Flip Accessories
What accessories can add value and fun to the videos you take with your Flip camcorder?
Helmet mounts are cool, as jmack56 illustrates in this video. We'll try to find some you can buy and put them in the sidebar.
ZRat89 applied essentially the same idea as rmdembroski (http://flipinfocus.com/comment/37/DIY-Wide-Angle-Lens-Flip), but with different parts and pieces, to his Flip Mino-HD. By buying his Flip on Craig's List, he kept the cost of the whole project to $200.
I had a question about the optional power adapter that Flip sells. It looks like a regular USB charger. I tried using one that I had, and although the "battery icon" appeared on the Flip, I never got the charging "lightening bolt" indicator.
Any ideas why this wouldn't work? I tried plugging directly into the adapter as well is using a USB extension.
Thanks,
I don't think it's a good idea to use a USB charger not rated for a specific device. They aren't all the same.
For example, I know that you can't recharge a Flip off of some laptops because the power the laptop gives to the USB port is unsufficient.
Not an official Flip accessory but Joby's Gorillapod is a very useful tripod/clamp/support device for the Flip cameras. The basic model (listed mostly as the Original Gorillapod) was recently selling on Amazon.co.uk for under £10 - less than half the price of other sites. Like the Flip it's small enough to slip in your pocket and carry around with you. Highly recommended.
+1
My father-in-law has one.
Any recommendations for a good general-purpose carrying case for the Flip Ultra? I have Lowepro cases for my other cameras but can't seem to find oen on their range that fits the Ultra.
I got here by using the Amazon search engine on our home page. (If you use this link, I get a little itty-bitty piece of the action. :)
I put these words in the search field: flip ultra case
Do any of these work for you?
Darrell
Thanks, Darrell, very useful. Sadly most of those cases aren't available in the UK but I was able to find the Case Logic one on sale.
RichBurton2 Recommended case for #Flip Ultra - #Case Logic UP-2. Fits like a glove!
If you have Flip's USB charger for the new Flip UltraHD, would you please report to us what the output voltage and amperage are? It will be on a label on the device - or imprinted in the plastic. I am thinking 5VDC at 500mAH.
I just fabricated a TelePrompter of sorts - using the Flip UltraHD, my iPod touch, a small LED video lamp, simple right-angle video camera bracket, and a metal book-end from Staples. Oh - and Velcro (of course).
The touch gets mounted horizontally right at the Flip's lens level - so if you're reading its scrolling text/script, it looks like you're looking directly into the camera. It came out well - solid and sturdy. It mounts to a tripod for stability.
I'll do a photo essay on the project over the weekend. I'll be using it tomorrow night at a New Year's Eve party.
Clint Bradford, Mira Loma CA
Geeze - Gomadic's chargers (both their AC wall wart style and the car chargers) for the UltraHD are, suprisingly, 1000mAH units.
That is NOT a proper charge rate for our 1.2V AA-sized NiMH cells. And it's not clear if these aftermarket chargers are "in sync" with any possible battery compartment heat sensor inside the Flip - if one exists.
Oh, 1000mAH will work. You might get 200-300 complete discharge-charge cycles out of that combination.
But proper charging of NiMH cells like ours should give us up to 750 complete discharge-charge cycles.
I have messages sent to Flip tech support for further information on this, and will report back when I receive answers.
Clint Bradford
A DIY teleprompter would be a fantastic project for people who use Flips for vlogging (video blogging), for real estate and other sales videos, for instructional videos, etc.
Do a good job on this, Clint, and if you would like, I can show you some ways to get it published.
I got one from Flip.
Input: 100-240VAC 50-60 Hz 0.15A
Output: +5VDC 1A (5W)
Working on the photos and write-up right now ... It worked really well last night! Details coming.
Well, it looks like 1000mAH is what Flip and others are using for our Flip UltraHD NiMH packs. Unregulated and left on for more than, say, three or four hours, this amperage will overheat our packs - shortening (no pun intended) their intended lifespan of approx. 750 complete discharge-charge cycles.
BUT - Flip has received reports earlier this year of units "over-heating" and giving owners the, "Your Flip is too hot ... " errormessage while charging. This just might mean that Flip does, indeed, include some sort of regulation and battery protection circuitry within the camera.
Sorry to belabor this. I have been involved in both the commercial and amateur communications industries. And the proper treatment of batteries is MANY times left up to us - and not necessarily provided by the manufacturers.
Clint Bradford
I was inspired by the great iPod touch teleprompter software and professional-grade brackets from Bodelin Technologies. But I wanted a "scaled-down" bracket arrangement for my new Flip UltraHD ...
Here's a quick photo essay on this project. I'll get the .pdf document posted describing it later tonight.
http://tinyurl.com/flip-prompter
Clint Bradford, 909-241-7666
What a fantastic idea and execution!
