The Logitech MX Brio 4K webcam is so good, it improves my pasty face — here's why

As a human being who could probably get sunburnt in the most frigid corners of the North Pole, the Logitech MX Brio has made me a lot more comfortable at looking at my pasty features than any other competing webcam.

There’s a reason certain image-conscious people choose to go the “audio-only” option route during work calls, right? Many of us are probably far too self-deprecating when it comes to looks. So the mightiest of praise I can lay at this compact and attractively-designed cam is that I worry way less about how I appear in front of my Tom’s Guide colleagues during important conference calls.

Capable of handling both day and night time conditions with startling quality, this is the current MVP of webcams. Sure, it’s not exactly cheap, yet neither would I accuse Logi’s latest cam of being overpriced. Pristine picture clarity comes with a coinage investment folks, and I don’t think Logitech are being overly greedy in that regard. 

Do “regular” users who only lean on a vanilla 720p-1080p cam truly need a gizmo capable of outputting immaculate 4K signals need the Logitech MX Brio? Probably not. Yet if you thirst to stream at Youtube’s top-tier bitrate and output your content with the best 4K picture quality possible, then Logitech’s latest high-end option becomes a seriously alluring purchase.

If you only need to be semi-legible over a daily conference call, the slam dunk Ultra HD output the MX Brio is capable of is probably a quality of product you don’t really need for your day-to-day work needs. 

Having said that, if “best-of-the-best” ultra-wide 4K streaming quality is important to you, the Logitech Bro is basically the new Daenerys Targaryen… minus the season 8, not entirely earned Heel turn (to lean on pro wrestling parlance). 

If you pin for the new ruler of 4K streaming quality though,  damn have you ever just found the webcam of your slightly sweaty dreams. 

Logitech MX Brio: Cheat Sheet

• What is it? An ultra-wide 4k webcam that excels in all lighting conditions
• Who is it for? YouTube and Twitch streamers who want their content look "class of its own" top quality
• What does it cost? $199
• Is it worth the money? If supreme 4K streaming is top of your list, absolutely
• Do you really need a $200 4K webcam? Most people obviously won't. Yet if you're a serious content creator who wants to regularly output damn near peerless 4K images, you want this cam in your life. 

Logitech MX Brio: Specs

Logitech MX Brio review: The ups

Coming from someone who gladly parted with around $4,000 for the best OLED TV ever made (no, I should not be allowed money), I consider the $199 price tag of the MX Brio to deliver a very favorable price vs performance ratio if top-tier streaming quality is a prirotity for you. 

4K is the way 

I love high-end display tech to an unhealthy degree. If you offered me the choice of my final 24 hours of oxygen or a chance to watch Blade Runner 2049 several last times on my LG G3 OLED TV, I'd opt for Ryan Gosling’s sombre yet sensational sci-fi sequel every time. In that sense, I have huge respect for the calibre of image quality the Logitech MX Brio’s 4K routinely outputs.

Though you have the option of choosing between a 1080p/60Hz signal and 4K/30Hz output, I have no clue why you would choose the former. You’re not dealing with one of the best PS5 games here that benefits from a higher refresh rate. What you really want from a supreme cam like the Brio is pristine image clarity. In its 4K mode, Logitech’s webcam delivers the goods in spectacular style. 

During my first several work calls with my Tom’s Guide colleagues, several of them remarked just how clear the signal from the MX Brio appears. As the proud owner of one of the aforementioned best OLED TVs ever made, I’m all about consistent, high-end image output and in that regard the MX Brio is an MVP performer.

Face the MX music 

Let me be fully transparent with you: I normally hate looking at my pasty face when forced to view my mug on one of our regular Google Meet video calls here at Tom’s Guide. What’s the main selling point I look for from a webcam, then? To not actively hate this Scotsmen’s polar bear-pale face when viewing myself on my monitor.

