Which Flip Video to Buy?

UPDATED WITH THE NEW FLIP ULTRA AND MINO HD 3rd GENERATION CAMERAS! If you look at the range of Flip Cameras it can be a baffling: Mino, Mino HD, new Mino HD, Second generation Ultra, Ultra HD …. shall I go on! There are several models and they all come with long lists of tech specs and slight differences. In this guide I’m going to save you time and cut to the chase by summarising the main features and the pros and cons of the various Flips. Note: I am an independent blogger and Flip user and not associated with any brand or store. If you visit a store chances are they have never used the camera extensively and unless the boss has gone AWOL they’ll never tell you the minuses as well the pluses! So here is my Independent Buyers Guide featuring the Flip cameras that I think you need to consider:

1. FLIP MINO (Standard Definition 60 mins)

Pros:

Slimline design, much less chunky than the Ultra if you have small pockets or a slimline handbag!

Price is great: just £69.99 or $129

If your PC is sluggish and you don’t like large clips that take a while to upload to YouTube it’s quicker than the HD versions.

. Cons:

• Small screen (1.5 inch).
• Not High Definition, picture quality is very good but not as good as HD models.
• 60 mins record time (More than enough for most people.)

Specs:

• 2gb memory (60 mins of footage)
• 640 x 480 resolution.
• Internal Lithium battery.
• Close focus at 1m.
• Weight 3.3 oz.
• Available in White or Black.

Buy if: Buy if you are on a budget, need a slimline camera, need speedy uploads or have a sluggish PC See the Flip Mino (SD 60 mins) at Amazon UK or Amazon.com (USA) or visit the Flip.com (US store only).

2. FLIP MINO HD (60 mins HD version)

Pros:

Slimline design.

High Definition quality. That’s the main plus.

Price. It’s keenly priced at £115 or $147 for an HD camcorder.

. Cons:

• Smaller screen than the Mino HD 2nd generation. (1.5 inch)
• Bigger files and HD is slow to upload.
• 60 mins record time. (Enough for me though!)
• No HDMI out, only composite. Can’t watch HD quality on your TV from the camera.

Specs:

• 4gb memory. (60 mins of footage)
• 1280 x 720 resolution.
• Internal Lithium battery.
• Close focus at 1.5m.
• Weight 3.3 oz.
• Available in White or Black.

Buy if: Buy if you are on a budget, need a slimline camera and want HD quality. See the Flip Mino HD (60 mins) at Amazon UK or Amazon.com (USA) or visit the Flip.com (US store only).

3. FLIP MINO HD (new 2 hour version)

Pros:

Slimline design.

2 inch screen.

2 hours of HD footage

HDMI out.

If your PC is sluggish and you don’t like large clips that take a while to upload to YouTube it’s quicker than the HD versions.

Stereo audio. It’’s the only Mino that has it.

Cons:

• Priced high in UK at £176 but less in the US at $185.
• Large files and slower upload to You Tube. Need a fast PC.
• Silver only. (But the brushed Silver is great )
• Less battery options than the Ultra HD.

Specs:

• 8gb memory (120 mins of footage)
• 1280 x 7200 resolution.
• Internal Lithium battery.
• Close focus at 0.8m.
• Weight 4.1 oz.
• Available in Silver.

Buy if: Buy if you need a slimline camera and want HD quality. See the Flip Mino HD (120 mins) at Amazon UK or Amazon.com (USA) or visit the Flip.com (US store only).

4. FLIP ULTRA 2nd Gen

Pros:

4gb storage that’s 2 hrs if you are a heavy shooter.

2 inch screen (It makes a difference)

Smaller files than the HD version. Less work for your PC and faster uploads.

Price. In the US it’s $119 ( xxx less than the HD version) In the UK it’s the same price (£120) as the Black HD version!

Available in 4 colours (do you like the Pink above?)

Flexible battery options (can use AA’s if you are away from power source)

Stereo mic.

Cons:

• Chunky design. You need big pockets.
• Not High Definition.
• UK price same as HD version.

Specs:

• 4gb memory (120 mins of footage)
• 1280 x 720 resolution.
• Rechargeable AA batteries or internal lithium pack.
• Close focus at 1m.
• Weight 6.0 oz.
• Available in White or Black.

Buy if: Buy if you are on a budget, have a slow PC, need 120 mins, can’t get to a power source. Good for extreme sports use and in education. The Pink Ultra is a great gift for girlfriends, partners and daughters! See the Flip Ultra 2nd gen at Amazon UK or Amazon.com (USA) or visit the Flip.com (US store only).

5. FLIP ULTRA HD

Pros:

8gb storage – that’s 2 hrs of HD footage.

2 inch screen.

HDMI out. Watch HD quality on your TV from the camera.

Price. Black version is £119 in UK (£56 LESS than the Mino HD) and $149 in the US ($35 LESS than the Mino HD).

