Flip, makers of the Mino line of portable digital camcorders, have released the slightly less portable, but more capable Ultra HD. It’s chunkier than the Mino and has enough built-in storage that it can record a total of 2 hours of footage — the MinoHD records an hour of 720p to 4GB, so it’s a fair bet that the Ultra HD has 8GB inside. There aren’t any real specs available just yet, but I think we can suppose with some confidence that they’ll have updated the internal components to bring them up to level of the MinoHD. New video engine, possibly a better sensor, and all the other little tweaks. As for price, I’d put it at around $250, but that’s pure guesswork. → Read More
Earlier this month we reported that Cisco Systems had acquired Pure Digital Technologies, the makers of the popular Flip Video cameras. Today, Cisco officially announced the deal, which was for $590 million in stock. (We had the price at “north of $500 million).
Pure Digital will become part of Cisco’s consumer business group, which includes Linksys home routers and set-top boxes from its acquisition of Scientific-Atlanta. Cisco is calling the Flip cameras a new form of “visual networking,” whatever that means. In reality, the Flip is built for the YouTube generation. It is designed to take videos and immediately upload the to the Web. (Its output is a handy USB stick that flips open and plugs in directly to a computer). In other words, it is a device that encourages activities that consume a lot of bandwidth. As a networking company, Cisco wants you to use as much bandwidth as possible. → Read More
San Francisco based Pure Digital Technologies, the seven year old company behind the Flip Video line of video cameras, is considering a sale of the company, multiple sources have confirmed. One interested buyer is rumored to be Cisco.
Flip cameras – dead simple and small video devices that are tailored towards users who want to upload video to the Internet – have become massively popular. One source says the company has sold more than $200 million worth of the tiny cameras in the last couple of years. Based on reviews of the recently released Flip Mino HD, we’re not surprised. The devices cost between $130 and $230 and have spawned a large group of copy cat competitors.
One potential buyer, says a source, is Cisco, which has been more active recently in acquisitions. Ned Hooper, Cisco’s chief M&A guy, is said to be actively looking to buy or invest in consumer startups that offer high-bandwith-using services. A hot startup like Flip, which is helping to fuel the explosion in user generated video (much of which makes its way online), fits in perfectly with that strategy. → Read More
Wanna jump into the world of pocket video cams? This Flip F230W is a great, entry level model but don’t expect stellar recording results. It only records 30 minutes worth of video, but the $59 price might justify it for you. Who knows how long the sale will last for so jump on it Woot-style. BTW, the 120-min Flip F260 for $89.99 is still available. → Read More
Did you miss last week’s Woot for the $80 Flip? Fear not, citizen, for Buy.com has the Flip Video Ultra F260 for $89.99. (Buy.com notes that it usually retails for $199.99.) It’s refurbished, meaning that if you give it as a gift it’s a sign that you really don’t love them person, so there’s that. → Read More
With Valentine’s Day approaching and the economy being the way it is, it doesn’t hurt to save where and when you can. Today’s Woot is far from stellar, but the Flip is a popular camcorder despite its shortcomings. Those shortcomings only apply to us nerds it seems and the general consumer – think soccer mom – aren’t worried about the things we bitch about. So why not grab one for the lil lady or lad for $80. Sure, it’s refurbished, but they’ll never know. → Read More
The tiny-and-popular line of Flip Mino camcorders has a new addition with the MinoHD. It’s basically a Flip Mino that – you guessed it – records at 1280 x 720 resolution onto four gigabytes of onboard memory. The camera appears to be about the same as the regular Mino except for some updated software, the higher resolution, the 4GB of storage, and the $229.99 price tag versus the standard Mino at $179.99. → Read More
Pure Digital, the company behind the insanely popular series of easy to use “Flip” digital camcorders, is about to get even more insanely popular – especially with the customization crowd. Starting today, you’ll now be able to choose from hundreds of professional designs for the $179.99 Flip Mino camcorder. If none of the available designs are to your liking, you can upload your own or use Flip Video’s “exclusive design engine – the Pattern Generator” to whip something up. What’s more, if you’re the creative type you’ll be able to add your own designs to the online marketplace and earn commissions each time one of your designs is chosen. You can opt for normal payment or have your proceeds go to non-profit causes. The customization program was developed in cooperation with CafePress.com, so you’ll now be able to design and purchase custom Flip Mino camcorders from CafePress stores as well. Full release after the jump… → Read More
It seems as if the BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 would never hit the market, but after leak after leak after leak after leak, the damn phone is finally available from T-Mobile for $149.99. → Read More
It seems as if the BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 would never hit the market, but after leak after leak after leak after leak, the damn phone is finally available from T-Mobile for $149.99. → Read More
