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Disposable Camcorder
shamowfski writes "CVS Corp on Monday began selling a disposable digital camcorder. The $29.99 pocket-sized camcorder was developed by Pure Digital Technologies Inc., a San Francisco-based start-up company. The camcorder weighs under 5 ounces and holds 20 minutes of digital video and sound. It features a 1.4 inch color playback screen and an ability to delete video, and it saves video on a memory chip instead of tapes. Can't wait till they hack this one."
been used much?
I mean, how many people actually did the hack and got a cheap, reusable digital camera out of the deal?
I'm betting it wasn't enough to have a large effect on sales.
Yep, we're going to be seeing a whole lotta fresh amateur porn over at Livejournal from this. Man, I love PureDigital.
--grendel drago
Laws do not persuade just because they threaten. --Seneca
I can't help but think that, since I imagine they will re-use everything, including the memory unit, that people will find out not only how to get the data form the chip itself, but also will be able to read what was recorded on there by previous disposable camcorder owners. No chance of that going wrong at all...
09 F9 11 02 9D 74 E3 5B D8 41 56 C5 63 56 88 C0
So if you play by the rules - you spend 30 bucks to rent it, then another 13 to get the burned dvd. $43 for a 20 minute DVD. Seems a bit steep in my book.
It's hard to believe that's how Micronians are made. Why don't we see it right now by having you both kiss one another?
This is not feasable. I'd pay $20 for a 1.4" color screen to play with on its own. There has to be a deposit to make sure they are recycled by the right people. So the $20 includes the ability to get the data back out? Pay $80, get $60 back when you turn the case in, that I can see happening.
Realisistically, how long before the average cell phone has basic video recording capabilities? Most phones now have still cameras, and the main limitation on video is just storage capacity. So, I should think that within 5 years, video cell phones will be standard and then this device is totally irrelevant.
This sig has been temporarily disconnected or is no longer in service
You can get decent camcorders (Panasonic PV-53) off ebay for $100, why bother with this POS?
Soo... We trust them with guns but not cameras?
Fuck that. I would never have any "special moments" recorded. Not now, not ever..with anything.
I don't like the idea of that shit comming back to haunt me on the internet. Because you know shit like that can and has happened before.
Life is not for the lazy.
Which is more threatening to the powers that be?
Pen vs. Sword, Act III Scene 2...
News for Geeks in Austin, TX
"A camcorder that records onto a digital card is disposable...how?"
Proprietary battery? One-way moulded case containing the media? Real crypto?
Those of us who remember Super-8 film, remember paying $6.00 (1978 dollars!) for the three minute and twenty second film cartridge, and another $8.00 to develop it.
>Who needs a camcorder like that?
I'm sure if it's sold in the right shops at the right places, tons of people will buy them. They will be sold to people before embarking on day cruises (even people with real cameras hate seawater spray. Would you take your Canon XL2 on a Zodiac?) They will be bought dozens at a time for wedding guests or corporate meetings. How do you suppose a waterproof version would do at a dive or surf shop?
People pay $12.00 for a 24-exposure C41 camera today, and another $10-12 to develop the film. Hell, *I* have even done this, and I have a very good digital SLR, a good digital point-and-shoot, and a respectable film SLR system. I've still found reasons to buy these things from time to time, sometimes for the waterproof Kodak, sometimes only to avoid standing out or being singled out, and occassionally because I enjoy working within the limitations of a given medium.
Nobody "needs" a camcorder like that. But they will be purchased, along with bugspray, sunblock, and a bag of cheetos. I'm sure I'll even try one.
One thing though, if it does turn out to be hackable, I assume I'll never see one. Just like I never saw an Iopener or a CueCat or a Nintendo glove or a Juicebox.
-fb Everything not expressly forbidden is now mandatory.
I haven't had a digital camera die a natural death yet.
What's a natural death for a man-made artifact?
'SBEMAIL!' is better than a goat!!
Damn it, you beat me to it. Seriously, I paid $900 for a major brand camcorder and a year and 3 months later it's kaput - repair price exceeds replacement price. The problem - a manufacturing defect in the processor. The warranty - 1 year. That's the last time I buy expensive crap from Sony.
I know many, many, many people with the same story - expensive Sony toy dies just after the warranty. They have all sworn off of Sony.
I'm amazed at haw many times I've heard that.
Actually, what this company is suggesting is superior to recycling. The cameras themselves are reusable. So, rather than say melting the plastics and reforming them (which itself would be difficult if at all possible), the camera frame can be used verbatim without expending the large energy costs associated with recycling.
Give me reuse over recycling any day.
keep it in your glove box in case of who-knows-what (Rodney King II?)
take it mountain biking to get clips of your buddies
on vacation when you forget your real camcorder
as a kids' toy
set them out on the tables at a wedding party for the guests to film each other and leave you advice
It's a shame that this once great company is now running on fumes, clinging to an old reputation of high quality while they now pump out crap. I haven't had, or heard of anyone having, a good Sony experience in the last 7 years, the PS2 being about the only exception.
That's $42.98 per use... $2.15 cents per minute... not including sales tax.
Though people talk about hacking it, the people who could hack it are not the target market for it, as they can figure out how to use their camcorders and DVD burners.
- Greg
Start a happiness pandemic