Tag: Video cameras

A Peek at the Flip Mino

In our family visit to Louisville this weekend, I got to see my friend Rick Kelley, who had taken my recommendation to get a Flip. He chose the Mino instead of the Ultra, though, because he has a house full of boys. The Ultra’s AA batteries likely would have been regularly cannibalized for use in a GameBoy; with the Mino’s rechargeable battery, that’s not a concern.

So here’s some video I shot of Rick’s Mino, using my Ultra.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PP-QjMrxB84]

Here, for comparison, is some video of me handling an Ultra. I shot it using my webcam and did a direct upload to YouTube, so it was optimized for speed instead of quality. But you can get the idea of the relative size and design aesthetics of the two models.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sB4NiuuUxUo]

Of course, you can see a more elegant view of the Flip at the company’s site, but I’m betting they used a higher-end camera to produce it. Just a hunch.

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Social Media Research and Weekend Reading

Here are highlights of the last week:

  • Your Chancellor did his taxes using TurboTax in less than an hour. It was Form 1040 with itemized deductions. If SMUG ever goes for 501(c)(3) status, I’m sure it will be more complicated, but for people like me who have used TurboTax previously, it is wonderful how it carries forward information from the previous year, such as charities previously supported, mortgage lenders, employers and dependents. It’s an excellent program and well worth it. Next year I plan to not procrastinate; I think the price is higher closer to April 15.
  • The first new class for the week was in the Podcasting curriculum. It’s Podcasting 104: Adding ID3 Tags to Your Audio Files. We’re well on the way to showing you how, as a SMUG student, you can do your own free podcast. I also did a related post on Religious Podcasting.
  • We also added an advanced course in the Facebook curriculum, Facebook 210: Professional Profile, Personal Privacy. It shows you how you can create a professional friend list that will enable you to use Facebook for both your personal and professional networking, without worrying about co-workers, clients, customers or other professional associates running across information that is too personal.
  • We also launched SMUG’s first cooperative social media research program. I hope you will use the recommendations from Facebook 210 to establish a professional friend list and participate in the research project.

I also have begun exploring the Flip video camera, based on a recommendation from PodcastSteve (a.k.a. Steve Lubetkin). My initial experience has been quite positive. And check out this guy’s comparison of HD and Flip. I will be reviewing the Flip here after I’ve spent some more time with it.