A camcorder for less than $40. And it shoots good video too.

The SNAPP CAM3000 from Coby Electronics is a pocket-sized digital camcorder shaped very much like the Flip. You can use it to shoot video, take pictures, and play back your files on the built-in color 1.5" LCD screen. There’s a tiny bit of built-in memory, 32MB, but you’ll most likely just be using the built-in SD card slot. It can handle SD/SDHC cards up to 8 GB. That should give you more than 2 hours of recording time. But how does it record? Actually for the money – the results are amazing! You can see for yourself at the link below. When a friend who does PR for Coby said she wanted to try their new under $40 camcorder, I thought: “Under $40, this must be junk!”. Surprise, it shoot very decent video. This is a great camcorder for the kids. You can find it for as low as $29.95 if you do a price search on the web. That way the kids can have their own camera and they’ll leave yours alone. It ships with ArcSoft video editing software and YouTube uploader. I didn’t use the software but uploaded the video to YouTube from putting the SD card from the Coby directly into my computer’s card reader.  A USB cable and hand strap are also included. It runs on 4 AAA batteries which are also included.  Here from Coby are the specs: 1.5" TFT LCD Full Color Display / 1.3MP CMOS sensor(1280 x 960) with LED for low-light situations/ 4x digital zoom – (you can’t an optical zoom at under $40!)/ 32MB built-in memory, SD/SDHC card slot expandable up to 8GB/ 4 X "AAA" batteries (included) with over 4 hours of battery life / ArcSoft Media Impression for video editing and uploading to YouTube / Video resolution: VGA(640 x 480) @ 30fps, AVI fle, codec: Motion JPEG / Connects easily to computer for use as a webcam (driver included and installation required). Here’s a short piece of video I shot with the Coby right out of the box. I'm not using the zoom, but actually moving closer to this great little squirrel!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QhKUFWyubU&feature=channel

And another of my outdoor backyard railroad.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ic3DtP9YfhU

I haven’t shopped here, but this place sells it for $30.52

http://www.amazon.com/Coby-CAM3000-1-44-Inch-Digital-Camcorder/dp/B002DW96R6

Hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw938