YouTube, now a universal household name in many countries and an endless source of entertainment, is one of the best places to get maximum exposure for your videos. Have a cool trick, an interesting cloud formation, or footage of a UFO? Put it on YouTube for the world to see.
For anyone who has spent time surfing the site, you know that some of the videos are poor quality – in fact, some are so horrible they aren’t even watchable. In this time of technology, it is very possible for the average person to purchase and own a descent camera for quick video captures.
The goal of a good YouTube camcorder should be video clarity, audio quality, durability, size, and battery life – the main goal, however, is a cheap price; no one wants to bring an expensive HD camcorder into a wet cave for some late night monster hunting. While a few years ago these specs would be nearly impossible to find in a camera under $300, times have changed, and it is now very possible to find the camera. The list below is a comprehensive list of the best camcorders for the price that meet these specs.
Aiptek A-HD Flash-Based Camcorder
The Aiptek A-HD camcorder made quite a stir when it was released. At a new price of $140, this camera can be purchased used for less than $50. It records in 720p HD, will lower options (D1 and Web) for better video to storage ratio.
This camera records to an SD card up 8GB, making it extremely simple to transfer the video to your computer – the video can be transferred via a mini USB cable, or by popping out the card and inserting it into a PC card reader.
Video quality in bright light is superb, while low light is average quality. Audio is slight below average. While it will record someone talking, it has static and won’t get distant sounds. This, however, can be remedied if you are comfortable replacing the internal mic with an audio-in port.
Flip Camcorder
If you are looking for a cheaper camera, and you’re not worried about widescreen or HD, this camcorder is a good choice. It is durable and doesn’t have a fold-out LCD that can be broke off. It doesn’t,however, have all the options as the Aiptek. It is a simple point and shoot camcorder. The cameras have internal flash memory, and no expansion slot for increased storage.
Sanyo Xacti
The Sanyo Xacti line is famous for kicking off the market for flash based camcorders. While there are a number available, and some of them are quite expensive, the lower end ones are coming down in price, and can be found for $150 – $200. The Xacti C50 is the most famous, and is cheap. It records in HQ 640 x 480 video, and is ultra-slim. While the video isn’t as good as the Aiptek, the audio is much better.
