This year, Mattel launched Barbie Video Girl, a $50 version of the beloved blonde that sports a video recording device in her necklace and an LCD screen on her back. (Mattel has already courted vloggers like iJustine.) In the spirit of casual citizen journalism, creative mind Brandon Bloch bought one and produced a video comparing the Barbie-cam to a Canon 7D—an $1,800 camera!

He playfully but thoroughly went through the features of each product, ending with a surprising footage comparison. Although Barbie didn't turn out to be as hefty a shooter as Canon's pricey wonder, she wasn't too far off the mark—which was amazing!

Bloch's video pithily concluded, "Is the Barbie as good as the 7D? ... No, but it's amazing for what it is."

His intention was to showcase his directing/editing/writing skills to potential employers, but he also did Mattel a favor (and not just by buying its $50 Barbie): He provided an objective way of demonstrating the product's quality. By juxtaposing it to a significantly more expensive "serious" photography tool, he made another point: This isn't just a toy, it's serious technology.

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