If there's one thing I've learnt in the last decade of testing some of the best robot vacuums in Australia is that not all of them are made equal. Some have excellent performance and software while others, despite a premium price tag, disappoint on testing.
However, as you can probably tell from my Ecovacs Deebot X8 Pro Omni review, I really liked how well this robovac performed in my tests. It wasn't perfect, but it cleaned and navigated well. Sadly, though, Ecovacs seems to have discontinued it, although stock is still available at retailers like JB Hi-Fi and The Good Guys, listed for AU$1,999.
It has now been replaced by the Ecovacs Deebot X8 Max Pro Omni (please note the 'Max' moniker here) which, despite a very similar name is a slightly different model. I much prefer its design aesthetic over the previous X8 Pro Omni — which was rather boxy — thanks to rounded corners that make the dock look sleeker.
Other than that, the newer model has slightly lower suction power (16,600Pa compared to 18,000Pa on the X8 Pro Omni), but it now boasts a better anti-tangle brush system and a faster rotating roller mop. It can also independently raise the side brush when necessary to avoid scattering.
These upgrades mean it has an RRP of AU$2,599 (AU$100 more than the X8 Pro Omni at launch) but, in better news, it's now on the receiving end of a massive 65% discount on Amazon — down to just AU$899.
Deebot X8 Max Pro Omni: was $2599 now $899 A whopping 65% discount is absolutely nothing to scoff at. And yes, I admit I can't vouch for this model myself as an expert, but Amazon users seem happy with its performance, although some of those reviews are incentivised. Non-Vine users have also claimed it's a good buy and, given how impressed I was with the X8 Pro Omni, I think this will work just as well.View Deal
The slightly lower suction power on the Deebot X8 Max Pro Omni is neither here nor there in real-world use. Robovacs with even lower suction can perform just as well as models with upwards of 20,000Pa of suction as pulling power is highly dependent on airflow through the device.
In my tests I found that the X8 Pro Omni was able to vacuum remarkably well, but I was even more impressed by its mopping — and this Max model has the exact same roller mop mechanism as the older bot. In fact, I find rollers to be the better cleaners than rotating dual mop pads for a couple of reasons: they scrape along edges better and are able to use more water and actually mop rather than (dry) wipe as circular mop pads are wont to do.
I had no issues with navigation or obstacle avoidance with the older model, and I'm confident that since nothing other than the suction has changed here, the Max will be a good investment for anyone keen on a capable set-and-forget robot vacuum.
I would even go so far as to say not to wait until the Amazon Prime Big Deal Days sale next week as I don't think this vacuum will drop lower in price — AU$899 is an all-tine low that we first saw in August this year, long after the main Prime Day sale in July.
Action camera brand Insta360 has been making a name for itself in the webcam space recently, breaking out with its first-ever webcam, the Link, back in 2022. Then we saw the Insta360 Link 2 in 2024, so while I was hoping for a Link 3 this year, instead we're getting an interstitial generation: say hello to the Insta360 Link 2 Pro.
I can't say I'm disappointed, mind you. The Link 2 was a fantastic webcam, and while the Link 2 Pro is a fairly straightforward hardware upgrade, I'm not one to complain about getting more of a good thing. The Pro model increases the price a bit, but also delivers improved internals: a bigger, better sensor and wider aperture for superior FOV and light balance mean that 4K video capture looks even prettier. It also adds a little gold trim around the lens.
Now, the Link 2 was already a pricey product, so there's no denying that the Insta360 Link 2 Pro is very expensive for a webcam, even a 4K-capable one. More on that further down in this review, but in short: want one of the best budget webcams? This ain't that.
But for professional users creating video content or making regular presentations over video conferencing, the Link 2 Pro should be a very serious consideration. It may not be cheap, but you get a lot of webcam for your money: the performance, design quality, and feature set are truly all best-in-class.
(Image credit: Future)
It's almost a bit surprising that more camera companies haven't made the jump to webcams. From old-guard industry titans like Canon to up-and-coming manufacturers like DJI, you'd imagine that more of them would want to capitalize on a product type that has only become more necessary in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the rise of remote work.
