These days, anyone anywhere can take a picture. You find the ability to take still images inside phones, watches, computers, mp3 players, and funnily enough cameras. None of this is bad, though, as this lets anyone take a photo whenever they need to.

But sometimes a photo isn’t enough. Sometimes an image isn’t worth a thousand words and you really do need to communicate a scene or a moment through the use of video. Sadly, video cameras haven’t really dropped themselves into everything under the sun in the way a still camera has. Oh sure, they’re in phones, but we all know how crappy the video in those things are.

What if there was an easier way to record a movie or a short video that anyone – and I mean anyone – could get the hang of?

Similar in size to an iPod or a small mobile phone, the Flip Mino HD (also known as “The Flip”) is a one-trick pony. I say pony as opposed to horse because of its size: the Mino variant is the pony while the yet-to-be-released-in-Australian model of the Ultra HD is more like the horse.

With this animal, you can record video in 720p (1280×720) HD for up to one hour. It includes a built-in microphone and a fixed lens that while not great for close ups, will actually surprise you in its quality.
Sadly there’s no light you can turn on or use when it gets really dark, nor is there a whole ton of “low light performance” that you may get on other video cameras, but that’s not really needed here. Most video cameras can’t be stuck in your pocket nor do they have a set amount of time for you to record on, allowing you to have a no-fuss device that you can whip out of your pocket to film directly on.

In fact, “no-fuss” is really the name of the game here as the Flip Mino HD is easy to use. A power switch on one side turns it on lighting up the 1.5-inch screen that’s just big enough to use on such a device. From there, you merely need to press the big red button that looks like a record symbol to… well… record. Press it again to stop and voila, instant recording.

You can also zoom in while you’re recording using the plus and minus buttons above the record button, which will also work as volume up & volume down buttons when in playback mode. Play is easy to find too as it’s the triangle we’re all familiar with, while a delete button sits on the other side of the device that is locked (and unlocked) by holding it down so you don’t accidentally get rid of a video.

With the exception of the record button, these little buttons are all touch sensitive and serve to make the device look & feel just that much more modern. It even has a tripod socket at the bottom in the middle making it useful on a tripod.

Getting your video off is very easy too, as a switch on another side of the camera (different to the one the power button is on) pushes out a USB key from the top and allows you to transfer the MP4 files directly to your computer via either the included Flip software (available for both Windows and Mac OS systems) or by using whatever file manager you use.

And that’s it. The Flip Mino HD is small and easy to use, missing only a couple of marks.

First up is the USB key mechanism, which while strong enough to be plugged into a laptop sitting on a desk, has me a little worried for the desktop ports that face up. Depending on which way your USB ports are situated, that could leave you with too much pressure on the Flip and possibly a broken device.

Adding to this is a time limit that some people may not like. With only 2GB of storage inside the Flip Mino HD, you’re capped at one hour of recording time. For some, this may not be a good thing, but for most it won’t be a problem. From our testing the battery – which recharges when plugged into USB – seems to last the record time that you get out of the Flip, and seeing as you’ll probably be plugging it in to get your video off before it runs out, that’s not so bad.

We’ve also tested if it’s possible to edit the files as they use an MPEG-4 file format using a 3vix codec. You certainly won’t have much luck going from the file straight to Windows Movie Maker, but the included Flip software certainly does a decent job of editing and our tests with Adobe Premiere CS4 didn’t have a problem with the MP4 files the Flip threw at it.

Quite simply, the Flip Mino HD is a simple and easy video camera that does what it does well. There hasn’t really been a dedicated video recorder before. This is the point & shoot of video cameras and it really is a joy to carry around with you permanently.

Verdict: Love it. It’s portable video for the budding film-maker, the guerrilla in-training, and the person who normally brings a camera where ever they go.

Product: Flip Mino HD
RRP: $299.95