By Anthony Regno-Peterson

Puredigital is the company producing the Flip Video cameras. The cameras are avail-able in two models: the Flip Video starting at US$119.99, available in Black/White and, the model being reviewed, the Flip Video Ultra starting at US$149.99, available in Black/White/Pink/Green/Orange color options.

The differences are the Ultra Series offering greater capacities for recording as well as a higher resolution LCD for viewing (both cameras have 1.5" LCD). The Ultra series is stated to have a faster power-up to record time and a date/time function. The Ultra series also offers great battery life over the standard model 2.5 hours over 2 hours. Physically, they differ as well with the Ultra video model offering the option for a tripod, "Action mount" and an Underwater case at US$49.

The naming scheme of the models is based on the length of time they can record up to. Being reviewed is the top model offered, the Ultra Series 60 Minute model at US$179.99, which records on two gigabytes of flash memory (non- removable/upgradeable).

The Flip Video Ultra Camcorder offers a nice, simple design. Standard equipment to be had on a camcorder: lens, LCD, microphone, power/record/playback/delete buttons, direction pad for use of digital zoom and navigating menu, tripod mount and TV Out.

The Flip camcorder also features a built-in USB dongle that connects to the USB ports on your computer. This would be a plus, except that it is short and requires hanging off of your USB port. Puredigital offers a USB extension for US$14.99, however I think one should have been included in order to lower the risk of damaging USB ports.

In the box you will find the Flip Video Ultra, TV connector cable, soft carrying case, two AA batteries (disposable) and an instructional booklet.

There is no option for AC adapter, but you can still use standard rechargeable AA batteries. When the camcorder is plugged in via USB, it does not draw power from the batteries but from the USB port, this is a plus and a smart design idea. Your batteries are for your use on the camcorder.

The meat and potatoes, or Audio and Video (the reason you would use a camcor-der):
The Flip Video Ultra records in a video resolution of 640x480 at 30 fps (frames per second) in an Mpeg-4 video compression saved as AVI files. This means you get decent video at a small memory footprint. DV video for example is roughly 13 gigabytes for one hour; here we get two gigabytes for one hour of content. The quality isn't DV, but it is more than acceptable for what the camcorder is designed for, online play on all the popular sites: Youtube™, MySpace.com™, and AOL Video™.

One question you might be asking is can it actually record up to 60 minutes? Under test-ing, the camcorder recorded 64 minutes, although according to Flip Videos website "recording time may vary based on the recorded content." I am uncertain of what factors would alter the time of recording, but the camcorder recorded over the 60 minute mark. This was nice, but it may vary from model to model.

Video was smooth, but not as sharp, and a bit noisier than lets say a DV camcorder. For a small camcorder at under US$200, it does a decent job. The Flip Video lacks a light/flash feature. The camcorder is rated on Puredigital’s website as having a very high sensitivity (>2.0V/lux-sec). This doesn't mean that you can record in total darkness, but indoor lighting and streetlights should be sufficient.

The lens is a fixed focus lens, so you never have to wait for focusing. There is digital zoom available but this is more of a magnification of what is being seen and since the image is a little noisy, you will be able to see more of the noise. The camera produces a good image when it is stable. We tested walking with the camcorder and it produced a very shaky image, therefore moving while recording is not recommended. The micro-phone did a good job of picking up the conversations around it (Puredigital’s web site states that use within 12 feet is best).

What you won’t find in the box is software and drivers for the Flip. Upon connecting the USB dongle to the computer, a USB drive appears with software for the Flip. Open this folder and you have a Flip Video program for Mac and PC. There is also the DCIM folder which contains the videos you've recorded without using the Flip Video applications.

Launching the Flip Video for Mac application prompted me to install the 3ivx decoder component. I couldn't continue without installing the component, after which I had to re-start the Flip Video application.

Users have the options of:
-Saving the videos to our computer and sharing them through our favorite online video sites,
-Making a movie combining all or some of the videos, or
-Deleting them off the camcorder (which can also be done through the menu on the Flip).

There is also an option for editing the clips, and resizing them, which is handy if you don't have a lot of storage space on your web site or want to e-mail videos.
The only option for still images from the Flip Video camcorder is through this application. The images saved are less than the recorded resolution of 640x480, and are saved at 424 x 318. It’s an option, but it will not replace your dedicated digital camera.

Overall, for beginners or folks who want an easy to use camcorder that provides digital media for online content, the Flip Video Ultra is a good choice.

Pros:
-Good size.
-Durable.
-Simple design.
-Video capture is more than sufficient for online or personal use.
-Software is intuitive and makes getting your content online a breeze.
-Powered over USB.
-Price is reasonable.

Cons:
-Doesn't include USB extension cable.
-Rrechargeable batteries would be nice.
-It’s a little thick - using the included lanyard is recommended.

Requirements:
-Windows XP/ Mac OS X 10.3.9 or later.
-Quicktime 7.0 or later.
-512 MB of RAM.
-1 GHz or faster G4, G5 or Intel processor.

Prices range from US$119.99 for a 30-minute Flip Video model
to a US$179.99 60-Minute Flip Video Ultra model. www.theflip.com