But hey: their loss is Insta360's gain, having made a seamless jump from action-cams and drones to premium webcams. And make no mistake, the Link 2 Pro is indeed a premium piece of hardware.
The build quality on display here is nothing short of excellent. The casing is a pleasingly sturdy construction of matte plastic and metal, with a compact folding clip that snaps magnetically to the rotating gimbal mount, makning it easy to attach to any monitor. It also features an industry-standard threaded screwhole on the underside for fitting it to a tripod or arm mount.
(Image credit: Future)
Of course, the gimbal is arguably the star of the show here. A two-point mechanism that allows for both horizontal and vertical rotation of the main camera unit, the gimbal allows the camera to track your movements within a wide radius thanks to AI-powered head-tracking technology.
I tested this thoroughly, and it really works; even when I attempted to move completely out of frame, the camera was surprisingly adept at tracking my movements.
That's not all it's capable of, though. The gimbal also enables several of the Link 2 Pro's nifty presentation modes, including desktop mode (which points down to the surface in front of you, ideal for showing off physical documents), whiteboard mode (which frames and zooms on a whiteboard or similar presentation board), and the very clever 'pause-tracking' mode (which lets you designate a specific area where the tracking lingers naturally as it follows you around, creating a more dynamic feel to your footage).
It also doubles as a privacy feature (as opposed to a lens cover or camera killswitch), with the lens pointing directly down when not in use. A set of four 'recognition markers' is included in the box, which are used for some of the tracking-lock modes.
(Image credit: Future)
All this fancy functionality, as well as more 'conventional' features like light balance adjustment and digital zoom, is readily accessible through Insta360's free software. It's a solid tool that makes setting up your ideal video experience swift and seamless, but even better, it's also available as a phone app – perfect for quick adjustments without needing to fire up an extra piece of software on your PC while you're trying to record.
With all that fancy AI baked into the Link 2 Pro, you might be hoping for something a little more sophisticated than tracking modes. Worry not: like the previous Link 2, this webcam features a set of preloaded gesture controls, letting you control the camera with your hand movements rather than needing to adjust anything in the app.
These are fairly basic, but I found they worked well in practice. Holding up your palm freezes (or unfreezes) your tracking or auto-framing preset, holding up two fingers toggles the aforementioned whiteboard mode, and making an 'L' sign and moving your hand up and down lets you zoom in and out. It doesn't feel particularly natural at first, but I quickly found myself adapting to it.
(Image credit: Future)
Now, let's get to the meat of this review: how's that picture quality? Well, I'm very pleased to report that it's nothing short of excellent. Even in the poorly-lit, cramped little box of a room I call a home office, I don't think I've ever looked better on a monitor-mounted webcam.
4K footage is sharp and bright at 30FPS with solid color reproduction. The upgraded sensor and larger aperture compared to the previous model give the Link 2 Pro great performance across a range of light conditions, showing me clearly and well-illuminated whether it was the middle of the day with the curtains open or late at night by the light of my desk lamp.
The field of view is also reasonably wide at 83.9 degrees, making it easy to fit two or even three people in frame for presentations or podcasts. I've seen webcams with broader FOVs – in fact, I very recently reviewed the Razer Kiyo V2, which boasts an almost too-wide 91-degree FOV – but this is more or less perfect for mainstream use.
(Image credit: Future)
The built-in microphone array is pretty good considering that integrated microphones frequently feel like an afterthought on webcams. It offers clear enough audio capture with AI-powered background noise canceling for casual to intermediate users, great for stuff like Zoom meetings, but serious professional content creators will likely still want to invest in a proper standalone microphone.
In terms of flexibility of use, it's good, if not perfect. It's relatively compact, so while there are smaller and lighter webcams out there, you can still take it with you on the go if you work across multiple locations. If you fit it to a suitable mount, you can easily flip it onto its side to record vertical video for social media without any loss of functionality. The only issue is that it's a tad bulky to mount atop a laptop display unless your laptop has a particularly sturdy hinge, but that's a pretty minor issue in the grand scheme of things.
(Image credit: Future)
Overall, I'm finding very little I can criticize about the Insta360 Link 2 Pro. Other than the fact that it's undeniably expensive and will almost certainly be more than the average user actually needs, this is just a fundamentally great product that easily ranks among the best webcams on the market right now.
