Aldi some time ago were selling one for about ?25 – seems to be fine – I’ve only needed it a couple of times to check where cables were running.
The flexitube was about 5ft

Such Aldi products seem to come back into stores on a regular basis but as my nearest store is some distance away not checked since Covid started

Depending on age and construction of house you may have to consider rats in cavity walls too. I had to change a plastic vent louvre for a DIY stainless one after they ate through my first ally replacement…

Just an incidental comment but you can remove larger objects via endoscopy surgically…such scopes have operating channels for a range of tools for laparoscopic surgery from fibre-optic laser guides to a range of cutters and small bags to put the bits in via a second portal. The price is eye-watering for the good stuff.. Laparoscopic kidney removal is done .. quite a big thing a human kidney.. stick it in the bag and mush it then extrude the mushed bag-full out…

pgk

I've recently purchased a ROTEK Digital Inspection Camera (Amazon UK) for just over £50 (with the 5M cable – it's slightly cheaper with the 3M one).

It works pretty well and is self-contained, having its own LCD screen, rechargeable battery and a slot for a SD card (so you can record images). I looked at the 'smartphone' versions (much cheaper) but was put off by reviews that queried the quality/security of the software app that need to be downloaded for them to work.

The accessories (right angle lens etc) are rather naff but the main camera/lights work well enough but do need some interpretation (skill/practice?) to understand what you are seeing. Also getting the end of the cable pointing to exactly where you want it can be a real fiddle. However, having tried cameras on sticks etc – this device let me look for a broken pipe that I could not have found easily without its use.

So worth the money just for what I needed it for and I'm pleased that I paid the extra to get something that will probably get used a bit more often than I originally thought.

Regards,

IanT

Field of view, depth of field and lens focal length would seem to be important parameters when selecting the one that best suits your needs. Presumably it varies between different breeds although the sales data on Amazon et al is less than comprehensive. Many imply a variable focal length from 10 mm to 500 cm or more(!) which would be a good trick if explicitly true. I suspect its a more impressive description of something that is "sorta like" on agood day .

The earlier affordable ones, like the LiDL unit I got several years ago, suffered from short focal length, limited feild of view and mall depth of focus. Which made getting them pointed at the right thing in the right place something of an art. But still, for me, way better than nothing. Looking at the current market upgrading next time I want to use such a thing might be a good idea.

As ever with affordable kit you need personal recommendations as to which jobs a particualr breed is best at.

Clive

I looked at one once

"Do not use this product for medical purposes!" was all over the box