Flip Camera-Perfect for the budding Photographer

HTML clipboard
After doing much research for a easy to use and small and compact video camera for my daughter I stumbled across the new Flip Camera. Some of the features we loved about this camera for our teenage daughter was the small size of it, the camera is no bigger than a standard size wallet and is about 1/2 inch in diameter. The other thing we liked is it only featured four buttons to make the use of this camera easy for her to use.

The front of the camera features the main lense, I would recommend using case to carry your camera in so the lense does not become scratched as there is no protection for your lense. On the back there is a one big button this simply starts and stops your recording, when recording you will on the top left hand side the clock that shows you how many more minutes you have left to record. The camera we purchased for my daughter was the 60 minute camera so it starting counting down from 60 minutes. Now the next button you will see has a plus and minus sign on it to represent your zoom feature. There is also a button that always you to search through your video you already have recorded. The fourth button on the back is a trash can which of course is your trash can to throw away your video if you don’t like or need it anymore.

Now one of the best features of this camera is that stored inside is your USB drive that you simply hook into your computer to upload your photos. It is very similiar to having a flash drive, and it tucks away very easily when you no longer need it. Here is some important techinical information you may want to look at before purchasing.

Product Features
1.Simple to use, pocket-sized camcorder with one-touch recording and digital zoom
2.Holds 60 minutes of full VGA-quality video on 2GB of built-in memory; no tapes or additional memory cards required
3.Convenient USB arm plugs directly into your computer for easy viewing and sharingBuilt-in software lets you easily e-mail videos, upload to YouTube and AOL, and capture still photos from videoWatch videos instantly on TV with included cable  

Technical Details
Recording time: Up to 60 minutes
Internal memory: 2 GB
Screen size: 1.5 inches (diagonal)
Screen resolution: 528 x 132 pixels
Screen type: Transflective TFT (for bright daylight)
Resolution: 640 x 480
Sensor: 1/4-inch VGA CMOS sensor; large (5.6 µm) pixels for maximum light sensitivity
Low-light sensitivity: Very high sensitivity (>2.0V/lux-sec)
Video compression: Pure Digital Video Engine 2.0
Frame rate: 30 frames per second (constant)
Video bitrate: 4.5Mbps (average--auto adaptive algorithm)
Video format: Advanced Profile MPEG4 AVI
Auto White Balance and autoexposure: Auto-adaptive white/black balance and exposure (Next generation--improving color fidelity, exposure control, and dynamic range)
Lens type: Fixed focus (0.8 meters to infinity)
Aperture: f2.4 (fast lens for great results in low-light environments)
Zoom: Smooth multi-step 2x digital
Interface: 8 buttons (Power, Play, Delete, Record, and 4-way navigation)
Time from power-up to record: Less than 3 seconds
Clip length: Minimum of 1 second, maximum of 60 minutes
Power Saver (auto shut-down): Yes
Delete All function: Yes
Play All function: Yes
Set date/time function: Yes
Dimensions (H x W x D): 4.17 x 2.16 x 1.25 inches
PC connection: Built-in flip-out USB arm (up to USB 2.0 speed)
Speaker: Built-in speaker
Microphone: Built-in wide range microphone (improved sensitivity and accuracy)
TV out: NTSC (cable included)
DVD processing: Pure Digital DVD processing (nationwide retail service)
Supported battery types: 2 x AA batteries (1.5-volt AA alkaline, Energizer e2 Lithium, 1.2-volt NiMH rechargeable)
Battery life: Improved battery life: up to 2.5 hours with 2 x AA Alkaline batteries; up to 6.5 hours with 2 x AA Energizer e2 batteries; battery life may vary between batteries and use pattern
Tripod mount: Yes


Some of the extras you can purchase for this camera is a tripod that sits nicely on a tabletop or desktop to do your recording for around $14, also there is a camera case, an action mount that you can attach to bikes or what not for action movies. There is also an optional USB cable you can purchase also that runs around $8.

Another nice feature of this camera is that the software program that comes with this camera is built into the camera so you can use it on any computer. The software is very easy to use and helps to really upgrade your video by helping you meld videos, add images,text and more. Now I am sure you are wondering how the photo quality and sound quality of this camera. Well we have taken over three hours of video so far and I have to say the quality is as good as my $400 Kodak Camcorder, I was very pleasantly surprised. The video is crisp and clean and the colors are vibrant, the sounds quality also is quite clear and not muffled or distorted at all. This would be a wonderful camera for a new college student or your budding high school photographer like my daughter. The camera is very durable also I am sad to report that has already been dropped and nothing broke and everything still works perfectly.