If I absolutely had to pick something to nitpick here, it might be that the Link 2 Pro lacks any kind of lens cap. Dust and debris getting stuck on or under the lens can be a real irritation with webcams, so it would have been a nice inclusion – especially considering that it's a pricey, high-end webcam. But that really is the definition of nitpicking; this is genuinely one of the greatest webcams I've seen in a long time.
Insta360 Link 2 Pro webcam: Price & availability
How much does it cost? $249.99 / £239 / AU$439
When is it available? Available now
Where can you get it? The US, UK, and Australia
At $249.99 / £239 / AU$439, the Insta360 Link 2 Pro is the most expensive webcam the company offers, and it's undeniably a steep price for the average user. If you're purely looking for a high-quality 4K webcam and you're not bothered about fancy features, you could easily find one for half that price if you shop sales.
That being said, I'm not going to call this bad pricing. Considering that the Link 2 Pro is a high-end webcam aimed squarely at professionals who are serious about their hardware, along with the rich feature set and great picture quality it offers, I don't think the price is unreasonable – it's just not going to be worth it for more casual users.
Insta360 Link 2 Pro webcam: Specs
Razer Kiyo V2
Price:
$249.99 / £239 / AU$439
Supported resolutions:
4Kp at 30fps, 1080p at 60fps
Sensor:
Insta360 1/1.3" Low Light Excellence Sensor
Field of view:
83.9 degrees
Connection:
USB-C
Features:
Digital zoom, AI auto-framing, AI tracking modes, AI autofocus, dynamic color correction, HDR, mechanized gimbal
Software Integration:
Insta360 mobile app, Insta360 Studio
Should you buy the Insta360 Link 2 Pro webcam?
(Image credit: Future)
Insta360 Link 2 Pro webcam report card
Value
The high asking price is the only thing holding the Link 2 Pro back from being genuinely perfect, but it's worth the money for professional users.
3.5 / 5
Design
The chassis remains unchanged from the Link 2, but it was already great, with the gimbal working fantastically.
5 / 5
Performance
Visual clarity is absolutely great at 4K, and the Link 2 Pro performs great at any light level and focal length.
5 / 5
Avarage rating
The definition of a premium webcam for content creators and remote professionals, the Insta360 Link 2 Pro is an easy recommendation – if you can stomach the price.
4.5 / 5
Buy it if...
You want the best of the best It's not cheap, but the Insta360 Link 2 Pro more than earns its title of 'premium webcam', with great performance and a rich, useful feature set.
You want smart tracking modes The AI-powered gimbal tracking of the Link 2 Pro works seamlessly across a range of use cases, making it ideal for activities like podcasting and shopping streams.
Don't buy it if...
You're on a budget With a steep price tag of $249.99 / £239 / AU$439, there's no denying that the Link 2 Pro will be too expensive for many users.
You want something simple While it does offer pretty effective plug-and-play functionality, the Link 2 Pro is a high-end device that offers more than the average Zoom user really needs.
Insta360 Link 2 Pro webcam: Also consider
Insta360 Link 2C Our current top pick of the 4K webcams available on the market right now, the Link 2C offers performance that almost matches the Link 2 Pro, but removes the fancy mechanized gimbal to provide a more straightforward webcam experience at a lower price point.
Obsbot Tiny 2 The Tiny 2 from Obsbot delivers 4K video along with AI-powered tracking via its mechanical gimbal mount, just like the Link 2 Pro. For those who want a high-end video experience, this is a great pick.
8+ years of experience reviewing computer hardware
I've been using an Insta360 Link 2 as my day-to-day webcam for several months now, so I was curious to see how it compared to the Link 2 Pro. As per my usual process for reviewing webcams, I replaced my daily driver with the Link 2 Pro for just over a week, using it for my usual spate of workday video calls.
I also installed the relevant Insta360 software on my phone and PC to test out its functionality, and made sure to test the performance of the Link 2 Pro in a range of different light conditions by recording video and comparing the clips side by side.
I've been testing and reviewing PC hardware for more than eight years, starting at the PC-building hobbyist magazine Maximum PC before making the leap to TechRadar's computing team. I put all of my knowledge and experience behind each and every one of my product reviews, so you can be assured that you're getting an informed and bias-free judgement.
