In The New York Times Magazine: The Flip camcorder

Posted by Rob Walker on May 24, 2008
Posted Under: Consumed

FLIPPED OUT
Convenience makes a good-enough camcorder a hit

In Consumed this week, an object lesson in the awesome power of convenience — and when it trumps quality itself.

In the consumer-products world, progress can be gauged in measurable increments of improved quality. Contemporary consumers demand such improvements all the time and refuse to compromise on the good-enough when the better is available. So marketplace success depends on quality breakthroughs: tastier coffee, faster computers, smoother-riding cars. This is always true — except when it isn’t….

A high-enough degree of convenience is exactly what makes a “good enough” product consumable. Digital-compression formats like the MP3 and most of its successors have entailed a step down in audio quality — but for most listeners, they’re “good enough” when you consider that they’re obtainable instantly (and, often, free). As Fleming-Wood points out, the camera business went through its own version of this epiphany decades ago, with the rise of one-button devices that couldn’t possibly match the quality of single-lens-reflex cameras but were far more accessible….

Read the column in the May 25, 2008 issue of The New York Times Magazine, or here.

Consumed archive is here, and FAQ is here. Consumed Facebook page is here.

Further diversion may be found at MKTG Tumblr, and the Consumed Facebook page.

Reader Comments

We use a Flip at the Library I work for. It’s an inexpensive device, with great portabilty, and we’ve all been impressed by the picture quality. It’s perfect for multiple users (students here at the college), and I imagine it would be nice for beach holidays and other accident prone fun situations. It sort of takes away from the fun when you’re terribly worried about your recording equipment. If you can’t afford a camera with all of the whats-its and whizz-bangs, but still want to capture the lives of you & yours, Flips are perfectly suited. The independent & artsy are probably out there right now creating innovative Flip films… just wait.

#1 
Written By katie on May 27th, 2008 @ 8:40 am

The Flip phone does not work with a Mac. No sound on playback. The company has no fix.

#2 
Written By Roger on May 27th, 2008 @ 10:48 am

Add a Comment

please
required, will not be published
optional