CAMCORDER

noun Occasionally written cam-corder (Lifestyle and Leisure) (Science and Technology) A portable video camera with a built-in sound recorder, which can produce recorded video cassettes (and in some cases also play them back). Etymology: A clipped compound, formed by combining the first syllable of camera with the last two of recorder. History and Usage: Prototype camcorders were produced almost simultaneously by several Japanese companies at the beginning of the eighties; the word was first used in English-language sources in 1982. By the end of the eighties it had become almost a household word, as video took over from cine and home movies for recording family occasions, travel, etc. If you want to use a video camera simply to record events in the school year then the camcorder might be for you. Times Educational Supplement 30 Nov. 1984, p. 29 The eight-millimetre camcorders (eight-millimetre refers to the width of the tape)...produce tapes that cannot be used with the VHS format. New Yorker 24 Nov. 1986, p. 98