In recent years, the landscape of cyber scams has evolved, targeting even the tools designed to protect consumers. One such concerning development involves the exploitation of trusted services to mislead and scam users. This article explores a specific case in which scammers may have taken advantage of these services to deceive users into divulging sensitive information, leading to potential financial losses and identity theft.
The Mechanics of the Cyber Scams
At the core of this issue lies a highly sophisticated cyber scam that exploits the trust consumers place in services that were designed to alert users regarding suspicious activities or data breaches. In this case, however, scammers have managed to breach the very systems intended to safeguard user identities. Here’s how the scam operates:
Compromised Alerts: Users receive seemingly legitimate alert emails from a trusted organization, notifying them of potential security issues. These emails include clickable links that direct users to what appear to be secure websites.
Redirects to Malicious Sites: Upon clicking the link, users are redirected to malicious domains designed to look like legitimate websites or are taken directly to scam sites hosted on platforms like Telegram. These sites may request further sensitive information under the guise of security checks or offer downloads that contain malware.
Exploitation of User Trust: The effectiveness of this scam lies in its exploitation of user trust. Since the alerts originate from a trusted source, users are more likely to click on the links without their usual level of scrutiny. This bypasses standard phishing detection mechanisms, which often filter out emails from suspicious or unknown sources.
Indicators of Deceptive Practices
Several red flags were identified during the investigation into these compromised alerts:
Clickable Links in Alerts: Unlike more secure practices adopted by other identity protection services, some alerts include clickable links. This practice is risky because it can easily be exploited to redirect users to malicious sites.
Use of Scam Domains: The domains used in these alerts were found to be registered for the explicit purpose of hosting scam operations. For example, one domain redirected users to a Telegram channel that further directed them to malicious downloads or additional scams.
High Click-Through Rates: Analysis of traffic to these scam domains revealed a substantial number of users clicking through from these alerts. This suggests a significant exploitation of these alerts, driving traffic to malicious sites and potentially resulting in a high number of compromised users.
Potential Implications and Risks of Cyber Scams
The consequences of this scam could be far-reaching:
Financial Loss: Users deceived by these scams might inadvertently provide sensitive information such as banking details, leading to financial fraud or unauthorized transactions.
Identity Theft: The exposure of personal information can lead to identity theft, where attackers use the information to open new accounts, make purchases, or engage in other forms of fraud.
Malware Infections: Users who download files from these scam sites could infect their devices with malware, further compromising their security and potentially leading to data loss or additional breaches.
Conclusion: How Constella Intelligence Leads the Way in Combatting These Threats
At Constella Intelligence, we’ve recognized the growing sophistication of scams targeting identity protection services and have implemented advanced mechanisms to safeguard our users.
Our systems incorporate a robust verification and curation process, designed to detect and mitigate these types of fraudulent attacks before they reach our customers. In line with the rigorous standards we detail in our blog Verifying the National Public Data Breach, we employ advanced data validation and monitoring techniques to ensure every alert is legitimate and free from manipulation. By continuously monitoring for suspicious patterns and ensuring that all alerts are authentic, we provide the most secure identity protection available on the market. As the leading identity protection provider, we’re committed to staying ahead of emerging threats and maintaining the trust our users place in us to protect their personal information.
Recommendations for Users
To safeguard against potential scams and enhance online security, consider the following steps:
Avoid Clicking on Links in Emails: Even if the email appears to be from a trusted source, manually navigate to the company’s official website instead of clicking on links in the email. This reduces the risk of being redirected to a malicious site.
Use a Password Manager: A password manager can help generate and store complex, unique passwords for each of your accounts, reducing the risk if one service is compromised.
Monitor Your Accounts Regularly: Frequently check your bank statements and credit reports for any unauthorized activity. Early detection of suspicious activity can prevent more significant financial losses.
Enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA): Whenever possible, use MFA on your online accounts. This adds an additional layer of security by requiring multiple forms of verification.
By following these recommendations, users can better protect themselves from the increasingly sophisticated tactics employed by scammers to exploit even the most trusted services.
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