Flexible battery options (can use AA’s if you are away from power source)

The black version (pictured) has been the Number 1 bestseller on Amazon for weeks amongst ALL Mini-camcorders. So that many people can’t be wrong.

Stero Mic.

Cons:

• Chunky design. You need big pockets.
• Need a speedy PC. Big files and slower uploads than Standard Def versions.
• Mino HD can focus closer (just)

Specs:

• 8gb memory (120 mins of footage)
• 1280 x 720 resolution.
• Rechargeable AA batteries or internal lithium pack.
• Close focus at 1.5m.
• Weight 6.0 oz.
• Available in White (with silver edges) or Black.

Buy if: All round it’s a winner, by price quality and battery options. Great for families with kids as it’s chunky design feels more robust. See the Best Price for a Flip Ultra HD at Amazon UK or Amazon.com (USA) or visit the Flip.com (US store only).

6. FLIP SLIDE HD (US only, no UK/Euro release date yet)

Pros:

16gb storage – that’s 4 hrs of HD footage.

Big plus is the large 3 inch screen. So easy to view and share after shooting.

HDMI out.

Flexible battery options (can use AA’s if you are away from power source)

Stereo Mic.

Headphone socket. (None of the other Flip have one)

Cons:

• Main con is the price. $279 is fairly hefty in the mini-camcorder marketplace.
• Has had a some mixed reviews in the US gadget press, who say the touch screen is sluggish. Too used to their Ipads maybe? ( I know some of my readers are very happy with their Slide HD’s)
• Chunky design.
• Need a speedy PC. Big files.
• Lithium internal batteries only.

Specs:

• 16gb memory (4 hrs of footage)
• 1280 x 720 resolution.
• Internal lithium pack.
• Close focus at 1.5m.
• Weight 5.9 oz.
• Available in White.

Buy if: If price is no issue for you and you need loads of storage the Slide HD is certainly worth considering but it’s not my number one choice. See the new Flip Slide HD at Amazon.com (USA) or visit the Flip.com (US store only).

7. Flip Mino HD 4gb OR 8gb 3rd Generation Pros:

• New Feature is Image stabilisation.
• 50 fps (frames per second 720p)
• Cheapest 3rd Gen Flip.

Cons:

• No Flip Port for 3rd party devices like Microphones
• Only 60 mins capacity on 4gb model.
• Can’t focus as close at the old style Mino’s (which could focus at 0.8m)

Specs:

• 8gb memory (120 mins of footage) or 4 gb (60 mins)
• 1280 x 720 resolution.
• Internal Lithium battery.
• Close focus at 1.5 m.
• Weight 4.1 oz.

Buy If:

• You like a slightly slimmer camera.
• You will never use an external Mic.
• You want a 3g Flip but are on a budget.

See the new Mino HD’s at Amazon UK or Amazon (US)

8. Flip Ultra HD 3rd Gen 4 gb and 8 gb

Pros:

• ONLY the 8gb has the new Flip Port to accept Third Party Microphones!!  It’s a BIG PLUS.
• ONLY the 4gb can take normal AA’ as well as the internal chargeable pack.
• New Image Stabilisation (very handy)
• 50fps is better than earlier Flips.

Cons:

• 4gb doesn’t have the Flip Port.
• 8gb can’t take normal AA’s.
• 4gb is the heaviest of all the Ultras and Minos.
• Marginally fatter than the Mino (4.16″ x 2.11″ x 0.88″ compared to 3.94″ x 1.97″ x 0.63″)
• 8gb Ultra HD is the priciest model and you may want to add an external Mic later too.

Specs:

• 8gb memory (120 mins of footage) or 4 gb (60 mins)
• 1280 x 720 resolution.
• Internal Lithium battery (plus normal AA’s on the 4gb)
• Close focus at 1.5 m.
• Weight 4.5 oz (8gb) 5.7 oz (4gb)

Buy if:

• You want the best Flip out there (the 8gb model with the Flip Port)
• Buy the 4gb if you never want an external Mic.

See the new Ultra HD’s at Amazon UK or Amazon (US) Note: all Flips have Flip out USB arms, Flipshare software in built for basic editing, sharing Files online and upload to YouTube and Facebook. Literally plug in via your USB and it will prompt you to download the software. None take stills like a stills camera but you can capture a still image inside Flipshare. SO I know what you’re going to ask me? Which one would I recommend? Well if money was no object I’d get a 3rd Gen model and now the Ultra and Mino are very similar sized there is no reason to worry about size difference. The main factor in my decision would be that these cameras will benefit massivley from the forthcoming range of external clip on microphones for Vlogs, interviews etc plus there will be new mics to sit on the camera and record much better on board sound and music as well as allow a separate Mic to be plugged in via a phono. As the Ultra HD 3rd Gen 8gb is the only Flip to have the Flip Port that would be my recommendation.

Hope that helps. Send me a question if you need. Outside the UK and the US? Try these stores. Amazon Canada Amazon France Amazon Germany Amazon Austria Pixmania Ireland Amazon UK delivers cheaply to all these European countries: Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.