Elgato Game Capture Neo
Manufacturer: Elgato
Price: $129.99
The streaming and content creation has been steadily increasing and more people want to join the hobby. Even if you use game capturing for your Discord server, another offering from Elgato swept in to save the day. Elgato has long dominated the space, but smaller contenders have been quietly chipping away. Enter the Elgato Game Capture Neo, a sleek, affordable option that tries to bridge the gap between beginner convenience and pro-level features.
Design and Build
The Neo lives up to its name: small, minimalist, and surprisingly durable. The matte finish avoids the cheap plastic feel common in budget capture cards, while its understated design makes it easy to slot into any setup. It’s USB-C powered and connects to your USB 3.0 slot like any other card would.
Port selection is straightforward: HDMI in, HDMI out, and a single USB-C output to your PC or laptop. It’s simple and that’s all it needs to be. One thing that I wish was added was audio 3.5mm ports for audio. In comparison to my existing capture card, the Razer Ripsaw HD, features the audio ports for microphone and headphones that could work here too.
Performance
Neo has pretty good latency. Testing via PC, it handles 1080p at 60 FPS smoothly, and for many streamers that’s more than enough. The Neo supports 4K60 HDR passthrough, but video capture itself caps at 1080p60. For anyone who’s looking into 4K recording or future-proofing their content, this might be a dealbreaker.
Obviously, there are more products that can net you higher than 1080p resolution and they’re honestly incrementally ~$20 per step up. If your primary focus for streaming is Twitch (which only streams at 1080p anyway), this won’t hurt you. Probably the best picture when compared to others that approach or match its price point.
Software and Ease of Use
Plug-and-play is the Neo’s biggest selling point. Windows and macOS detect it instantly, OBS recognizes it without a fuss, and setup time is minimal. In fact, the setup when adding the source, it was just right there with your capture the way you see it on the PC or whatever you’re capturing.
You can very much hit the ground running. No software downloads unless you need it directly from Elgato which takes little to no time. A negative through the setup process was the active signal was 4K resolution which made the monitor view a bit smaller to see and enlarging the icons made it blurrier than before. The solution was to tinker around in NVIDIA’s control panel to change a setting or two. It took some outside troubleshooting to resolve this issue. I also had a minor issue with using 1080p120, which this card supports passthrough for, and it came back with a weird color glitch that I found no solution for other than using standard 1080p60.
Value
At its price point, the Neo hits an attractive spot: cheaper than Elgato’s HD60 X offerings while still delivering stable, consistent performance. It’s perfect for streamers on a budget, laptop-based creators, or anyone who wants a no-fuss capture card that “just works.”
Where it falls short is in its lack of advanced features—no HDR recording, no 4K capture, no 3.5mm jacks for audio. For some, that’s a refreshing lack of bloat. For others, it means outgrowing the Neo faster than you’d like. As previously stated, other Elgato capture cards offer slightly more resolutions for recording which can cut into this card’s success.
Verdict
The Elgato Game Capture Neo is a great entry-level tool that nails the basics: reliable 1080p60 capture, low latency, and a compact form factor. It’s not here to be more than it is. It’s here to give you exactly what you need, and nothing more. If your content is focused on Twitch, YouTube streaming, or straightforward recording, this little device will serve you well. Just don’t expect it to scale up with you once you start demanding more advanced features and higher resolutions.
The Elgato Game Capture Neo was reviewed using a unit purchased by Niche Gamer. You can find additional information about Niche Gamer’s review/ethics policy here.
