The Flip - a flipping good wee video camera
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I really liked the Flip video camera as it was small (wee is the Scottish word for small), light and easy to use, it truly is a point and shoot product. No fiddling around with buttons or controls or trying to comprehend a manual. I just can’t be bothered with bulky, complicated cameras and camcorders. You can zoom in, add your own commentary and play back immediately. The Flip can take up to 60 minutes of footage. It was straight forward to transfer from the Flip to our Mac and then upload the videos to youtube.
I enjoyed watching our videos upon our return from a week touring Tuscany and Unmbria as it did make you feel like you were back in the location again, due to the panoramic views and the sound track. I just wish I’d had something like this to take videos of our sons when they were young.
There is a built in USB in the Flip but I couldn’t fit this into any of the USB ports my Mac either because the ports were recessed on the CPU, the screen stand was in the way of the ports at the back of the monitor and the port on the keyboard didn’t have enough power. A £3 USB to USB was the solution.
The Flip costs around £100 to purchase which I think is good value. It comes in a variety of colours.
However as I always say the proof of the pudding is in the eating so there’s a short video of Perugia in Umbria, taken by my husband, for you to judge the quality of the picture and sound. You can see all the uploaded Europe a la Carte videos on youtube.
I was offered a Flip video camera free of charge by the Flip marketing team as part of the UK launch. However I was under no obligation to write any review. This is my unbiased opinion on the product.
June 5th, 2008 at 9:36 pm
I see you are venturing into video - I also experimented a bit in Rome but I had a few problems uploading them onto You Tube. Looking at yours has prompted me to have another try.
I’d be interested to know if you have come across any good on line resources to teach me how to edit them. These things are always a voyage of discoverery with some new aspect to learn about.
June 5th, 2008 at 9:41 pm
Yes Heather I’ve been thinking about using videos on my blog and site for some time. It was discussed during one of my live blogs, so getting the Flip was well timed. I’m afraid I haven’t tried to do any editing yet but the Flip does claim to make it easy to edit. I must admit that mu husband has been doing most of the research on this front and taking most of the videos so far.
It can be quite daunting always learning new things that’s why I like the Flip because it’s so easy and simple to use.
August 19th, 2008 at 4:52 pm
I was lucky enough to win a Flip video camera earlier on this year and have so enjoyed it since then. The small size and light weight mean that I have almost always got the camera on me and as a result I have taken much more video than ever before.
What’s more - particularly when travelling - I find that a video can capture the experience so much better than a picture because you can see the trees moving, you can hear the noises and so on. I even just hold up my camera as I walk sometimes and now back at home can relive that and actually “walk” down a favourite beach or woodland path without leaving home!
October 28th, 2008 at 2:36 am
[...] really got into the habit of taking travel videos even although I have a lovely little Flip video camera which I carry around all the time in my handbag. I shake too much when I taking [...]
December 1st, 2008 at 8:05 am
What a boon to the traveler. The small size and ability to upload with the built in usb connector is a big plus. Thanks for the good info on your experience!!!