Customer Reviews

Flip Video Camcorder: 60-Minutes (White)

5 star:		(306)
4 star:		(105)
3 star:		(32)
2 star:		(20)
1 star:		(39)

 

 

PROS:
* Inexpensive.
* Conveniently small size (fits in a shirt pocket).
* Easy to use.
* Easy to just drag movie clip files straight over to hard drive (they are stored in the DCIM folder sequentially).
* Movie files in the AVI format (but see Con comment about codec below).
* Easy enough to delete clips you don't want to keep.
* Play straight to TV.
* Seems durable though no protection for lens or playback screen.
* Uses ordinary AA batteries.

CONS:
* Menu buttons a little hard to press (zoom & volume control)
* USB connector arm bad idea. Should have just been a USB socket. Never matches up with the USB socket on any computer or laptop so you have to get an extension cable anyway which can be difficult to connect without breaking the arm off.
* Uses DivX codec (technically 3ivx, Wiki the difference if you really want to know) which means having to install one of a variety of 3rd party plug-ins. Would have been nice if they could have used H.264 but using 3ivx probably helps keep the cost down by using a less powerful chip.
* Included software was a hack job, UI is terrible.
* Silly proprietary interface at the top to burn contents to DVD at participating stores. Just a way for water to get in, should have been a memory card slot.
* Included carrying bag just gets lint all over it - don't use it.
* Sound playback level is lost once the unit turns off which means having to turn the sound down every time you turn it on.

CONCLUSION:
If you really want to record some video to edit on your computer but don't want to shell out hundreds for a digital video camera, this is a worthy alternative. Go ahead and get the 1 GB version (1 hour) since there is no memory card slot or upgrade path. After installing a DivX plugin on your computer, you should have no problem editing the clips in your favorite movie editing program like iMovie. I had to install a plugin on both my Intel MacBookPro and Dell 8600 Windows XP (SP2).

Accept that you are going to have to purchase a short USB extension cable unless your USB ports are on the side and the extension arm lines-up perfectly (i.e. the computer doesn't put any weight on the arm). Even a short 3 ft cable like Cables To Go 19003 3-Feet USB A/A Extension Cable will do. The kind you need is a USB A socket on one end and USB A plug on the other (if you can connect the cable ends to themselves and make a hoop you probably have the correct one).

This is a great first try but there is lots of room for improvement like replacing the connector arm with a USB socket, ditching the DVD burning interface for a memory card slot and making the menu UI buttons easier to push.

In order to promote their new video reviews (which I think are a great idea), Amazon sent me (for free! I love Amazon) a brand spankin' new Flip video camcorder. It came today and my daughter and I had some fun with it on the way home. I haven't gotten a lot of use out of the thing yet, but I have some initial thoughts:

1. It couldn't be easier to take videos. You insert the batteries and press a button and you're filming.

2. You connect it to the computer by plugging it into the USB port. Software downloads to your computer, all very smoothly. The connection to the USB port is problematic. A USB connector pops out of the side of the camera, which is very elegant but doesn't work well in practice. I had to unplug another device to fit it into the available slot next door. It's kind of like having one of those big plugs taking up so much room on a power strip. I've already ordered an extension for it.

3. The editing software is very basic. This is to be expected. This is supposed to be a quick, point-and-shoot device that takes basic video that can quickly be shared on the web. Which is a great idea. But here's the thing: you can edit a video from either end, ending it earlier or starting it later. But you can't crop out a part in the center. Is that insane? Now, you can make copies of a movie and then take the beginning part of one and the ending part of another. It's inelegant but possible, right? And there is a "movie-making" feature that allows you to mesh these two movies together...except that you can only save the product if you're in Windows. With Mac you can't save it, so it's useless for posting the amalgam on the web. As far as I can see, at least.

4. Quality seems okay for the purpose. Looks good on my computer, at least.

So in short if you're going to take very short videos that you don't intend to edit and post them on YouTube, this works well. Though I have to say, it isn't super speedy. While I've been writing this my computer has been processinga three-minute video for posting online, and it's only gotten through about 5% of it so far.

If using and enjoying this little gem were any easier, well, someone else would be operating it for you! Superlative "User friendly" camcorder.
With no pretense of being an SVGA professional camcorder, the Flip Video is built for immediate out-of-the-box FUN! The videos looks great via Windows XP Media Player and I had to smile as I enjoyed watching it play on my TV.
The sound is remarable when you consider the built-in mic's size!
I love it! I will enjoy it! I will also enjoy getting a couple for my siblings (GREAT gift idea!)
PS: I found it to be very "battery-friendly" as well! That, alone, is worth the cost!

This is a great device. Unless you are a professional it has all you will ever need in a video camera. It is a simple point and shot with a zoom that is adequate for most tasks. The ability to just flip out the USB on the side and load the clips directly onto the computer makes life so much easier.

What wasn't clear when I bought it was that the video is stored in a series of clips. This allows you to flip through them and delete the ones that you don't want. I really like this ability.

The camera is small and compact. I find that I have it with me more often because it fits into my pants pocket. Try that with a regular video camera.

