Flip MinoHD goes premium, we go hands-on

Flip Video just launched a new 'premium' take on the MinoHD -- it's fundamentally the same as the existing MinoHD, but with 8GB of storage, a bigger two-inch screen and an HDMI port, all wrapped up in either a sleek aluminum shell or a personalized design from the Flip website. The 8GB of flash means the MinoHD can now record up to two hours of 720p video, and while there's still no image stabilizer, it's not like that's stopped anyone from loving the MinoHD before. There's also a new version of the FlipShare software, which features an automatic Magic Movie mode that'll trim and edit before shooting your video to Facebook, YouTube and MySpace. We're sure the kids will love it, but we'd rather do things the old-fashioned way. The new premium model will sell for $229, while the original MinoHD remains on sale for $199 and the old-school Mino hangs back at $149. After some time playing around with one, we'd say you're well-justified in dropping the extra $30 here -- the newer case and screen are quite nice, and HDMI-out is nothing to sneeze at. It's still the same MinoHD as far as image quality goes, however, so don't walk into this one expecting any surprises -- and no fancy al-yoo-min-ium case will quell the need for a proper stabilizer in these things. Video after the break!

Gallery: Flip MinoHD goes premium, we go hands-on