What you need to know
- The IOGear UpStream capture card has launched at CES 2022.
- Supports 4K60 HDR input and passthrough, alongside high refresh rate passthrough at 1440p and 1080p.
- Launching in March for $200.
If you're a budding content creator, particularly if you own an Xbox Series X or Xbox Series S, this new capture card revealed at CES 2022 by IOGear might be just the ticket. Especially if you're trying to keep your budget down.
The UpStream capture card (model number GUV302G) is coming to market in March of this year for $200 and brings plenty to the table. One of the less glamorous, but I think outstanding features, is a UVC based driver. Why does this matter? Because it doesn't actually require any special software to operate and UVC means it'll work on PC, Mac, Linux, even a Chromebook. Whatever you want to use to create content on.
The other feature that shouldn't be overlooked is the built-in audio features, allowing for easy party chat capture. It also makes it easy to set up your audio properly if you're using a PS5 since Sony still makes it harder than it should be to both capture and listen to game audio at the same time.
It's an external capture card which means both laptops and desktops can use it just the same, all you need to get the most from it is a USB 3.1 connection. From there it's plug and play with the likes of OBS Studio.
In terms of performance, IOGear promises 4K60 HDR input and passthrough support, with additional passthrough for 1440p144 and 1080p240, so it'll handle upgraded Series X games at 120 FPS as well as your PC games, too, if you're recording to a secondary machine. No need to sacrifice what you're playing. Capture at 4K is limited to 30 FPS, but it does so with virtually no latency.
Considering the price point is about the same as the Elgato HD60 S+, the IOGear Upstream is certainly going to be worth a look. The Elgato doesn't support the high frame rate passthrough or any form of 4K capture that you get here and uses only USB 3.0 as well. The added bonus of using UVC standards and some simple, but nifty audio features make this one we'll be keeping an eye out for.
