In general, laptops provide an integrated webcam that serves all the purposes like Video-Chats/Calling, attending conferences over Skype, Google Teams, or Zoom. These days, high-end laptops are even providing in-built cameras with a better resolution unlike the old days VGA webcam.
However, if you are on a low-end laptop or the built-in camera is not working for any reason, and you do want to change the default webcam, you have come to the right place. In this tutorial, we outline all the essential steps to start using the external webcam instead of the local one.
How to disable the default Camera in Windows 10
If you are hoping to change the default webcam of the laptop, use these steps –
1] Disable In-built Webcam
Adding a second webcam to the laptop is quite an easy process, however, you must disable the laptop’s default webcam first. Here’s how to disable this device –
- Press “Windows key + X” using the keyboard.
- Select Device Manager.
- When the Device Manager opens up, go to the Cameras section.
- Click the “>” icon left of the Cameras, and put right-click on the available option inside.
- Hit “Disable device” on the context menu.
- Doing so will prompt a pop-up window. Click Yes to authorize disabling this device.
- After this device driver gets disabled, restart your computer.
When Windows 10 reloads, follow the below section on how to set some other camera as the default webcam.
2] Select the Camera that you want to set as the default one
- Launch Control Panel.
- Go to the top right corner and select Large icons using the drop-down menu next to “View by”.
- Select Devices and Printers.
- Here, look for the secondary camera that is attached to your computer. If not, unplug the external webcam, re-attach it to your device, and search again for this under “Devices and Printers“.
- Once found, right-click on the secondary webcam, and click over the “Set this device as a default” option.
You may now enjoy using this camera for whatever purposes you intend to use on Windows 10 PC.
