Other Flip casualties: Accessories

Sadly, these accessories would have made the Flip more valuable

By Keith Shaw on Thu, 04/28/11 - 6:15pm.

RIP Mikey for Flip, we hardly knew ye
Cisco’s decision to kill off its Flip line of video cameras has also killed off some other products I was looking forward to – accessories that could have made the camera even more valuable.

Last September, Cisco announced its Designed for Flip program, giving third-party companies the chance to built accessories for the Flip that could be attached to the camera through a FlipPort, giving it additional functionality. One of the products I was most looking forward to was the Mikey for Flip microphone from Blue Microphones. The Mikey (and a wireless version by Scosche) would have vastly improved one of the faults of the Flip - its poor audio quality. Those of us who used Flip cameras for video interviews (especially at noisy trade shows) would have gobbled up these accessories.

Today, sadly, the company posted an “obituary” for the Mikey for Flip on its product page, along with the following thoughts: “Despite the tremendous disappointment that Mike for Flip will not grace the world as its creators intended, there is comfort in knowing the technology developed in Mikey for Flip will continue on in future Blue products.” The company also said “in lieu of flowers, donations to the Society for the Preservation of Totally Awesome Handheld Recording Devices are encouraged.”

Other companies in the Designed for Flip program included Aquapac (waterproof cases), Bower (a wide-angle lens), iGo (overtime battery extender, power adapter, pocket projector), Ikelite (underwater video housing), Seagate (a storage offering) and the aforementioned Scosche (a Bluetooth wireless microphone).

A check of Aquapac’s Web site showed that you can still purchase their Flip waterproof cases. You could also purchase the Ikelite Housing for Flip cameras on its site.

The iGo site was still selling Flip cameras, but not any of the accessories. A Seagate spokesman confirmed that “there will be no FlipPort storage solution from Seagate this year.” A check of the Scosche Web site also showed they are not selling their wireless microphone accessory for the Flip.

As for the Flip cameras themselves, Cisco says it will provide technical support for the cameras and the FlipShare software until Dec. 31, 2013. It encourages users to keep checking the FlipShare page for any additional FlipShare software updates until then.