e0c3a56779e9ca37-768x431.jpg 768w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/6a857932f32aa6f7e0c3a56779e9ca37-1536x861.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Elgato Vs $20 Capture Card Video Quality<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Honestly when I plugged this thing in I wasn&#8217;t expecting much from it however once my camera popped up in streamlabs I was shocked. Right off the bat this capture card looked great.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let&#8217;s just show you a side by side with the Elgato Camlink 4k vs the $29 Capture Card.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"575\" src=\"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f6333c6688c5d3ef73a9bbca4494e68-1024x575.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2048\" srcset=\"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f6333c6688c5d3ef73a9bbca4494e68-1024x575.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f6333c6688c5d3ef73a9bbca4494e68-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f6333c6688c5d3ef73a9bbca4494e68-150x84.jpg 150w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f6333c6688c5d3ef73a9bbca4494e68-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f6333c6688c5d3ef73a9bbca4494e68-1536x863.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>On the left we have the Elgato Camlink and on the right the $20 Capture card.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The main difference we can see is the image on the right is a little more saturated than the one on the left but other than that it&#8217;s hard to tell which is which.<br><br>The camera quality looks amazing on both. I would say that the Camlink represents a more true color palette the $20 card but not by much. You could likely just add a LUT to your stream to get the same style as the Cam link.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you&#8217;re using this camera as your facecam in a small box on your stream 90% of the time then this<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/AVERYN-Upgraded-Streaming-Compatible-Nintendo\/dp\/B08T8TLPHN\/ref=sr_1_15?tag=getonstream06-20&amp;dchild=1&amp;keywords=capture%20card&amp;qid=1614628862&amp;sr=8-15&amp;geniuslink=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"> $20 Capture card<\/a> is more than enough to get you started on a budget.<br><br>Your stream probably won&#8217;t even notice the slight difference in color on your stream. When I was streaming to test out the cheap capture card I didn&#8217;t apply a LUT and nobody noticed any difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How Does The $20 Capture Card Perform<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Stream Delay<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>With most capture cards you will find there is usually a slight delay between your mic audio and what&#8217;s happening on the screen. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I fully expected that this capture card would have a large delay compared to something like a Camlink. On the camlink I have a 130ms delay on my microphone so it syncs up with my voice.<br><br>I plugged in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/AVERYN-Upgraded-Streaming-Compatible-Nintendo\/dp\/B08T8TLPHN\/ref=sr_1_15?tag=getonstream06-20&amp;dchild=1&amp;keywords=capture%20card&amp;qid=1614628862&amp;sr=8-15&amp;geniuslink=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">$20 Capture card<\/a>, didn&#8217;t adjust anything and was shocked to see that my voice was syncing perfectly with the settings I had setup for my Camlink. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So in terms of sound delay there was no issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Game Audio\/Camera Audio<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>If you don&#8217;t have a microphone and want to use your camera microphone or want to receive audio from your console this capture card will also allow you to do that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When I first plugged in I didn&#8217;t notice there was no sound as I was using my external microphone. However when I plugged in my Xbox series X I wondered why there was no Audio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With a bit of help from google I finally figured it out. You have to add the capture separately as an Audio source as well as a video source.<br><br>Once I did this everything was perfect and the audio synced with the gameplay without any adjustments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Can I Use The $20 Capture Card For My Console<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>If you&#8217;re looking to use this capture card with your console instead of your DSLR it will also work for this purpose however you will also need another piece of equipment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As the capture card doesn&#8217;t have a pass through you will need to get an HDMI Splitter. This allows you to send the signal from your console to both the capture card and your monitor\/tv.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"454\" height=\"454\" src=\"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/736a9fccad43878afcf6e16f84c1eaf7.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2053\" srcset=\"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/736a9fccad43878afcf6e16f84c1eaf7.png 454w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/736a9fccad43878afcf6e16f84c1eaf7-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/736a9fccad43878afcf6e16f84c1eaf7-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/736a9fccad43878afcf6e16f84c1eaf7-370x370.png 370w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 454px) 100vw, 454px\" \/><figcaption>HDMI Splitter \/ Amazon.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/HDMI-Switch-4K-Splitter-Bi-Directional\/dp\/B079JQ9XXV\/ref=sr_1_3?tag=getonstream06-20&amp;dchild=1&amp;keywords=hdmi%20splitter&amp;qid=1614629101&amp;sr=8-3&amp;geniuslink=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Get An HDMI Splitter on Amazon<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You never want to just try and play by watching the preview in your stream labs. There will be a huge input lag making it impossible to play competitively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I plugged in my Xbox Series S straight into the capture card and fired up streamlabs. My Xbox Dashboard instantly fired up giving me a 1080p input from the capture card.