Blurry Built-In iSight when using iChat

I have a new 20" iSight iMac and seem to be having an issue with using the iSight w/ iChat. The picture looks perfectly clear in my preview window, until the moment where it actually connects with another user, at which time it immediately goes blurry as if the camera has completely lost focus. I've tried on multiple occasions, connecting to people who also have an iSight/iChat with everyone having high-speed connections.
This seems like a bug to me, and there's no way to manually focus the camera until/unless iGlasses comes up with a version that's compatible w/ the new iMacs. I've searched and seen this problem mentioned a few times on the boards, but have yet to hear a solution or even whether this is something fixable or not.
Thoughts?!
20" iSight iMac 2.1 gHz Mac OS X (10.4.3)

It's certainly possible there's some kind of bandwidth detection going on that made it blurry, but it doesn't make sense that it would make the picture BLURRY, rather than make it lower quality (more pixalated). I have a cable connection that has a very fast upload speed, so if there was a bandwidth problem, it wasn't likely on my end.
Today I connected w/ a neighbor and didn't have the blurry problem, though I did have the problem with the other two people I've tried it with.
Next time it happens I'll check the connection doctor to see what it says. I should also note that when I connected to the same people using a stand-alone iSight, I did NOT have the 'blurry' problem. It seems to be confined to the built-in camera, and again it looks fine until it actually connects to someone.

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Want to manually ajust the built in Isight camera for Ichat?

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Hi
You need iGlasses http://www.ecamm.com/mac/iglasses/
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Black screen on Isight when in IChat

When my wife contacts me via Ichat with an Imac, I can't see here. Audio is fine. She can see me fine, but her screen of me freezes up.
When viewing her screen via built in isight camera, it is black.
I'm using a MBP.
Any suggestions?

Hi,
I have re-read your post several times.
I still can not work out what you are trying to tell us.
I seem to understand that when she initiates the call She gets Video and Audio fro you which displays fine.
However you can not get a picture from her - and if this is from her Built in iSight the picture is in fact black ?
Can you open the Connection Doctor during a Chat (It is in the Video Menu) and tell us if it says there is any Video feed ?
Also what is the incoming Bit rate showing as ?
You seem to also be saying that even though your wife can see you at the start of the chat that your pic that she sees in fact also freezes ?
Have I understood you correctly ?
Could you also tell us what your Internet connection speeds are both Up and Downloads at both ends ?
Have you (both) made the change to System Preferences > Qucktime > Streaming to 1.5Mbps ?
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Error Message when using iChat w/ Video

I am receiving an error anytime that I use iChat video. It only occurs in certain circumstances though. They are anytime I have been in a video conference with someone for about 20/30 minutes, I am told that audio still comes through but the camera feed freezes. Then when that happens, I close down the video screen/window and attempt to re-connect. When attempting to reconnect, it tells me that it is asking for the other party to join in, tells me that it is connecting then I get an error message popping up.
I'm going to go ahead and throw this in here. I am using a 2Wire Router, my internet provider is ATT U-verse (I know feel for me).
Now, in order to get video to run again, both parties have to reboot their computers. Otherwise we will both continue to get an error. What in the bloody heck is going on? SOMEONE PLEASE HELP!!!!
Here is the particular error message.
iChat Connection Log:
2008-07-25 16:37:49 -0500: AVChat started with ID 1359333755.
2008-07-25 16:37:49 -0500: [email protected]: State change from AVChatNoState to AVChatStateWaiting.
2008-07-25 16:37:49 -0500: 0x1013e6f0: State change from AVChatNoState to AVChatStateInvited.
2008-07-25 16:37:55 -0500: 0x1013e6f0: State change from AVChatStateInvited to AVChatStateConnecting.
2008-07-25 16:37:55 -0500: [email protected]: State change from AVChatStateWaiting to AVChatStateConnecting.
2008-07-25 16:38:10 -0500: 0x1013e6f0: State change from AVChatStateConnecting to AVChatStateEnded.
2008-07-25 16:38:10 -0500: 0x1013e6f0: Error -8 (Did not receive a response from 0x1013e6f0.)
2008-07-25 16:38:10 -0500: [email protected]: State change from AVChatStateConnecting to AVChatStateEnded.
2008-07-25 16:38:10 -0500: [email protected]: Error -8 (Did not receive a response from 0x1013e6f0.)
Video Conference Error Report:
12.027970 @SIP/SIP.c:2719 type=4 (900A0015/0)
[SIPConnectIPPort failed]
3834.187259 @SIP/SIP.c:2719 type=4 (900A0015/0)
[SIPConnectIPPort failed]
3836.188887 @SIP/SIP.c:2719 type=4 (900A0015/0)
[SIPConnectIPPort failed]
Video Conference Support Report:
10.027592 @SIP/Transport.c:2362 type=1 (00000000/0)
[INVITE sip:user@rip SIP/2.0
Via: SIP/2.0/UDP lip:16402;branch=z9hG4bK1fbb672f3f9c3757
Max-Forwards: 70
To: "u0" <sip:user@rip>
From: "0" <sip:user@lip:16402>;tag=1675795393
Call-ID: 0b4908fe-5a89-11dd-91ae-dc6cc6f84012@lip
CSeq: 1 INVITE
Contact: <sip:user@lip:16402>;isfocus
User-Agent: Viceroy 1.3
Content-Type: application/sdp
Content-Length: 739
Message was edited by: Shawnda

