Flip UltraHD, screen and record button and with USB flip out

Surprising quality including sound in a small camcorder package

I’ve done some testing with the Flip UltraHD which intrigued me as the ultimate simple camcorder. Early results are in and I can share them with you. I recorded a jazz song on the street and posted it to YouTube without any processing, with sound editing and at 1080i and 720p to demonstrate the differences.

The camera is amazingly small, amount the size of a deck of cards in you hand with a little more length. It’s easy to hold and shoot. The screen is on the back and quite clear.

Taking a video is basically point and shoot. The 2 x zoom won’t do much so you have to move closer or further away to change what is in the screen.

Size and no-anti-shake can make hand held long shoots jittery. You can see in the video I took a fair amount of jitter. I don’t mind it but if I was shooting a song again I’d use a mono pod or tri-pod to stabilize it. There is a standard tri-pod mount.

The camera will shoot 2 hours but I ran out of battery power in one. Perhaps I was previewing too much. The 2nd battery pack is recommended so I ordered one.

The camcorder charges through the USP flip level which spooks me seeing the camera hang off the front of my computer. They sell the needed male/female USB cables for another $29 and I ordered them as well. I don’t want the strain to start early wear on the flip arm through mechanical stress.

Amazing sound

For a tiny camera, the sound was amazing. You can hear the ride cymbal, the crash and the whack of the snare realistically. It was almost too bright for me. The Canon HV20 I am used to cuts off most high frequency sounds. The transient response was excellent as well.

I checked the sound on a frequency analyzer and didn’t find any peaks in the 5k to 10k range although there is more energy there than usual for a small camera. It would be interesting to take the camera to a concert or club and record near the front to see if it can handle high SPLs.

The first tape is not edited but I boosted the bass by 4 dBA and reduced the highs by 3 dBA on the 2nd and third versions. The next time I might try a low-pass filter at 8K and 10K to see what that does to the high end.

Three versions of John Coltane’s Blue Train by the Ron Petrides Trio

Leave feedback on the version you think is the best of these three.

Since the camcorder can load directly to YouTube I tried the unedited vid clip of the Always on Stage performance on Victoria Row. Nothing has been changed. The image is a little soft in HD on YouTube. The sound is great with some weakness in the bass.

The second version was processed through Adobe Premier Elements which takes hours because the video has to be rendered in H.264 at 720p. I boosted the sound 4 dBA on the bass and cut the highs by 3 dBA which sounded more natural to me. The picture seems sharper.

The third version is essentially the second rendered at 1080i which is not the native format. The camera records in 720p. There is a subtle loss of detail but if that matters on YouTube is another question. Essentially it did not improve the image to move it to a higher res.

Don’t forget to leave your feedback.

Conclusion

Is this all the camcorder most of us need? It certainly is easier to take in your pocket and whip out without looking like Steven Spielberg and spoiling the mood.

Prices are volatile. I bought mine from Amazon for $229. The price dropped and they sent me a credit. Tonight I see the price is back up to $229.

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