Whatever your current experience is with Video chatting, I think we can all agree that streaming in HD is better; and that’s just from a personal standpoint of connecting with loved ones. We’re opting to ignore the roaring cheers from the amateur porn industry for purposes of this mention.

Though many have claimed to create HD versions in the past, really those 2 megapixel webcam’s only managed 960×720 which isn’t really HD. Microsoft’s is actually the first to support 720p video at 30fps or the full 1,280×720. As a result, Girlfriends, grandparents, and colleagues, connected through Skype or IM will all look their best (or worst) with this beaut perched on their monitor.

(Read about more features after the jump)

Other nifty features bundled into this unit such as a glass lens, auto focus, 4x digital zoom, and a digital, noise-canceling microphone, further distance this cam as one of the best on the market. Of course though, higher quality requires better bandwidth, so HD may not work with all services. The minimum support hardware requirements of 3GHz dual core processor and 2GB of memory outlined by the device are also surprisingly high. There’s a good chance though that Microsoft’s stating that to stay on the safe side. Expected to hit shelves on September 9th, the bottom line is that for $80, you’ll be hard pressed to find a higher performing web cam.

Cost: $80 starting Sept 9th.