<br><br>It looked great and while testing it out on games I had no issues with screen tearing, lag etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">HDMI Video Capture Specs<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Input Resolution: 4K<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Max Output Resolution: 1080p<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Supports 8\/10\/12bit deep colour<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Supports Windows, Android and MacOS<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Should You Purchase This Capture<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To wrap this one up, for the money this capture card is great. It&#8217;s hard to knock it when it comes in at less than $20. <br><br>Personally I&#8217;m going to be using it for a secondary camera on my stream. If you are upgrading from a webcam to a DSLR I would definitely start with this little device. There really is no need to spend the extra $130 which could be spent elsewhere on your stream.<br><br>Unless you&#8217;re concerned with streaming in 4k this is the way to go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you&#8217;re interested in getting your own $20 Capture card click the link below to grab yours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/AVERYN-Upgraded-Streaming-Compatible-Nintendo\/dp\/B08T8TLPHN\/ref=sr_1_15?tag=getonstream06-20&amp;dchild=1&amp;keywords=capture%20card&amp;qid=1614628862&amp;sr=8-15&amp;geniuslink=true\" target=\"_blank\">Purchase This Cheap Capture Card On Amazon <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you enjoyed this article you may also enjoy:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/how-to-stream-on-twitch-with-a-dslr-camera\/\" target=\"_blank\">How to Use Your DSLR Camera as Your Stream Webcam<\/a><\/li><li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/the-best-streamlabs-obs-settings-for-low-end-pcs-in-2021\/\" target=\"_blank\">The Best Streamlabs Settings For Low End PCs<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/twitch-vs-youtube-for-streaming-9347-views-in-1-week\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Twitch Vs Youtube For Streaming<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you have came to this article chances are, you&#8217;re setting up your stream on a budget. First off, that&#8217;s the best way to do it! Your personality will attract visitors not your camera gear or nano leaf in the background. However what if I told you that you didn&#8217;t have to fork out $150<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":2046,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","ub_ctt_via":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[75],"tags":[],"table_tags":[],"acf":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"Scott Wilcox","author_link":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/author\/dmorneaumiladreusa-com\/"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78.jpg",1431,960,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-150x101.jpg",150,101,true],"medium":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-300x201.jpg",300,201,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-768x515.jpg",768,515,true],"large":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-1024x687.jpg",770,517,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78.jpg",1431,960,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78.jpg",1431,960,false],"post-thumbnail":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-270x180.jpg",270,180,true],"contentberg-main":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-770x515.jpg",770,515,true],"contentberg-main-full":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-1170x508.jpg",1170,508,true],"contentberg-slider-stylish":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-900x515.jpg",900,515,true],"contentberg-slider-carousel":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-370x370.jpg",370,370,true],"contentberg-slider-grid-b":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-554x466.jpg",554,466,true],"contentberg-slider-grid-b-sm":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-306x466.jpg",306,466,true],"contentberg-slider-bold-sm":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"contentberg-grid":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-370x245.jpg",370,245,true],"contentberg-list":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-260x200.jpg",260,200,true],"contentberg-list-b":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-370x305.jpg",370,305,true],"contentberg-thumb":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-87x67.jpg",87,67,true],"contentberg-thumb-alt":["https:\/\/getonstream.com\/app\/uploads\/2021\/03\/1f095aa93f85fdfa7b76f097e32c1d78-150x150.jpg",150,150,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Scott Wilcox","author_link":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/author\/dmorneaumiladreusa-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":4,"uagb_excerpt":"If you have came to this article chances are, you&#8217;re setting up your stream on a budget. First off, that&#8217;s the best way to do it! Your personality will attract visitors not your camera gear or nano leaf in the background. However what if I told you that you didn&#8217;t have to fork out $150","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2042"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/27"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2042"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2042\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17766,"href":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2042\/revisions\/17766"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2046"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2042"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2042"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2042"},{"taxonomy":"table_tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/getonstream.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/table_tags?post=2042"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}