Low key video + stills setup
 

I remember back in the day of digital point and shoot cameras, I would pull my li'l camera out of my jersey pocket and snap a photo or shoot video while riding. Not the safest thing in the world to do, but it also wasn't the most dangerous, and the photos came out not too bad. I can't do this with a smartphone, though, with no tactile buttons, and for some reason the replacement point and shoot I got a couple years back just isn't cutting it. It's bulky and just isn't working the way I hoped. So I'm wondering... is there a helmet mounted camera I could use to shoot decent video and stills without too much fussing around too much while riding for under, say, $350 all in?

I use a GoPro Hero 10 Black for my ride video. I also have a Drift Ghost XL. I started putting the GoPro on my helmet but the extra weight and not being sure what was recorded I moved to my handlebar. I wasn't happy with that either. If audio is important then you will need a mic or the microphone module. Now I use a Garmin mount for fixed position and also quickly remove for handheld shots. You can see my videos at youtube.com/c/RickAnkrum

Not sure why you want helmet mount.

After my GAP and C&O trip, when I got home I was a bit frustrated that I had almost no photos for three days. And then I realized that I was too concerned about getting my camera wet in the rain on those three days. Eight years ago for my next trip after that, I bought a waterproof point and shoot camera specifically for bike touring, Pentax WG-3 and that is my go to camera for all my touring, backpacking, canoeing, etc. I almost never do video because that consumes too much memory. It is 16 megapixel. While the zoom is limited, with that many pixels I can often crop out good portions of a photo. I am quite certain that model has been out of production for at least a half decade since, but I am sure there are replacements for it. I think that Ricoh which owns Pentax put their name on the waterproof series of cameras soon after mine was made. A friend of mine has a waterproof Olympus camera that is similar to mine, that would be another option. Several years ago I saw one on Ebay for cheap, bought it to have a second as a backup.

But if you have to have helmet mount so you can brag about your high speed descents, disregard my suggestion.

I also have a superzoom, not waterproof, I bring that as a second camera on trips where I anticipate lots of wildlife photos. Mine is over 12 years old so I am not citing the model. If I do not anticipate much wildlife, that stays home. My DSLR cameras never go bike touring.

ADDENDUM:

It looks like this is the current replacement for my Pentax.
https://www.dpreview.com/products/ri...cts/ricoh_wg80