[christie5]

As the title suggests I'm looking for the best budget SD camcorder I'll be filming in Egypt so I'm guessing it will need a low light function and reasonable battery life. Any suggestions? Or should I just get a HD camcorder?

[senu]

There is no "best".
What there is great VFM around any price point
Your budget will determine suggestions as you get what you pay for, up to a point, after which diminishing returns occurs

[A n d r e w]

In other words, what exactly is your budget?

[senu]

Originally Posted by A n d r e w

In other words, what exactly is your budget?

Correct ,
"Budget" for Andrew is £2000.. That is what I earn (before tax) in a month

[christie5]

The budget will depend on the quality, I'd rather pay a few hundred more for a better one, rather than a couple of hundred on a naff one

[senu]

Originally Posted by christie5

The budget will depend on the quality, I'd rather pay a few hundred more for a better one, rather than a couple of hundred on a naff one

Domestic Camcorders currently range from £120- £1000 ( Sem Pro Even more and some Non pro enthusiasts use these)

The Choices of Standard definition, High definition
Tape, HDD or SD card as recording media ( All of which have great and "so so" models) mean that your answer above is rather vague

If you have £800- £1000 to spend . then youll be looking at the Hi def models from Sony , Panasonic and Canon
If you have £150 to spend , Standard def MiniDV ( which are not bad for the money)
or
An affordable SD card model which doesnt pretend to have state of the are video quality
Of course there are many " in between" models which have happy owners

Some people pay for small form factor, , lifestyle sytling
Convenience of HDD or SD card
And some still ( quite rightly) feel there is a lot of life left in tape

As such a " best" will always be relative as is quality..


Low light seems to get more attainable the more you spend , and long battery life ....really??
That why the manufacturers make longer duration batteries
So
Either come up with models you have considered for comment.. or name a specific budget ( or range, if you have one)
No one camcorder has it all no matter how much you have to spend