I have never bought nor owned a camcorder, and I plan to buy one for my birthday in September. I am not an aspiring filmmaker, I don’t need it for school or work, and I’m not looking to break my bank on my first camcorder. With that said, I don’t mind spending a little bit of money if it is worth it and I would like to have a method to record anything I want and EASILY upload my videos onto my computer. I also would prefer a small, lighter design that is not difficult to travel with or carry. I am very open to any suggestions and truly have no idea nor any preference on what I will purchase. If anyone can make a suggestion and why they recommend the camcorder they suggest I would greatly appreciate it. Additionally, any web sites selling good camcorders and more importantly web sites with camcorder reviews and buying guides would also be of great help to me. Finally, I know that some cell phones have good video cameras, but I use my cell phone for making calls, not for shooting videos, so please don’t bother suggesting that I use my cell phone. Thank you very much for reading and responding to my question…
Thank you Mandy, much appreciated. Since you were so helpful, I’d like to follow up. I have seen one of these pocket cams, my aunt has one and showed it to me. It was very interesting and I liked it, but I don’t mind spending more money if need to get a more standard camcorder. What is really the differences between these pocket camcorders and a smaller basic more typical camcorder? I know it will be larger and more expensive of course, but what are other major differences? Thank you again, and FYI, I’d like to get the best deal but have no problem spending $300-$400 if necessary (that doesn’t mean that a $120 pocket camcorder is out of the quesiton though)…
Thanks again everybody. I basically can spend as much as I want but to be reasonable since I am NOT a filmmaker, I think under $500 seems reasonable, but that does not mean that spending $200 or $300 is out of the question, I like to save money like everybody. Really what I don’t want is to overpay for a great camcorded which has a number of bells and whistles that I would never need nor use. I just want to be able to record anything I want at anytime with EASE and even more importantly upload to any computer with EASE. When I say with EASE, I literally mean as EASY as possible that a chimpanzee could do (I am not much smarter than a chimpanzee). Thanks again!
For your requirements, get a pocket camcorder. There are several brands and models that record in HD (720p) and can easily upload to your computer and/or YouTube. Popular ones are the Flips by Pure Digital (Cisco), Sony Webbie and Sony Bloggie, VadoHD, and the Kodak Zi8. Of these I favor the Kodak Zi8.
These are a few of the highlights of the Zi8 over the other cams I listed which makes it a better choice:
128GB of internal memory and can use memory cards
Can take 5.3MP still images.
Has an external microphone input port
Charges using an A/C power adapter (not USB as most pocket cams do)
$117.00 at amazon.com
Many of the cams I listed can be purchased at stores like Costco, Walmart, etc. But amazon.com may have the best prices.
Camcorder Specifications – White & Pink; 4 GB; Records 120 Minutes of Video.