Belkin makes the MagSafe iPhone mount for desktop owners who want a better webcam

The Camera Continuity feature was one of the headlines in the macOS Ventura update: Any Mac can now use any compatible iPhone as a webcam via a Lightning cable or a wireless connection. AND any The iPhone camera is a significant improvement over the 720p and 1080p webcams that ship with the iMac and most 1080p desktop cameras from Logitech, Microsoft and Razer (for Mac mini and Pro owners without a built-in webcam).

The problem is finding a place to put your iPhone while trying to use it as a camera. Belkin made a MagSafe mount that could quickly clip an iPhone to the top edge of a MacBook, but the retention grip is too tight to use with most desktop monitors. A new version of the mount, announced today, has been designed with a wider base and a stand of sorts to help it fit on top of most desktop monitors.

As of this writing, the Belkin iPhone Mount (Magsafe Compatible) for Mac Desktop is listed on Apple’s site for $29.95, although a Belkin representative informed us that the correct price is $39.95. Product photos show it sitting in front of a Studio Display, which includes a front-facing camera similar to what Apple includes on the iPad, but image quality has been mixed.

As a MagSafe accessory, Belkin’s mount will only work with a subset of iPhones that support the Continuous Camera feature. MagSafe is included in all iPhone 12, iPhone 13, and iPhone 14 models (Pro, mini, Max, and more), while Continuity Camera works with phones as old as 2018’s iPhone XR. To support Continuous Camera, your Mac must be running macOS Ventura and your phone must have iOS 16.0 or later.