YouTube and other video-sharing websites are a great way to share and watch videos from our friends, family, and other people all over the world. So it didn't come as a surprise to me when I learned that more and more camcorders these days are designed specifically for users of these sites. Web-friendly camcorders have ease of use at the basis of their design — they give you easy recording, easy playback, and even easier uploading to your computer and video-sharing websites.

Recently, I had the chance to check out two of our web-friendly camcorders: the Sony NSC-GC1, which records to Memory Stick® Duo™ cards, and the Pure Digital Flip Video Ultra, which records to a built-in 2-gigabyte memory. I looked at a few different things: ease of recording, quality of the video, video recording options, and ease of uploading to a computer or website.

Both the Sony NSC-GC1 (left) and the Pure Digital Flip Video (right) camcorders are tiny — they're roughly the same size as a compact digital camera.

The basics of each camcorder

First, take a look at the chart below to get an idea of how these camcorders measure up.

Upon first glance, there's no denying that both of these cameras are tiny. Both have a vertical grip, which differs from most of the camcorders that we carry. In addition to their small size, the Sony and the Flip feature a minimalist set of buttons and a slimmed down set of camcorder functions. This makes perfect sense to me — a camcorder that's intended to produce web-worthy film clips probably won't need advanced focus, shutter speed, and aperture settings. There are also no accessory shoes, headphone outputs, or other features that you'd see on today's higher-end camcorders.

Recording videos

In functionality, both camcorders are very similar — point, shoot, and you're ready to upload your footage to YouTube. In fact, the Flip didn't give me any options other than simple point and shoot. That made it really simple to use, because there weren't any menus to get lost in, or any menus at all.

The Sony camcorder gave me a few more options — I could record videos and snap photos, and select from different video resolution settings. One lower-resolution setting would record videos that were ideal for e-mailing to family and friends. The two higher quality settings worked well with video-sharing websites.

I was able to make other minor tweaks to my videos and photos with the Sony cam, too. I could adjust white balance and exposure using the menu system, and even turn on the built-in flash for photos. There were times when it was good to have that additional creative control — for example, when I wanted to take a photo in a room that wasn't particularly well lit, I switched to the photo flash mode and used the flash to brighten my picture. This cam also offers live web streaming via USB, so I could send videos in real time to family and friends.

Comparing video quality

When it came to video quality, I compared the highest quality setting on the Sony camcorder with the only quality setting that the Flip camcorder provided.

The Sony cam features a 2-2/3" flip-out LCD screen.

The Sony produced decent videos in daylight and in well-lit situations. It didn't do as good a job in environments with low lighting, but this is an issue that occurs with a number of camcorders. The one thing I really liked about the Sony cam was that I could change my video resolution setting before I started shooting video. I chose a more compressed video size when I shot a video that I was planning to e-mail to family and friends, and saved room on my memory card for recording more videos later that day. Because of the selectable video resolution, the storage capacity of this camcorder varies. I was able to store between one and eight hours of footage using a 1-gigabyte Memory Stick Duo card. Buying a larger Memory Stick Duo card, or carrying extras, would have given me more recording time.

The Flip comes in multiple colors and fits easily in your hand.

With the Flip camcorder, I got approximately 60 minutes of recording time. I found that the Flip had slightly better video color reproduction than the Sony cam — people and animals appeared more natural, and painted walls in my apartment more closely maintained their shade of "Martha Cooper Rose" pink during playback. The Flip really excelled when I shot clips as the sun was setting, and the lighting of the room was less than ideal. The cam was able to show the detailed wood of a bookcase in a dark corner, and then adjust quickly when I panned to an open window where sunlight streamed into the room.

Videos from both camcorders had a similar amount of detail when I played them back. They were a bit pixelated when watched on a TV or in full-screen mode on my computer, but looked great in a smaller window.

I only shot short video clips — nothing longer than five minutes — so I didn't come close to exceeding my recording capacity with either model. In fact, the ease of connecting to a computer made it very simple to transfer video files, clear the camcorder's memory, and start recording again.

The Flip (left) reproduced more accurate, natural colors, while the Sony camcorder (right) offered more recording options.

Uploading and editing software

Both camcorders connected to my computer via a USB input. The Sony camcorder came with a USB cable, while the Flip used a flip-out USB arm that plugged directly into my PC. This flip-out interface was very convenient. When I wanted to upload videos while I was at work, I didn't have to remember to bring a USB cable with me. But, when I plugged the Flip camcorder into my computer, it jutted out in mid-air because of the way the PC's USB ports were positioned — one wrong move with my foot and I might have snapped the USB arm off the camcorder. The flip-out USB arm would work better with a laptop, where the camcorder could lie flat against a desk or table. (Pure Digital does sell a USB cable as an accessory for the Flip, so you can plug the camcorder into hard-to-reach USB ports, but it doesn't come in the box.)

When I connected these cams to my computer, the software that's built into each popped up for automatic installation. Interestingly enough, the included programs were very similar. I was able to save videos to my computer and upload them to the web, or upload them directly to a video-sharing website like YouTube or Crackle. The Flip's software also allowed me to snap photos from video footage, and compress videos into a smaller, e-mailable resolution (496 x 370).

My final thoughts on these web-worthy camcorders

These camcorders are both great options for folks who want to record and upload videos on sites like YouTube, or e-mail them to friends and family. But which model would be a better fit for you?

The Flip might be for you if:

• You want super-simple, point-and-shoot operation
• You're not concerned about capturing photos while you're shooting
• You want more natural-looking colors, or will be shooting in low light

The Sony might be for you if:

• You want to take photos and videos
• You want a little more creative control
• You want to stream live video
• You want expandable storage

The Sony and the Flip are well designed for their intended audience. However, if you're interested in playing your videos on a large TV, or doing any serious editing, you may want to consider a more traditional camcorder. For my purposes — shooting a few funny videos of my co-workers and friends, and uploading them to my computer — these camcorders were just about perfect.