Disposable video cameras

CNN reported For years, disposable cameras have been a magnet for last-minute photographic whimsy, encouraging all manner of embarrassing pictures from weddings and other social events. Watch out: There's now a disposable video camera. The $29.99 pocket-sized digital video cameras are able to capture up to 20 minutes of video and sound. CVS Corp. stores, which has exclusive rights to sell them, will process the camera for $12.99 and return a DVD; users also can e-mail video and video greeting cards.

Pure Digital Technologies Inc. developed and designed the camera with just three buttons. One starts and stops recording, another is used to play back video and the third deletes recorded segments. Grant Pill, director of photography and imaging at CVS, said the camera is ideal for people who don't want to spend hundreds of dollars or fuss with too many controls. Available now in the Northeast and elsewhere by the end of the month, the video camera looks similar to a point-and-shoot disposable camera, except it's held vertically to film. The camcorder weighs 5.5 ounces, Pill said, and is about the size of an MP3 player. Users watch what they're filming through a rectangular, 1.4-inch wide color display. There are no zoom features. After filming a segment, the user can review what's been recorded and choose to delete the segment at any time during playback. Pill called the film good VHS quality, but acknowledged it isn't on par with that produced by some personal camcorders.

This is really becoming a disposable world

Hat tip to Gadgetopia

Marko commented I'd guess by next week or so, we'll see hacks available that will let users download the digital movies to PCs and then reuse the camera themselves. Might be fun attaching one to a kite or the like for some fun videos (and the price won't eat you up like dropping a multi-hundred dollar camera would).