Flip Ultra Series Camcorder, 60-Minutes (Black) OLD MODEL
by Flip Video
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Category: Digital Camera
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Digital Photo Product Details
Manufacturer: Flip VideoFormat: CD
Release Date: 2009-11-30
Platform: Mac, Windows
Model: F260B
Color: Black
Product features:
- Simple to use, pocket-sized camcorder with one-touch recording and digital zoom
- Holds 60 minutes of full VGA-quality video on 2GB of built-in memory; no tapes or additional memory cards required
- Convenient USB arm plugs directly into your computer for easy viewing and sharing
- Built-in software lets you easily e-mail videos, upload to YouTube and AOL, and capture still photos from video
- Watch videos instantly on TV with included cable
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Flip Ultra Series Camcorder, 60-Minutes (Black) OLD MODEL
Customer Review: Close, but not quite! (edit: I bought it again.)
Summary: 3 Stars
I like it for close-ups and it's ease of use and price. I like the convenience factor. (It fits in the pocket and there's no cables to mess with and no settings to fiddle with.)
The construction is ok. It's plastic, and the buttons feel a bit like a toy. It doesn't feel like it will fall apart and the quailty of the video up-close to 10-15' feet is great.
..... but I have a problem using it for my Mac. iMovie '08 doesn't support the video format. There goes much of the ease of use (and convenience) the camera gave you initially. (Note: the included software is very very basic and has to load each time the Flip is plugged in.)
You can use the old iMovie HD program (iMovie '06.) But it turns out that the Flip Video format isn't exactly natively supported there either, but rather the old iMovie program just converts it to DV when you import a clip. The problem with that is there's a loss of quality during the conversion and the Flip doesn't have alot of picture quality to spare as it is.
And so you might as well just use a 3rd party program (VisualHub or Quicktime Pro) to convert the movies into a format iMovie '08 uses. (I like iMovie '08 because it you can easily glance at all your footage and grab clips from whatever you want. And it's also the standard software included on all Macs nowadays.)
I did experiment a bit with converting the Flip videos to an appropriate format and found that at the best settings (converting into .mp4 format) there is little quality loss, but then the files take up 40% more room than the originals. It seems like a bit of a can't win game working with the videos that the Flip shoots. (Note: I used Visual Hub and haven't tried QuickTime Pro yet.)
And then after the euphoria of getting this nice little device wore off well I started to realize that my Canon Digital Elph point and shoot (which wasn't much more money) does video about as well and yet automatically imports into iPhoto and automatically works in iMovie '08 without having to convert to a different format and suffer quality loss. The Digital Elph really isn't harder to use either. Turn it on, flip switch to movie mode, Press button to record and press again to stop. Connect to cable to download files and after that it gets easier than the Flip because iPhoto automatically recognizes it and so does iMovie '08.
To be honest I still have to do some more comparisons of footage between my Canon point and shoot and the Flip to see if the Canon is as good. The Flip may actually have a slight edge i nmany areas, but I would seriously recommend comparing the video capabilities of some of the new Canon point and shoots (and other brands as well) to the Flip. Some now have IS (image stabilization) at $200 pricepoints and the video has probably gotten better during the last 2 years.
So although I find this a pretty savvy product (in terms of targeting a market underserved) and like the ease of use of taking footage I don't like the ease of use once you need to move that footage to your computer and work with it. And I would question whether the Flip is really easier to use than a "point and shoot" and whether it's that much cheaper. I will note that Flip's official statement states that they are trying to work with Apple to gain (outta the box) iPhoto/iMovie '08 compatibility. If that happens in the next few months then I would definitely up my review score (if I don't end up returning it in the next week.)
edit: Well after my review I returned the Flip. Then I fiddled around some more and tried a DV camcorder. And after that I ordered another Flip and I'm on board the Flip bandwagon for good.
DV turned out to be a pain for me with IM08 too. I couldn't make a DVD from IM08 with all the quality DV offers so it was useless to use that format. PLus DV takes up a ton of room and I well I didn't want to keep an army of tapes around.
Next it turns out that using MPEG Streamclip (free on the 'net) to convert the FLip footage to Quicktime movie format with default settings maintains most of the quality while only taking up maybe 2x the space as the original Flip footage. That in turn works fine in IM08 for editing (and for good responsiveness of skimming your clips.) And I can get most of the quality back out should I want to do a DVD on my Mac. So I found an acceptable solution to getting Flip to work with IM08.
And after briefly going back to a "regular" DV camcorder I really came to appreciate the convenience of the Flip. The small size and instant startup is key there. Also the cheap price helps you not worry as much about getting it banged up or the kid's using it.
About the only complaint now is that it would nice if it used SD cards. On a trip or something I might not have a laptop with me to offload footage. Might be a good idea to do a lot of short ones in this case so you can delete the ones that aren't keepers to make room if you need to when you're away from a computer.
Update 2/10/09: Works natively with IM08 and IM09 now. Fun little camera. I would add another star to my review easy.
Description of Flip Ultra Series Camcorder, 60-Minutes (Black) OLD MODEL
The Flip Video Ultra Series Camcorder is a revolutionary new way to shoot and share videos. Its portable, simple-to-use design makes it incredibly easy to create high quality home movies. The camcorder's built-in software provides a convenient, seamless way to save and share memories: email videos, make custom movies, capture still photos from video clips, and upload videos directly to popular video-sharing sites, including AOL Video and YouTube. Flip Video Ultra is the ideal, affordable choice for capturing everyday moments that happen anywhere, and sharing them with family and friends everywhere. This next-generation version of the original Flip Video line features a new sleeker design, premium no-glare LCD screen, and improved video and audio quality. Flip Video Ultra comes with a TV connector cable, wrist strap, soft carrying case, two AA batteries, and a quick start guide. Specs: Flip Video Ultra incorporates 2GB of built-in flash memory which holds up to 60 minutes of 30-frame per second full VGA-quality MPEG-4 video. Compatible with Windows XP SP2 and Vista; Macintosh OS X 10.3.9 or later. Computer connection via integrated USB Port.Camcorders
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