My husband has a Flip and thinks it is great. It’s small enough to just slip into a pocket and be very easy to handle, and operation is simple too. He used it at a family gathering and people hardly knew they were being recorded, it was so unobtrusive. He got some very natural behavior and interactions, and it all came out very crisp and clear, with good sound. All for only $150.
He did do a lot of editing using software, but you’d have to edit your footage regardless, to produce watchable results.