Why does the video camera record in a format that requires the installation of video compatibility software (codec)?
Different compression formats provide different tradeoffs in video quality, compatibility, and file size. The Flip video camera uses H.264 video compression, AAC audio compression and the .mp4 file format. This results in very high-quality videos in a file size that is not as large as other high quality formats (e.g. MPEG-2 format on DVDs). This serves to maximize the space on your video camera’s memory, as well as your hard drive. For playback on a computer, videos recorded using a high-quality compression format can only properly play back after installation of video compatibility software (a codec) onto your computer. The FlipShare software which is pre-loaded on the video camera, will automatically install the necessary codec onto your computer for your convenience.