And that's probably your priority too — to look your best, whether it be during an important conference call or a casual Zoom catch-up with pals. In that sense, Logitech’s 4K MX Brio knocks it out of the face-appreciating park. I’ve never had less of an issue peering upon my cranium during a crucial work call. 

Granted, it helps that I've lost a bunch of weight recently, so (probably wrongly) my self-esteem is higher than normal. Yet even if I tipped the scales of your average Sumo wrestler, I can still appreciate the startlingly vivid image detail Logitech’s latest 4K cam produces. The MX Brio comfortably proves you’ve got the clearest webcam signal and uncompressed picture on your next work call. 

Low light shines bright 

As someone who regularly keeps unreasonable hours, I’m far too used to looking at myself in low light conditions through a bathroom mirror at silly o’clock. One of the great strengths about the Logi MX Brio is just how good it is at capturing minute details in a dark room. 

I don’t peer at my face in pitch-black conditions every night, but I normally play the best PC games into the small hours on a regular basis. Being up at such unnatural hours has given me lots of opportunities to set up Google Meets on my lonesome during my MX Brio testing — which is exactly as pathetic as it sounds.

The main benefit from these nocturnal webcam experiments? It’s proven without a doubt how accomplished the Logitech MX Brio is at displaying fine details in conditions that are darker than your average scene from Game of Thrones’ infamous, series’ defining “The Long Night” season 8 mega episode. 

I’ve been deliberately using the MX Brio regularly at night to see how this high-end webcam can deal with dim conditions, and the ultra clear results prove this is a winner for those specific circumstances when you may be forced to take a work or personal Skype, Discord or Zoom call at an antisocial hour. Purely from a clarity standpoint in challenging lighting conditions, the Logitech MX Brio excels

Logitech MX Brio: The downs

Thanks to its multiple mountable modes, general flexibility and awesome picture quality, there’s not a whole lot of shade to throw at the MX Brio. But there is just one thing...

Not so fresh

Something my boss and all-round laptop Jedi Master Jason England schooled me on throughout this review process is the curious case of bulb refresh rates. As a hardcore console and PC player, I’ve always presumed fretting over Hz was the exclusive (way too obsessive) purvey of hardcore gamers like myself. Yet as the Logitech Mx Brio has proven in my weeks with the device, refresh rates can play a crucial factor when it comes to cams.

My specific example? There is a flicker to the lights around me that became a bit of a pain to workaround. This comes down to the power frequency of lighting here in the U.K. being at 50Hz, which causes a conflict with the 30fps shutter speed of the MX Brio. And despite the calibre of image fidelity the MX Brio routinely churns out, my American colleagues immediately pointed out a distracting fault with Logitech’s webcam during our first meetings. 

During my first call to our U.S. Editor-in-Chief Mike Prospero, he could tell something was awry with my hallroom lights through the Brio’s feed. The fix to this is looking for smoother LEDs, because even though my old-school, non-LED bulbs look normal in real-world conditions, they mimic harsh nightclub lights during video feeds with my U.S. colleagues due to Transatlantic differences.  

Logitech MX Brio: Verdict

I’ll make this summary as respectful to your precious time as I can: The MX Brio is a fantastic webcam that will almost certainly provide a visually sharper stream than your colleagues or compadres competing peripherals can provide.

It is the Michael Jordan of webcams. Ruthlessly efficient and in an NBA zone of its own, it should be clear at this point that I think the Logitech MX Brio is fabulous. Any piece of tech that makes me hate my silly face a whole lot less is a paradigm-shifting product in my view. 

Is it worth $200? If you’re a serious YouTube or Twitch streamer with naturally kind facial genetics, absolutely. But what if you only require a budget cam for the odd imposed conference call you’d rather your vocal chords do the heavy lifting over your face? In those scenarios a budget 1080p sub-$50 cam will suit your needs just fine. 

Yet as a piece of face-capturing technology? The Logitech MX Brio has far more pros than cons. If you like looking at your skull on cam, I consider this to be a must-buy PC peripheral.