Is System Preferences > Quicktime > Streaming set to 1.5Mbps ?
Restart iChat if you have to change (the Automatic setting can cap iChat in Tiger and to a lesser extent Leopard)
In iChat > Preferences > Video Section set the Bandwidth Drop down to 500kbps
I say this as the symptom you describe may be your ISP trying to control Peer-to-Peer File sharing and as iChat is Peer-to-Peer in Video and Audio Only chats it seems it is subject to those ISPs playing with Bandwidth to control this.
It may pay to have the Connection Doctor (In the iChat > Video Menu) open to monitor if your Connection speed or your Buddies is the one that is dropping off.
You can change the Bandwidth setting in iChat during a chat and it does not need a restart.
Which 2Wire device ?
What can you tell us about how it is set up for iChat ?
Does it have and is it using UPnP ?
Does it have DoS or SPI protection as this may also get in the way ?
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AIM icon in dock pixelated when using iChat?

I use iChat instead of AIM for its ease of use and design. However, the little AIM icon "running guy" in my dock gets pixelated when I drag my mouse over it. I have my dock magnification on.
No other program does this except AIM. The iChat icon is fine and magnifies perfectly, it's just the little running guy. The image is of poor quality I guess but it's weird that it's only that icon.
Anyone who why other than it's a low quality image?
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I just made this problem happen with the Console open. This is what it said when I launched iPhoto:
2005-09-16 20:27:06.642 iPhoto[829] * -[NSTextField setAllowsMultipleSelection:]: selector not recognized [self = 0x622c90]

Anyone had this happen when using iChat?

This happened a while back when I was using iChat with my girlfriend. We were just instant messaging but after I typed something she replied with a set of random characters. We were typing in Korean and the reply was gibberish (in English characters with some computer characters). Then, like a virus or something she continued typing gibberish. I had to force quit iChat and turn it back on. All seemed normal. I thought she was just bored or something but I found out later that she was not typing anything. After that, I did not have any problem like that with iChat. It was just that one time. Does anyone know why my iChat acted like that?

Hi,
The most common cause in Helvetica Fractions Font installed
http://designdepartment.wordpress.com/2007/04/04/garbled-font-in-ichat-mail/
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Please, if posting Logs, do not post any Log info after the line "Binary Images for iChat"

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http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/23346/isight-disabler-applescript

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the answer i found: If it isn't your Firewall settings, what kind of router are you using and does it use UPnP?
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Hi Molly,
Ok UPnP stands for Universal Plug and Play.
This is a means where the Application on the computer instructs the modem to open the ports it needs.
It allows multiple computers and other devices on your LAN to use the same ports at the same time.
This means that the router or modem can be left in it's default mode which is likely to be DHCP.
Ok so now DHCP is a means whereby the router or modem gives out IP addresses to the devices and computers on your LAN.
Your computer keeps the same IP until the lease time runs out. If the computer is on and connected to the DHCP serving device then the DHCP lease is renewed. If it is off or unconnected at the time the lease runs out then the IP gets changed the next time the computer is tunred on. (with a Mac this also includes Sleep). It acts as if it is a new computer on the LAN is one way of looking at it.
So if you use Port Forwarding and DHCP there is a chance your computer's IP will change at times. As the Port Forwarding points to one IP on the LAN it may not always be pointing to your computer.
As you are using UPnP which means any IP can have the ports open it does not matter if your computer's IP changes with using DHCP.
Now your computer and modem (or router) can be set up so that the IP to the computer never changes. This is called Static routing.
It is created by turning Off DHCP in the modem or router.
A change needs to be made on the Mac in System Preferences > Network > Connection method >TCP/IP tab.
In the drop down that reads Using DHCP now needs to be changed to read Manually.
After this you need to type in the IP in the filed underneath that the computer is going to use.
Alonmg with the Subnet Mask and "router" IP info and possibly the DNS server info if you have it.
Now the IP you choose needs to be in the same range the Modem or router is using.
So if your modem is at 192.168.1.100 then your computer needs to be any number in 192.168.1.xxx except for .100 as long as it is between 1 and 255.
The other info should be copied from the Using DHCP settings
(Subnet Mask, DNS Servers and "router" IP address).
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On Laptops go to System Preferences > Sound > Input tab and adjust the Volume downwards.
If this does not work go to Hard Drive/Library/Preferences and delete com.apple.audio.DeviceSettings.plist and reboot the Mac.
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(All the other sub-accounts tend to be regarded as Aliases)
As @me.com names can now be linked to iCloud IDs it may pay to look at separating the account out into different IDs in their own right.
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Please, if posting Logs, do not post any Log info after the line "Binary Images for iChat"
 iMac 2.5Ghz 5i 2011 (Lion 10.7.3)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
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IMac built-in iSight for use as an IP webcam?

