Recommendations on budget camcorders

[claire]

Can anyone recommend me an inexpensive camcorder (more or less $100) but of course, having good features as well. I want to get a very good image for very little money.

Any recommendations would be much appreciated.

Thanks in advance

[tamia]

Sure! Here's the Top 3 budget camcorders. A feature-packed models that start at $119.

Flip Video

Flip Video, made by a company called Pure Digital, is easily the best value in the video camera business. It’s an excellent choice if you want to record fun, personal party mementos, vacation trips and other important but passing moments, without too much concern about making a show with broadcast quality. That said, and other than lacking the ability to zoom in close to your subject — meaning you have to be within close range to shoot — the compromises here are very, very small indeed.

[tamia]

Canon ZR900

Canon has been making camcorders for years now and is rightfully considered among the easiest to use. The new ZR900 is also among the least expensive, particularly considering the number of features — cameras this feature-rich would have cost over $500 only a few years ago. Now you're looking at half that price.

But it’s zoom that makes the big difference here. The ZR900 is differentiated from its less expensive Flip Video competition by its terrific 41x zoom lens , so you don’t have to be right next to your subject to capture it clearly. This is especially welcome when your little striker decides to go deep into the corner to take her big shot. The camera works seamlessly with both Mac and PC and has image stabilization. Best yet, Canon kindly built in a microphone jack, a great addition for those who need good audio of their thespian’s moment on stage

[tamia]

Aiptek A-HD

By far the best blend of the two cameras above (uses the new, tapeless solid-state memory but also produces a beautiful image), the Aiptek A-HD is a great choice for people who want more features than the basic Flip Video camera but who want to avoid videotape.

The A-HD is also striking looking, with a 2.5-inch flip-out LCD screen so you can clearly see what you’re shooting, but which folds up into a palm-size package. The camera records its images onto an SD card, for which there’s a built-in slot. You’ll need to buy the SD card separately — they’re available everywhere electronics are sold — but it’s well worth the extra cost. The camera works with SD cards that hold up to 8GB of information, or about three hours of DVD-quality video. So for most applications, you’ll have plenty of storage space.