Flip Video Ultra HD video review
By Joshua Topolsky 
posted April 30th 2009 12:00AM
posted April 30th 2009 12:00AM
posted April 30th 2009 12:00AM
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The videos aren't working... they say they are private.
No they don't.
Why are you using YouTube anyway, don't you guys have a Vimeo channel
Would love to watch the videos, but they're both coming up as private.
Appears as though it's fixed.
ya, im having the same problem
im really looking into getting this
I'll just take your word for it Josh.
Nice going, will we all get the same problem when we use this device? :P
WTF!
The videos are private....
Oh, they're working now : )
Am I the only that digs the music in the second one?
I'd really dig it if Josh told us who did that song.
It has that same problem as the movie shooting DSLRs have with the whole lens bobbing thing.
headache!
The picture looks pretty good, but yeah, the lack of image stabilization renders it pretty useless, Mr. Shakeyhands. How was the sound?
what about sound? image looks great, but you overlooked sound, could i shoot an interview with it with reasonable audio?
The review video is shot with the Ultra HD. You can hear the sound -- it's not bad!
For the price and better video quality, I'd recommend the new xacti cg10's ... picked one up this past weekend on sale at radio shack for $149. Image quality seems to be better and definitely not as choppy as the 2nd vid. I bought a 16GB SDHC memory card from amazon for $35 + 2 additional lithium ion batteries on e-bay for $10 - total cost is still less that the $199 of the Flip HD. The cg10 looks a little bigger than the Flip HD but still fits comfortably in my pocket. It also has a 3" fold out screen, removable SD/SDHC card slot, removable battery, 5x optical zoom + 12x digital zoom, macro mode, digital image stabilization, and serves as a 10MP camera as well. Records in h.264 mp4 files that play great on the PS3 - just pop out the SD card from the camera and stick it into the ps3 or your pc.
From watching Josh's video, -not sure if he was intentionally shaking the camera - but the video quality on the cg10 is much better. Only thing that is missing is an hdmi port - some stupid reason, Sanyo shipped a composite cable with it and you have to spring for the component hd ones... no hdmi on the CG10.
Wasn't intentionally shaking -- it registers every tiny movement. The image is really, really not stable. That's just me walking around.
Didn't think you were Josh - was just taking a stab at the Flip HD -- The CG10, even with the image stabilization, gets all shaky like there's an earthquake when zoomed all the way in.... by the way, I'm a huge fan of the weekly podcast.
If it makes any difference, the Flip Ultra HD is selling for $178 plus a free accessory: http://todaysepicdeal.com/post/104401325/flip-ultrahd-camcorder-w-free-accessory-white
I think for the size and simplicity, it's really a great buy.
its called using deshaker and virtualdub to get rid of the stability issues.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaPNf2Rk4qQ&feature=related
Yeah, I too have questions about the panning (at about 2:13). There's a noticeable rolling shutter effect. I guess they're using a CMOS sensor, not a CCD?
Why are you guys using YouTube? Vimeo does a much better job with HD vids.
Vimeo is pretty cool but the free version only allows upload of 1HD video a day, else for unlimited, you have to pay.
Also, you can't view Vimeo stuff on most mobile phones. Still -- we employ a variety of solutions, just wanted to use YouTube for this particular set of videos.
Very nice music, breezy and light. But I would also like to hear the sound quality. Is there a mic or line level audio input? I know I am asking for a lot.
Have to concur on the image stabilization, probably would be great for catching cops body slamming bikers, talking head type stuff with a tripod.
Was the first video recorded on it as well? That sound was not bad.
The first video is the Ultra HD as well -- that's the whole point!
Was that two and a half minutes of a new Indie film? christ! No need to explain how the newspaper floating around represents our very existence. top notch. -_-
I'm a bit disappointed. Image quality itself is pretty good in the HD video, but the camera definitely exhibits the same "jello" effect that the D90 and other Nikons have been criticized for. It's really frustrating when you start seeing it.
Would love for Engadget or EngadgetHD to do an updated mini hd camcorder shootout - minimum 720P and under $250/$300 - compare video general quality, video quality in low light, video quality in an action shot, size/portability, play back compatibility on various devices - pc/mac/PS3, editing ease with popular programs (imovie/premier elements).
I'd like to see Engadget compare this to the Aiptek Action HD GVS 1080p. Supposedly it rocks.
Who did the music for the second video. I love it.
Actually it's a band I was in called Good Morning. Glad you like it!
You mention that it's possible to do stabilization after the fact with something like iMovie. Is there any way you could do that and reupload it, just so we can see how decently it cleans up? Except for that, the image quality on this looks great.
Also, how's the low-light performance?
Seconded. I would like to see if this and a copy of iMovie 09 gives usable results. Partly because the wife really likes the idea of the Flip to throw in her bag and partly because I'd like to see how iMovie deals with this sort of shaky cam footage.
Nice try with the news paper, very American beauty, want to see the most beautiful thing I've ever filmed.
Sometimes there's so much beauty in the world I feel like I can't take it, like my heart's going to cave in...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDXjnW3nIWg&fmt=18
Good product, at Tradestead there are different kinds of such good consumer electronics with very cheap price , I like it very much!
While I'm a big fan of image stabilization, this really isn't a big issue for iMovie users at least, it performs excellent stabilization on the most twitchy of video hands.
So where can one d/l or pickup a track of your band's recording, Good Morning?! Definitely enjoyed the music in the video. Made it much more tolerable and delightful w/ that lack of image stabilization.
Wish I had access to the source file to evaluate it in FCP.
What kinds of lighting situation was the first video shot under? How does it compare to other cameras (e.g. Flip MinoHD, Kodak Zi6, etc.) in lower light situations?
I also liked the music.
"Good Morning" myspace page :
http://www.myspace.com/goodmorningmusic
Second song,: "Zelda"
The camera was designed for Mac users, if you use a MB Pro (last edition, not the current one) the camera lays perfectly flat on your desk. Sorry PC folks out there, it doesn't lay flat for you, but for a couple of bucks you can buy a USB extension cable and remove the strain and issue in its entirety. I love the Flip family of cameras - replaced my more expensive camera and I can carry it around.
The true question is if the DSLRs are going really give these guys a run for their preverbial money as they are now including 720P HD video in a great DSLR - one camera for all functions and shooting video also works with some great lenses as well.
I saw this on Woot! Few days ago...
The one on Woot was not the HD version, it was just the Flip Ultra. I did order one though, was on $75 including shipping.