Flip UltraHD Video Camera - Black, 8 GB, 2 Hours (2nd Generation) OLD MODEL by Flip Video
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Digital camera reviews of Flip UltraHD Video Camera - Black, 8 GB, 2 Hours (2nd Generation) OLD MODEL
Digital camera Review: 12 Hour Recharge (per Flip Customer Support)
Summary: 2 Stars
Should have known this was too good to be true.
The battery pack on the ultra is a farce (as is the customer service). The camera overheated less than 20 minutes into the charging cycle. After several attempts to charge it, I gave up and started using store bought batteries. Which work fine, but part of the cost of this little camera is that it's rechargeable -- it's not. And Flip KNOWS this. When I called customer service to see if they could replace the battery, I was told the Flip "engineers" have discovered the solution -- leave the camera plugged into for 12 hours. This will allow time for the camera to overheat, shut down, cool off, restart and recharge. It will go through this cycle as many times as needed, hence the 12 hour recharge time.
You're better off with iPhone for video, it doesn't take 12 hours to charge.
Digital camera Review: 17 Again
Summary: 5 Stars
So when I was 17 (and convinced that I would someday be famous) I really wanted a video camcorder to try my hand at making movies, or to film myself to see whether I had what it took to be a TV reporter, but never could justifying spending $500+ on one. Over the years I moved onto other tech cravings and ambitions. Then last year a friend showed me the Flip Mino - and I had to have one. It was super easy to use and fun, and I started getting great videos of my own kids - and captured moments that otherwise would have been fleeting, including my youngest child's first steps. I wish this had been around when I was a kid. Anyway, the Mino is great, but it's tiny tiny tiny. That's convenient when it comes to having a camcorder on you at all times, or when trying to get into events that prohibit cameras, and the screen is really small. So I just picked up this new Flip - the Ultra HD. The screen is wonderfully large. It comes with a rechargeable AA battery back, which works through the USB, but it looks like you can throw in regular AA batteries in a pinch. Sound quality is great, video seems even better than the Mino. Only drawback with both the Mino and Ultra is you have to keep your hand steady when filming - but I find that easier to do with the Ultra than the Mino. Also, it's not ideal for filming kids' concerts, because the zoom is only 2x. But for capturing otherwise fleeting moments in great quality, the Ultra HD is now my standby. The software that comes with it makes it easy to email videos to family and friends, or to upload a video to Flickr or wherever. Bottom line is I've been carrying this thing around nonstop since I got it. Hasn't made me famous yet, but I love my Ultra.Digital camera Review: 3 stars that should be 5 stars
Summary: 3 Stars
First off I just want to say I love this camera, it is so easy to use that anyone should be able to use it with no problems at all. The quality of the video is fantastic, the audio is excellent, ease of use is supurb, the software is built into the camera and is really not bad at all.
Now for the reason for the 3 stars instead of 5. There is a serious problem with the supplied battery pack, and/or the charging system. I had not done the proper research before purchasing this unit, all the reviews i read were nothing but praise, so I figured that this is the camera for me. I got it home and plugged it to charge, it began to charge then the dreaded "stopped charging, check battery pack". I checked it and found nothing wrong so tried it again. It began to charge then the same thing. I started to do some research and found that there are a huge number of problems with either the battery pack or the charging system itself, not sure which though. I contacted customer service, if you can call it that, and did get some things to try, which I did. It still gave the same system error. I found that there may be a problem with the battery pack itself, so I tried the solution that is going around the internet, again plugged it in and, well the same result.
I decided that the problem is with the battery pack and I just put in AA batteries and decided to use them instead of the supplied pack, and have had zero problems with the camera at all. I am going to invest in some quality rechargeable batteries and just continue using it in that manner.
If it were not for the battery/charging problem it would be a five star product. I like it well enough to just forget the charging problem and keep the camera. My problem is that for the money the charging system should work and I should not have to get additional batteries when they are supposed to be included. The battery problem is not just a few isolated incidents, just google "Flip Ultra HD charging problems" and check out the flood of complaints and potential fixes.
I am going to cantact the company again and try to get some "customer service" from them, if I can get this problem fixed, I will re-evaluate my review and give it the 5 star review it should get. Sadly in todays world manufacturers don't seem to care about customer complaints, hopefully this is a case that will be different, we shall see.
I really like this camera and it deserves a great review, but I cannot in good faith give a product a 5 star review that has a widely known flaw. I believe that I should be fair in the camera's performance, but honest in the problem with the charging system/battery pack.
I use this camera everyday, and I carry it with me all the time. It really is alot of fun to use. Fix the problem and it will be perfect.
If you are willing to just forget the included batteries, get the camera, you won't be dissapointed, it really does deliver in quality video, audio, and ease of use. Just be prepared to use quality batteries, and have extras with you, and let the good times roll.
Digital camera Review: 4 1/2 stars: great portable cam!
Summary: 4 Stars
I waited awhile to finally get one of these, but I did a lot of reading and comparisons, both with other models of flip cameras and other brands. I choose this one because it has better color quality then the minoHD 120 minutes. It took a lot of consideration: do I want better video, or a smaller size camera. The quality video won out for me, and I found it at an awesome price.
I love everything about the actual flip camera. Super easy to use, I think a non-techie will do great. I myself am a gadget person, so there was no learning curve for me. It has a slight zoom, doesn't get you very far but is still useful. Seems good in all lighting situations, even low light was better then expected.
The only thing I don't really like is the Flip software. I found it frustrating because I never know what it's actually doing. I will think its done or that it didn't complete a task, but when I try and close it down, it will tell me it's in the middle of a job. Well, that's just fine, but if there was some task bar or waiting time, it would be more user friendly. I'm hoping to find a different video editing software to use instead, please tell me if you've found something that works well!!
I just started converting old mini cassettes and VHS tapes to DVD. I only wonder how much more video I'd have if only the flips had been available 10 years ago. Not only that, but these digital files are going to stand the test of time much better then my old mini cassettes, in fact, during conversion the old video camera ate a tape. Memory, gone! forever! You won't have to worry about that with a flip because you can easily drop your videos onto a external hard drive, put them online, and put them on dvd. I'm a huge fan!
Digital camera Review: 5 stars if image stabilization could exists
Summary: 4 Stars
A great little camera, good sound, good light auto gain, good auto colors, BUT no image stabilization and this is the key of all.
The camera will act great if standing on a tripod or so, but not in your hands , other wise you will get sick watching your recordings.
if Ultra just like it is now (well it could bring a mic in and earphone out too) with the image stabilization present, it will PERFECT, but nothing is so good.
May be in a 3rd generation