Here's something for those who cannot afford expensive underwater casings for digital cameras. US-based Liquid Image will be releasing its Digital Underwater Camera Mask at CES, a snorkeling/scuba mask with a built-in camera.

The 5-megapixel version of this mask comes with a measly 16MB of built-in memory, but there is the option of adding on to that using a microSD card slot. It captures videos at VGA resolution and operates down to 30m underwater. The lower-end 3.1-megapixel version goes down to only 5m.

It's no surprise that this device looks more like a toy than a serious tool--the company used to be called Zocker Toys. But that's fine with us, considering the 5-megapixel one costs a mere US$99 at launch. Now, that's good value for money--well worth the loss in pride when everyone laughs at you for looking like a character out of a B-grade science fiction movie.

The Digital Underwater Camera Mask is expected to ship in March, and with an international office in Hong Kong, we might see this product in our backyard (inflatable pool) soon.