The Flip Mino HD Rocks

Last year I bought a small Canon camcorder. It fit in my hand but turned out to pain in the butt to use. I didn’t enjoy fumbling around with the tiny tapes and getting video off the tapes was an exercise in tedium. Toss in the fact that the battery life was pathetic and it’s no wonder it seldom saw use outside of the occasional birthday party.

I looked for reasons to use our Nikon D40 instead. It’s not like I don’t enjoy taking video of the kids but the Canon was more hassle than fun.

So I started looking for a video camera that’s easy and fun to use a few months ago. And then I came across a post from Robert Scoble who loved his wife’s Flip Mino HD. I decided to check it out. Wow was I impressed!

If you’re looking for a tiny, easy to use video camera that’s a total blast to use, check out the Mino HD. It’s simply the coolest device I’ve purchased in years. Whenever I pull it out to take video, people assume I’m using a tiny camera, and they are blown away when I tell them I’m taking high def video.

My favorite features are:

1. USB connector flips up from top of camera. No cables. USB charges battery too.
2. Stores an hour of video on internal 4 GB memory.
3. Supports 720p resolution.
4. So simple, anyone can figure it out in seconds.
5. Uploads directly to YouTube and other video hosting services.
6. Tiny! About the size of two packs of Bubble Yum.

I could go on and probably will if you happen run into me using the Mino in public. I tell everyone I see about how cool this little gadget is. Here’s the first video I took of my kids riding their Kett cars.

http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=3313083&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1
Kett Car Racing from Brett Nordquist on Vimeo.

It retails for $229 for the HD version. Less expensive, non-HD versions are available for about $50 less, but I suggest grabbing the HD. The video quality is stunning for such a small device.

I’ve spotted the Mino HD at Best Buy although I bought mine at BH Photo for $209. Highly recommended.