Flip UltraHD - It's Not Just Me Who Has Problems With It
Synopsis: My last article, Flip UltraHD - It Doesn’t Just Work, must have struck a chord because it’s been the most popular article on the site since I posted it. Judging by the search strings I’m seeing that land people on the sawdust website, it’s clear others are having some of the same issues. Here’s a sampling of FlipHD related searches I’m seeing hit sawdust:
"flip ultra hd An error occurred while interacting with your camcorder. Please make sure your camcorder is connected to your computer."
"flip ultra hd charging paused"
"flip firmware ultrahd"
"Flip ultraHD check battery pack error"
"flip ultra hd, battery doesn't charge"
"flip ultrahd upgrade"
"why does the flip ultrahd say check battery pack?"
"check battery pack charging paused Flip UltraHD"
"Error code: 27, 2 An error occurred while interacting with your camcorder. Please make sure your camcorder is connected to your computer. Error removing file '/Volumes/FLIPVIDEO/System/VIEWER/FlipShare.ico'. Thread info: Upgrad",1,1.1,""
"flip camcorder error code 27,2"
"flip ultrahd firmware version"
"why doesn't my flipshare camera always come out HD
"flipshare 4.5",
"how much time left on flip ultra hd battery"
"Flip ultraHD battery doesn't charge"
"flip video problems"
"flip cam error 27,2"
"flip video error 27,2"
"Flip Error code: 27, 2"
And these were just a few of the ones from today. You would think because I led off the article with the fact I bought it due to good reviews, that I would see some positive-oriented search strings as well, but there were none. The list above wasn’t filtered for negative search strings...those are what I see from my analytics.
Honestly, you really need to think twice before buying the Flip UltraHD product. Took mine back to Walmart where I bought it and got a refund.
I spent an extra $300 and got a JVC Everio HD and it’s a completely different class camera than the Flip UltraHD. Lets just say $300 dollars buys you a heck of a lot more HD than the Flip UltraHD. Really, at $500 the Everio HD is still pretty much a low-end HD camera, but it’s leagues ahead of Flip. I haven’t weighed them for comparison, but the Everio surprised me with how light it was. My first impression was it weighed about the same as the Flip UltraHD (which I think is a little chunky given its size.) This was a positive impression of the Everio.
So, far, I can highly recommend the JVC Everio HD, particularly due to its ability to zoom (20X optical) which is not something you want to do hand-held but I use it on a tripod for close-in shots of electronics on my bench. The Flip UltraHD claimed to have 1.5 meter minimum focus range...I think it was probably better than that, but that said, the 1.5 meter spec shows just one major difference from the Everio. With the Everio HD, I could focus on bench electronics within 3-4 inches of the lens....within what would be considered a macro range.
Mac’s iMovie recognizes the Everio HD right off - no hassles. iPhoto automatically launches if the Everio contains any still shots. By the way, even though Everio can do stills, I’ve found the still quality poor enough that I would not use that feature on the Everio. If you think you might be able to use the Everio for both HD and stills, don’t expect the stills to be much better looking than the average cell-phone camera.
The JVC Everio HD also has both 720p and 1080p resolution and numerous storage options depending upon how much you want to spend. I got the Dual SD version which seems to be the cheapest and it works fine for my needs, but you can also get one with a built-in 160GB hard drive.
Later, when I get more experience with the Everio, I’ll write up a review, but so far I really like it. I’m glad I didn’t try to exchange the Flip UltraHD for another one - that would have been disappointing, I’m pretty sure.
"flip ultra hd An error occurred while interacting with your camcorder. Please make sure your camcorder is connected to your computer."
"flip ultra hd charging paused"
"flip firmware ultrahd"
"Flip ultraHD check battery pack error"
"flip ultra hd, battery doesn't charge"
"flip ultrahd upgrade"
"why does the flip ultrahd say check battery pack?"
"check battery pack charging paused Flip UltraHD"
"Error code: 27, 2 An error occurred while interacting with your camcorder. Please make sure your camcorder is connected to your computer. Error removing file '/Volumes/FLIPVIDEO/System/VIEWER/FlipShare.ico'. Thread info: Upgrad",1,1.1,""
"flip camcorder error code 27,2"
"flip ultrahd firmware version"
"why doesn't my flipshare camera always come out HD
"flipshare 4.5",
"how much time left on flip ultra hd battery"
"Flip ultraHD battery doesn't charge"
"flip video problems"
"flip cam error 27,2"
"flip video error 27,2"
"Flip Error code: 27, 2"
And these were just a few of the ones from today. You would think because I led off the article with the fact I bought it due to good reviews, that I would see some positive-oriented search strings as well, but there were none. The list above wasn’t filtered for negative search strings...those are what I see from my analytics.
Honestly, you really need to think twice before buying the Flip UltraHD product. Took mine back to Walmart where I bought it and got a refund.
I spent an extra $300 and got a JVC Everio HD and it’s a completely different class camera than the Flip UltraHD. Lets just say $300 dollars buys you a heck of a lot more HD than the Flip UltraHD. Really, at $500 the Everio HD is still pretty much a low-end HD camera, but it’s leagues ahead of Flip. I haven’t weighed them for comparison, but the Everio surprised me with how light it was. My first impression was it weighed about the same as the Flip UltraHD (which I think is a little chunky given its size.) This was a positive impression of the Everio.
So, far, I can highly recommend the JVC Everio HD, particularly due to its ability to zoom (20X optical) which is not something you want to do hand-held but I use it on a tripod for close-in shots of electronics on my bench. The Flip UltraHD claimed to have 1.5 meter minimum focus range...I think it was probably better than that, but that said, the 1.5 meter spec shows just one major difference from the Everio. With the Everio HD, I could focus on bench electronics within 3-4 inches of the lens....within what would be considered a macro range.
Mac’s iMovie recognizes the Everio HD right off - no hassles. iPhoto automatically launches if the Everio contains any still shots. By the way, even though Everio can do stills, I’ve found the still quality poor enough that I would not use that feature on the Everio. If you think you might be able to use the Everio for both HD and stills, don’t expect the stills to be much better looking than the average cell-phone camera.
The JVC Everio HD also has both 720p and 1080p resolution and numerous storage options depending upon how much you want to spend. I got the Dual SD version which seems to be the cheapest and it works fine for my needs, but you can also get one with a built-in 160GB hard drive.
Later, when I get more experience with the Everio, I’ll write up a review, but so far I really like it. I’m glad I didn’t try to exchange the Flip UltraHD for another one - that would have been disappointing, I’m pretty sure.
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