Camcorder recommendation around $300?

[Fairy Grandmother]

Can anyone recommend a good camcorder around the $300 range? We are buying it primarily to use at WDW next month.:santa:

[BigRedDad]

What are your primary requirements besides $300?

Is quality a concern? This is subjective, but getting quality video is going to exceed $300 unless you buy used.
High Definition?
Record to SD memory, hard drive, tape?
Optical zoom?

At $300, you are going to have to make some requirement concessions. I would stick to Canon or Panasonic. What is going to cost you is the media to write to. I would definitely not getting anything that writes to a DVD. You want a hard drive (if you can offload to a laptop on your trip), SD memory, or tape.

[A Big Kid]

If you want features at that price, I'd suggest a visit to your local pawn shop.

[Fairy Grandmother]

Thanks for the suggestions. I am buying it mostly for a 13 year old to use and have fun with. It will be an early Christmas present. I want more than just a flip camera.

I never thought of checking at a pawn shop. If I was buying it for myself (and knew more about camcorders) that might be an option.

I have narrowed it down to a Canon or Panasonic. From BigRedDad's post I guess either brand will be good. I am leaning toward the Canon.

Thank you for taking the time to help me. It is confusing trying to take everything into consideration before making a final decision.

[Kenny1113]

I have a Sony dcr sx40 camcorder. It is not a wonderful camera,And has some limitations ( no external light). But for us it gets the job done. We use it mostly to record our kids swim meets and capture little memories.the best part is that it is small and great for travel. I am sure a teenager would be happy with it.