AND I’M LAME FOR NOT TRYING IT OUT: Reader Rachel B emailed a while back about the Flip Mino HD camcorder:

I bought the Flip Mino HD a couple of weeks ago, and I haven’t put the thing down. With a 3 and 1 year old, I needed something small that I could access quickly. It’s the size of a cell phone, is easy to use (only a few buttons) and downloading is a snap. I was concerned that the size would make for shaky video, but the picture is very steady and very clear. The unit charges when you connect to your pc, so no hassle with batteries, and the software is very user friendly. There is a quick and simple movie maker that lets you add titles and background music. I love this thing. My husband has been serving in Afghanistan since October, so I’ve been emailing videos every night since I bought it. He loves it. Just tonight I captured our one-year olds first steps, made a quick movie, and emailed it to family and friends. I really love this thing! I just wish I bought it sooner.

I’ve got one and I’ve been meaning to review it. I actually bought it as a backup when we covered the Tea Party protest, but since all the high-tech stuff we used worked perfectly I never got it out, and I haven’t done anything beyond a few minutes of out-of-the-box fiddlining with it. Ditto the local protest in Knoxville. But I’ll try to give it a proper tryout soon and report.