Brio 505

A Solid Webcam That Makes You Look Better Than You Feel

Let's be real: most of us don't think about our webcam until we're on an important video call and realize we look washed out and tired. The Brio 505 solves that problem beautifully. Reviewers consistently praise its RightLight 4 technology and Show Mode, which work together to keep you looking evenly lit and properly framed no matter what your home office lighting looks like.

The low-light performance is genuinely impressive. Even when you're taking calls in dim conditions, the camera produces a clear image with decent detail. The auto-white balance is strong enough that your skin tones look natural rather than flat. For anyone who spends their day on Zoom, Teams, or Google Meet, this is a real quality-of-life improvement.

The design is thoughtful too. It's lightweight, works with any magnetic monitor mount, and the privacy shutter slides smoothly without making the camera wobble. The USB-C connection is modern, and setup takes about two minutes. There's no fussing around.

Here's the catch: reviewers point out that you're paying $120 for a 1080p webcam in 2024. That's not nothing. The older Logitech C930e delivers the same resolution for around $80. If you can stretch your budget by $20, the Brio 4K gives you actual 4K resolution. And the Dell Pro Webcam offers 2K resolution at a similar price point.

The Logi Tune software is functional but not elegant. You can adjust exposure, white balance, and saturation, but it lacks the precision that power users might want. For most people, the defaults work great and you'll never open the app again.

The microphone is decent but not exceptional. It's better than most webcam mics, but if you're doing serious podcast work or streaming, you'll probably want a separate mic anyway.

So who should buy this? Anyone who's tired of looking bad on video calls and doesn't want to overthink it. If you spend 4-5 hours a day on video calls and your lighting is less than perfect, the Brio 505 will make a real difference. It's not the cheapest option, but for the lighting performance and ease of use, it's solid.

Just know that you're paying a premium for the lighting tech and design, not for raw resolution or cutting-edge features. If budget is tight, there are cheaper options that still work well. If you want the absolute best image quality, the Brio 4K is just a bit more.

The Brio 505 Is Trapped in the Wrong Price Bracket

Logitech's Brio 505 presents a fundamental problem: it's a $120 webcam that costs like a $200 product but specs like something from 2020. The product specs claim 4K and HDR, but actual reviews confirm this is 1080p only, and the HDR claim is simply false. That's either a marketing error or intentional obfuscation, neither of which builds confidence.

Let's talk performance. The Show Mode auto-framing is clever and the RightLight 4 lighting correction genuinely helps in low-light situations. Those are real strengths. But you're locked at 1080p/30fps maximum. In 2024, when competitors offer 2K or 4K at the same price point, capping out at 1080p feels like Logitech is padding margins with last-generation components.

The software is where things get frustrating. Logi Tune allows adjustments but lacks the precision of Logitech's older Webcam Software. You're getting fewer controls with newer hardware, which is backwards. The dual omni-directional microphones are competent but unremarkable. Tom's Guide and PCWorld both note the mic quality as average, which doesn't justify the premium positioning.

Here's the value math that kills this product: The Logitech C930e delivers identical 1080p resolution and field of view for around $80. The Logitech Brio 4K offers actual 4K recording for just $20 more. The Dell Pro Webcam WB5023 gives you 2K resolution at a similar price with better auto-exposure and white balance. The Brio 505 occupies a pricing sweet spot that nobody asked for.

Build quality is respectable but not exceptional. The 54-68% recycled plastic construction is environmentally responsible, but it doesn't feel premium. The magnetic mount is versatile and the privacy shutter works smoothly, but these are expected features at this tier, not selling points.

The core issue is positioning. If this were $80, it'd be a solid choice for casual users upgrading from ancient hardware. At $120, it's too expensive. The Show Mode and RightLight features are genuinely useful for business users, but they don't move the needle enough to overcome the resolution and software limitations. You're paying for lighting correction and auto-framing when competitors at the same price are offering 2K video quality.

Logitech built a competent webcam and priced it in a vacuum. In a market with real alternatives, the Brio 505 is the middle child nobody wanted.