Hi,
I'd like to get a live picture from my iSight via the internet, is it possible without buying extra software? How would I do this? I came across a forum response that said to look in Internet Sharing but there's no webcam or iSight in the list.
The iMac is on 10.4.11 btw.
Thanks.
Message was edited by: Jonathan Mortimer

The simplest (though not necessarily the most reliable) free way I know for 10.4.11 is via Yahoo! Messenger for Mac (YMM.) It works easily for some users, but some report a lot of trouble.
YMM is NOT Apple software, so, if you decide to try YMM, see the YMM instructions or Yahoo! Help if you need assistance.
After you have installed and configured YMM, select "View My Webcam", and your webcam will be broadcast over the web. Image update frame-rate depends on the speed of your Mac and your internet connection. Once you are broadcasting, you (or anyone else who know the address for your webcam) can view it in Yahoo! Messenger on their computer.
Many other software applications can stream webcam images. See this page:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2013310
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Depending on the specifics of what you need to do, you might also be able to do what you want for free using one of the browser-based video chat sites listed in that link above or in this web search.
EZ Jim
G5 DP 1.8GHz w/Mac OS X (10.5.7) PowerBook 1.67GHz (10.4.11) iBookSE 366MHz (10.3.9) External iSight

Built-in iSight video is jerky when recorded into iMovie.

Hello,
When I record video in iMovie directly from my built-in iSight, the resulting video is rather jerky - it doesn't look like the frame rate is slow, it's just that if I move my arm quickly, for example, while it may be a smooth motion in real life, the recorded video has little stutters in the motion, almost if some of the frames are out-of-order. I don't have this issue when using iChat - everything looks fine there. I have a MacBook Pro 17-inch (Mid-2009), with iLife '09, Mac OS X 10.6.7, 4 GB RAM, and about 100 GB of free space on my hard drive. Everything is completely up-to-date via Software Update, and I just ran Repair Disk Permissions in Disk Utility last week. The last time I recorded into iMovie, I didn't have any other applications running on the computer, and it still happened. The computer was sitting stationary on a table. I was using a professional microphone through a FireWire interface, and the audio recorded perfectly - it was just the video that had issues. The audio and video stayed perfectly in-sync the whole time, too. The video looked jerky in iMovie immediately after recording, and still looked jerky after being uploaded to YouTube. I've seen other people's videos on YouTube that exhibit this behavior, and they generally look fine if I go down to a lower resolution for playback, so I'm guessing I'm not alone - it could either be an iSight issue or an iMovie issue.

Sorry, I meant when I use the 'Q' command to put the video onto the storyline. I use the Import files to bring the files into my library of videos and it looks fine there before using 'Q' to stack the video onto the storyline. 99 percent of the time it works fine, it just has this flipped error when building multi-video composites, it has never happened when I build a normal video project.

Built in iSight not recognized by iMovie

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Running Leopard 10.5.5 and iMovie 08 7.1.1 (i reverted to this one hoping it would make a difference - it didnt). Nothing is hogging the camera. I have fixed every problem I ever had but this one completely stumps me. Hope someone can help !

WOW ... it works! Boy was this a good find! I did all the things listed below with I-movie. I am running Leopard 10.5.5. I called tech support and they walked me through this process. IT WORKS!
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1.) REMOVE QT from your applications and library preferences
2.) RELOAD ORIGINAL DISC for OS keeping the same settings when it brings you to that option for a reload. Choose options under DISC #1 and choose the reload with preferences.
3.) Takes about an hour total ... follow loading sequence
4.) GO TO: http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/quicktime75forleopard.html
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Hi Dave,
Welcome to Apple Support Discussions!
This doesn't seem like a user-fixable problem. I know it seems like a nuisance, but I would call Apple Technical support at 1-800-275-2273. They may suggest taking it to an Apple Retail store near you, if they can't solve it. Living in California, you should have no problem finding an Apple store. ;-D
Since you bought it from Apple, it is under a 90 day phone warranty and 1 year hardware warranty.

Blurry Built-In iSight when using iChat

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