There are some sweet mobile phones coming out over the next few months and a BGR crony turned up release dates for Best Buy’s hotest upcoming phones. The info comes off of a PowerPoint slide and reveals quite a bit. Coming October 26th: Sprint – Samsung M540 “Rant”, available in black, purple and red Sprint – HTC Touch Pro Verizon – Blitz AT&T – BlackBerry Bold 9000 (date obscured on image) T-Mobile – BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 Coming November 16th: Verizon – BlackBerry Storm Granted, wireless carries and manufacturers alike tend to push release dates around a bit, but this should give you a general idea when you can use your Best Buy Reward Zone points on one of these new phones. → Read More
DXG, “the digital camera company,” has thrown its Cowboy hat into the increasingly crowded direct-to-YouTube video cameras space. Its 567V shoots video at 30 frames per second with a 1280×720 resolution. Pretty sure that’s above and beyond (n. the trance DJs) YouTube’s requirements, but here we are. All CMOS-captured, H.264-compressed video is recorded onto SDHC crds. She’s only $180, so well within the reach of most cash-strapped Americans, yes? Should be a nice competitor to the Flip. via Akihabara News → Read More
I review the new Flip Mino…or do I? Here’s five minutes you’ll never get back. Flip Mino [TheFlip.com] Like this video? View more here… → Read More
Seeing as how our review unit of the Mino is ‘lost in the mail’, I thought I’d share with you what our boss thinks of the Mino. Michael doesn’t actually have one himself, but I trust his judgment and he’s done some perusing of the Web to see what everyone else is saying. I’m sorry we couldn’t share our thoughts on the Mino with you, but Flip only seems to care that Doug got the press release and not the actual device. → Read More
The Flip Mino is officially available today. It’s the smaller, more pocketable successor to the popular and easy-to-use Flip series of digital camcorders. With a built in rechargeable lithium ion battery (charges via USB) and 2GB of memory, the Mino should make a good choice for people who want to keep a video camera on hand for quick uploads to YouTube, MySpace, and AOL Video. The Flip series of camcorders is perhaps most well known for ease of use and software that directly uploads to popular video sharing sites. I’m supposed to be getting one delivered here today, so I’ll check in later with some photos and video samples. In the meantime, hit the jump for more details and specs. → Read More
Here’s the Vado from Creative. It’s basically a clone of the Flip but it looks less chintzy. Creative even goes as far as saying that the Vado is “dramatically thinner and lighter than competing video cameras.” I actually wouldn’t mind trying one of these. It records up to two hours of video and has 2GB of built-in memory. It’s only $99 so I wouldn’t be wasting too much money on it. Extra rechargeable batteries only cost $15, but the charging station costs $30. → Read More
Gadget Lab seems to think so based on the product page of the Vado listed on JR.com. The specs and description do reveal striking similarities to the popular Flip. A 2-inch screen is an improvement over the Flip’s 1.5-inch screen, but VGA quality, one-touch recording and up to 2-hours of recording per charge are carbon copies of what the Flip can do. Is there really a need for two so-so video cameras? Creative Vado is a slim, lightweight pocket Video CAM that makes it easy to capture and share everyday life as it happens. Simply connect Vado to your PC with the flexible USB plug and the built-in Software lets you save videos to your Computer or post them directly to YouTube or Photobucket. Since Vado is thinner that a deck of cards and as light as a cell phone, it fits into your pocket or purse and never weighs you down. Free yourself from the hassle of the bulky camcorder bag. You’ll never miss a moment with two hours of video capacity and one-button Recording that makes capturing life on video effortless. With a 2x Zoom and excellent low-light performance, you’ll get great video quality every time you press record. Just connect Vado to your computer with the flexible USB plug and the built-in software takes over. You can transfer your videos to your computer or post them directly to YouTube or Photobucket, all at the click of a button. The rechargeable Battery is removable so you can change out for a fresh one. → Read More
http://blip.tv/scripts/flash/showplayer.swf?enablejs=true&file=http%3A//blip.tv/rss/flash/886105&feedurl=http%3A//crunchgear.blip.tv/rss/&autostart=false&brandname=CrunchGear&brandlink=http%3A//crunchgear.blip.tv/ My buddy Scott in Ohio bought a PureDigital Flip. It was in an open box — it had been returned but he figured he could pop by his local Best Buy and return it if there were any problems. He started to use it and found about 40 minutes of it taken up by previously recorded video. He popped in the recorder and found three videos, all called “Smoking” or something similar. On the recorder he found video of some kids having a super time puffing on some doobage. As Scott’s friend observed, “That should be an anti-drug commercial. ‘Do you really want to be like these douches?’” For those not in the know, you need to empty the trash can before you eject a USB drive and/or not film yourself recreating “Inside the Actor’s Studio with Chris Farley.” I for one deleted all the video of me drinking Boone’s and smoking Swisher Sweets that I filmed last weekend. Check out the rest of the films here. → Read More
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