When Camp Snap first introduced its handheld retro camcorder last year, they were aiming it at kids. Specifically, they thought it would be a fun accessory for kids to bring at summer camp, hence the name. Instead, the device has found a more adult audience of camera enthusiasts who have a fondness for retro gear. Maybe, the Camp Snap CS-8 Mini will prove a better fit for kids.
While the original camera did look like a fun toy for kids, it was pretty big, making it a better fit for older teens and adults. They’re hoping to change that with this miniature version, which supposedly comes in at half the size of the original, making it overall an easier contraption for kids to handle.
The Camp Snap CS-8 Mini is a more compact version of the last year’s screen-free camcorder, which looks like the one of those Super 8mm cameras with a long grip at the bottom from back in the day. The camera body is significantly smaller this time around, same as the grip, which should make it easier to grasp for children’s smaller hands. It still retains the same general design as the original, including the point-and-shoot operation, trigger pull recording, and a viewfinder with a kid-friendly rear eyecup for easily framing your shots.
The camera houses a 1/2.7-inch sensor that captures 2.7K video (down from 4K on the bigger model) at 24fps in digital mode and 18 fps in analog mode. You can record video in any of four aspect ratios, namely 16:9, 1:1, 4:3, and 9:16 vertical for those who want to shoot portrait videos for TikTok, Reels, and YouTube shorts. It uses a fixed lens, but it does offer 8x digital zoom, which you can activate using the W (zoom out) and T (zoom in) buttons on the side of the camera body. For those who want more stylish footage, it also offers five different film-inspired filters you can choose from a dial on the side, so you can make your videos look like faded 90s home video, flickering 8mm film recordings, or classic black and white footage.
The Camp Snap CS-8 Mini captures audio through an integrated mic, with no option for capturing sound externally. We don’t know how good the audio is, but we’re guessing great audio is not the priority when using a camera like this. Everything is stored on the included 4GB SD card, which you can replace with a bigger card if you plan to shoot a lot more footage. It supports cards up to 128GB. It also comes with analog gauges for both the storage and battery life, allowing you to keep track of how much more footage you can actually store. There’s a USB slot for transferring files to another device, since it doesn’t have Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connectivity.
The camera measures 6 x 5.6 x 2 inches (height x width x thickness) and weighs 0.58 pounds, making it small and light enough for young kids to operate. It comes in four bright colors, namely blue, orange, pink, and green.
The Camp Snap CS-8 Mini is available now, priced at $149.99.
