Flip Video MinoHD F460B Digital Camcorder - 1.5" LCD - Black

Is the Flip minoHD right for me? Answer: Depends.

Strengths: Small, instant on, easy to use, HD video, H.264, solid construction, good amount of memory, decent battery power, PS3 accessible, a beautifully designed box.

Weakness: No manual focus, no optical zoom, no 1080p video, under saturated color reproduction, no audio-in port.

WHAT DOES IT DO WELL? - It's small and easy to carry: I get the feeling that the Flip was designed, from the ground up, to be stored in your pocket. The super tiny camera is big enough to fit in your hand comfortably, but small enough to be stored away so that it isn't an annoyance. - It turns on and is ready to shoot instantly: The power button on the Flip is conveniently located on the side of...
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WHAT DOES IT DO WELL?
- It's small and easy to carry: I get the feeling that the Flip was designed, from the ground up, to be stored in your pocket. The super tiny camera is big enough to fit in your hand comfortably, but small enough to be stored away so that it isn't an annoyance.
- It turns on and is ready to shoot instantly: The power button on the Flip is conveniently located on the side of the camera. Once you push it, it's up and ready to go within five seconds. No clock to set. No tape to rewind. No aperture to open.
- It's easy to use: The controls on the Flip is laid out so simply that your grandma could probably use it.
- It records HD video: Have an HDTV? No problem. Widescreen video from this camera will look beautiful to almost anyone.
- It transfers files almost instantly: The flip records HD quality video to H.264 mp4 files. Simply drag and drop your movies from the Flip to the computer. There's no tape to play through. The Flip instantly appeared on my Mac desktop as a hard drive, without needing to install drivers. You can also easily edit the files (in a cheap application like iMovie) and/or share them to Facebook or YouTube.
- It's constructed solidly: I wouldn't drop it from five feet above concrete, but the heavy construction makes me feel that it can handle its fair share of bumps and bruises.
- It has just enough memory: 4GB of space can give you about an hour of HD video. If you're filming your cousin's wedding or the family trip to Disneyland, that's perfect.
- It has decent battery power: Charging through its USB port, the Flip can run on a single charge for a day or two. That's plenty of time to get to you through the day and get to your computer to recharge and download files.
- You can access it through your Playstation 3: Have a PS3? Simply plug it in and watch your movies.
- It comes in a beautifully designed box: Why is this such a big deal? It really speaks about how well designed the product is. The Flip is carefully thought through and durable.


WHAT DOES IT LACK?
- It doesn't have a manual focus: The Flip does have autofocus and your shots will always be in focus. Some people, however, like to toy with depth of field, making things in the foreground and background out of focus. If you don't know what that means, this won't matter to you.
- There is no optical zoom: Optical zoom is better than digital zoom because digital zoom only doubles the pixels. However, the lack of optical zoom makes the Flip easier to use, because there are no lens or dials to turn.
- It doesn't record 1080p video: Most HDTVs today have a maximum resolution of 1080p (1080 lines of resolution). The Flip records 720p (720 lines) and the resulting video is beautiful (if not sometimes undersaturated). Most people can't even see the difference with the naked eye, but there are bound to be some people really want the maximum amount of lines that their TVs can handle.
- There isn't an audio-in port: The on-board microphone is decent for a family outing or recording a class lecture, but it won't record a noisy concert well. If you want to hook an external shotgun or lavaliere mic, look for another device.


SHOULD YOU GET ONE?

This is a great camera for people who need a cheap, small, easy-to-carry camera that reproduces great 720p HD video.

True, there a newer models of the minoHD that Flip just released in mid-2010. The newer models are nearly identical to the old ones, but come in different colors, can film at a higher frame rate, have bigger hard drive capacity, and have image stabilization.

But… that also means that the older models are available at greatly reduced prices, sometimes as much as $50 less than a newer model. For people who don't need the "bleeding edge", the old Flip minoHDs at these reduced prices are a great bargain.

The Flip minoHD isn't a "prosumer" camcorder, so you won't be recording a student film on one. But, for the common everyday person, this will do just fine. "The best camera is the one you got." Since the Flip minoHD is so small, it can hide in the bottom of your pocket, ready for your everyday adventures to be captured.

By KevinChung - Oct 5, 2010

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