Flip Ultra HD

Has does the Flip UltraHD stand up against a real camcorder?

I was pretty bullish on the Flip UltraHD camcorder in the August 16th, 2009 story Camcorder Review Flip UltraHD

“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.”

In the past three months the camera has gotten lots of use and it stands out as a superb little camcorder.

The size of a pack of playing cards keeps it in my pocket more often than not. It has been knocked, dropped, left in overheated cars, been to Toronto and Tignish and ignored on a shelf with seemingly little trouble.

The videos are excellent 720p recordings with some artifacts if the camera is moved too fast. That gives it a quirky style.

The sound is good but not excellent. After several live music shoots I discovered the high end is too edgy for my tastes. Using a 4.2 kHz low pass filter in editing takes out the sibilance of voices. It takes a little more effort to balance cymbals.

There was a software bug in September. If you unplug the camera from the USB port without using “remove safely” in Windows, the camera would report over-heating.

I’m not sure if they fixed that or I learned to remove the camera the proper way.

The battery also has a tendency to run-down when the camera is not used so keep it charged for those spontaneous moments.

The Flip UltraHD will not replace my camcorder. It can’t do close up shots of text or small items. The zoom is only 2x not the 10x of a larger camcorder. I can’t add a boom mic or any other device. I can’t use headphones when recording.

However the Flip Ultra HD is my “go anywhere camera” which is the beauty of it.

Pricing is about $200. Some places advertise $170 or $180 so you might check around.

I bought mine at Amazon.ca for about $200 and I’m ordering another one as a Christmas gift today from them. The shipping is free and Amazon have a great return policy. I ordered two of the same thing in one order – don’t ask! – and they paid the return shipping. Very nice.

Future Shop have the non-HD model web-priced at $170 with free shipping. This is like last years model and not HD 720p resolution.

I’ve tried ordering online from Future Shop. The process is painful and they never deliver on time whether it’s for store pick up or home delivery. Future Shop is a retailer not an on-line merchant in my opinion.

The Canadian price is about $200 at TigerDirect.ca and Newegg.ca as well. Interestingly the price is about the same in the US – $170 US – although bargains can be found.

I’m sticking with Amazon.ca. It will be here Tuesday and the recipient is leaving the province later in the week.

Other than the unplugging rules, the Flip UltraHD makes a pretty cool video-cam and an easy gift in the $200 range.

Amazon.com link

US Amazon pricing is so volatile they don’t publish it until you decide to buy. It was $159 US when I wrote this.