Overall this camera is awesome. It's inexpensive so you don't worry about the kids making their own videos, it small so you carry it more often and it takes great pictures. I loved it so much I bought a second.

If you're still thinking about getting a video camera for home movies or amateur filmmaking, and are still confused about the various formats, and concerned about the cost, here's a simple solution. It's simple to use, rugged, and so cheap that it's almost (but not quite) disposable. It even loads its software for you on your home computer. Shoot some scenes, plug it in to the computer, and a few minutes later you're editing and overdubbing.

This little camera may not have the highest resolution around, but for viewing on the average computer display- or even a moderate-sized TV- it's perfectly satisfactory. For web-based movies, it's more than good enough. And it's small enough and cheap enough to take with you everywhere.

I bought mine at Costco (at a significant discount) on impulse, and since then I've never been without it. It travels in my short pocket, on my bicycle handlebar bag, in a pocket in a larger camera bag, even in the case I keep my iPpod in. And when you do have it with you at all times, it's surprising how often you find yourself reaching for it.

A half-hour doesn't seem like a lot, but if you were raised on 3-minute rolls of 8mm film, well, it's 10 rolls of film- more than enough for a vacation trip. And if you have your laptop nearby, you can download the contents, and start fresh again.

Best of all, at the price you can hand these out to film-minded kids for their own projects without worrying about them damaging the family's expensive video camera. A friend bought one for her 10 year old daughter after seeing how much fun she had playing with mine. And given the ruggedness and low cost, I didn't mind letting a child play with it, either.

As others have noted, the flip-out USB connector is clever but ungainly. It works well with laptops, but is difficult to insert in some desktop front panels, and puts too much load on USB connectors in some positions. The solution is simple, of course- get a USB extension cable.

In summary, a handy and fun toy at a very reasonable price.

I love this camera. It is easy to use and easy to get the video off the camera and make fun videos. no cords or hard to use programs. We make a lot of videos on [...]and these short clips look great - I have had DVDs made and also sent videos to my TiVo and am so impressed with the video quality. I highly recommend this to anyone I meet who expresses an interesting video. Great for kids as well. We take it backpacking, traveling, anywhere.

I bought the Pure Digital PSV-351 30 Minute Point-and-Shoot Camcorder when it first came out and I LOVE IT!! My profession is a Video Designer, so at first I was hesitant in purchasing such a small video camcorder for I thought I would be very unhappy with the quality of the videos, the battery power, the amount of memory, not having a lot of features, etc... HOWEVER, I use this product more than any of my other camcorders or cameras. It goes with me everywhere! The camera is simple and that is what makes it easy to use and such a delight to interact with. Trips in the past I would lug around this HUGE camcorder and I would get so frustrated for it was to big or heavy to carry. Last week, I went to the grand canyon and I decided to only bring my pure digital camcorder. I was able to capture all of these wonderful moments. At one vista point, there were these dancers in beautiful colored outfits .... I was able to zoom in and out and I did not even need a tripod to capture the motion. That evening I just downloaded the videos and started editing the clips. I am always impressed with the amount of videos I can store, the resolution and how I can just point and shoot. I love using this product!! It is always so quick and easy. I love giving this product as a gift!! I have bought this product for friends in the video industry, friends with kids (who do not see their lives without it) and my 65 year old parents who send me a video now every month! Another plus is it does not matter whether you are a Windows or Mac user AND it is such an amazing price! ENJOY!!!!

I've had this camera about three months. While the picture quality isn't as good as my 3ccd camcorder the Flip suffices for TV displays. All the software for PC and Mac resides on the camera. The USB connector is part of the camera and flips (thus the name) out to plug into a computer port. It's so easy to use that's it's sort of the iPod of the camcorder business. My four year old grandson has taken some pretty good videos on it with minimal instruction. It fell twice off a four foot table to concrete and it still runs. The second time the plastic case separated, but I easily snapped it back in place. I'm more careful now, but it's nice to know that you don't have to worry too much about damage. It uses two AA batteries and they last over an hour, or the time it takes to fill its 1GB internal memory. No zoom, but, if you've watched enough amateur home movies with zoom, you'll avoid zoom nausea.

The Flip Video is great for recording up to one hour worth of video. It is perfect for families who want to share videos. I found that the sound quality is ok. The zoom is adequate but not great. And the picture quality is good for its price. The better the lighting you have, the better the quality of the video taken. It even looks good when watched on a TV screen. No sense lugging around a camcorder when you can carry this small video camera. It is so easy to use that no instruction manual is necessary and I am not electronic savvy. It comes with all you need, including TV connector cable, carrying case, wrist strap and even the batteries.

Simple and straightforward. Would recommend it, if for simple daily out of the pocket use. Nothing more advanced.
Sound is great, image slightly saturated but i like it, works well in low light, quite quick (2 seconds more or less from start to shooting), TV quality is great, application+driver are on the memory (no instal required), ...

Downside: not enough configuration (no menu, not able to disable the sounds, ...). Able to take a still picture from the application (once camcorder connected), but not from the camera itself.