Have you been bitten by the steadicam bug yet? Every low-budget videographer eventually gets bitten by the urge to create a suitable DIY steadicam. With a Flip, the challenge is that it is light weight, but the promise is that it could be small enough to go in a backpack. I have the bug, myself.
Anyway, that's really first rate work...
Many expensive camcorders have this limitation: Don't over-charge the batteries. I'm under the distinct impression that overcharging is the biggest single cause of failure for Flips, and probably for other cameras in its class. This is especially true for the MinoHD, where the battery isn't user-replaceable. However, over-heating isn't good for electronics, in general. If the camera is warm after use, wait til it's cool to recharge it. (If it's an UltraHD, take the batteries out for a bit.) 3-4 hours should be sufficient for re-charging.
Also, if you charge from your computer, make sure the USB is 2.0, rather than 1.0. You may need to try different USB ports to find one that has sufficient power.
I built one of these for my Sony HD video camera back in 2006 ... For the price, it was effective.
Clint
That one is the most famous, but overkill, I think, for a Flip. I'm thinking of something that starts out with a 1/4-20 threaded rod, and has some kind of gimbal mechanism. I've seen such things, but haven't been able to find out where to get the gimbal.
Both Flip and reputable aftermarket firms offer AC chargers for the Flip UltraHD at 1000mAH. More than a couple hours at that unregulated charge rate is detrimental to NiMH cells. I have finally gotten to a technical person at Flip to see if there actually is anything as far as regulation built into our UltraHD units.
Personally, I have it made. I already have a bunch of 2700mAH NiMH cells always charged and ready to go for amateur radio equipment. I use an intelligent charger from Maha Energy that analyzes the condition of each cell. And either the stock 2100mAH or my 2700mAH cells are plenty of power for the two hours of video that the UltraHD provides.
Is anyone using any device that will allow you to download your Flip's video to it, then be able to delete the Flip's memory and continue your shooting?
I have such a device for snagging my camera's memory card exposures. Great for vacations: Download to it safely and securely, and erase the memory card and shoot away.
I'm not sure you want to fully erase the Flip's memory, as you would, say, a USB drive. I'm guessing, here, but I think the Flip has to use a driver from it's memory to announce its presence to your computer, when you want to offload. It carries around the software installer (which may use the same bits used in a different way) for installing FlipShare on your computer.
I wouldn't be surprised to see Flip adopt SD cards in a future model, but as it stands it's very hard to keep it sleek once you do that. Interestingly, the UltraHD is in many ways a better deal than the MinoHD, because of its replaceable batteries and lower cost. However, because of its increased bulk, I suspect that on average it gets used less by its owner. My test is whether it will fit in the same jeans pocket with my cell phone. I use the MinoHD, and my wife uses the UltraHD, which she carries in her hand, on the car seat, etc., because she doesn't use a purse.
I'm hearing rumors, also, of a WiFi Flip. It's possible that will offload to a computer or other device wirelessly, but it may also be about an adjunct to FlipShare TV that would allow telepresence -- consumer videoconferencing.
That was all a long, meandering way of saying 'no, I don't know of such a device at this time.' Sorry...
New Steadicam announced for iPhone ... Simple enough design ...
http://www.steadicam.com/smoothee_home.html
Yeah, but kinda goofy for VGA video, I think. You see a price on it anywhere? I'll bet you're talking $75-$100.
I think I found my source for a gimbal, for $12.60. Higher than I would like, but that is the most expensive part in any design I've considered.
It is listed under "Pro" accessories at Tiffen's Web site ... It's gonna be more expensive than that (guessing).
It's like the other sub-$1000 units: a counterweight mounted so that it's right below the camera to "counter" jiggle.
We've gotta be able to come up with something ... Where did you find the gimbal?
According to this account from CES, it works with the Flip, too:
http://www.cinema5d.com/news/?tag=steadicam-smoothie
Nope. Helemt mounts are not actually cool.
However mounting a helmet camera, the creation of an interesting video because of a camera mounted on a hemet or doing something that warrants wearing a helmet after the age of 14 all could be considered cool.
I noticed that helmet mounts were available, and then they weren't. I think Flip briefly sold something like that, and then pulled the product. Lawsuits? How effective is a helmet if there is a hard item attached to the outside of it?
For my son, Ben, the coolest possible thing to do with a Flip is to get his parents to do videos of his music group and solo performances that he can upload on Facebook and YouTube.
rmdembroski gives us a good illustration of a hack that I've seen a number of people do -- supergluing a lens mount to his Flip Ultra-HD.
He has a Flip Mino-HD, also, but noted that he wanted to be able to put that one in his pocket -- something this modification pretty much precludes.
The clip includes shots taken by the Flip as he swaps in different wide-angle/telephoto lenses. The Flip microphone picks up the sound of screwing them on. Listen to this one through headphones!