video camera info

joejon wrote on 7/8/2008, 9:34 AM
Does anyone have any good information or links about camera formats? Now that 8mm is about dead I want to learn about other formats. I'm really not sure about the hard drive cameras. Hard drives are so unreliable. 8mm was around a long time. I want to look at a format that hopefully will be around a long time also. Thanks in advance for any information.

Comments

Daveco2 wrote on 7/8/2008, 12:47 PM
Take a look here:

http://www.camcorderinfo.com/
Spot|DSE wrote on 7/8/2008, 12:52 PM
http://www.thefullhd.com
johnmeyer wrote on 7/8/2008, 1:02 PM
Start with file format. Camcorders can record in DV or MPEG-2 for standard definition video and HDV or AVCHD for high definition. I guess there is a MOD and/or TOD format which is similar to AVCHD, but I don't know anything about it.

Then there is the medium on which the video is actually recorded. This includes varying types of tape (although in the consumer market, with the decline in 8mm/Hi8/Digital8, it is mostly miniDV), hard disk, optical disk, and solid state.

In theory a camcorder could record almost any file format to almost any media. Thus, you could construct a matrix with file formats on one axis and media on the other, and fill in the intersections with the names of camcorders. However, in practice, not all combinations are feasible.

At this point, it really doesn't make sense to invest in anything except a high-def camcorder. Most of the debate on what to get usually boils down to HDV (on miniDV tape) vs. AVCHD on either hard drive or solid state memory. While others may disagree with that statement, if I were you, I'd go to the site Daveco2 recommended

Camcorderinfo.com

(it is an amazingly good site) and concentrates on HDV vs. AVCHD and on the AVCHD side decide on which media you prefer (although Sony has some camcorder that support both hard drive AND solid state -- and having briefly used those, I found them very intriguing).
joejon wrote on 7/8/2008, 5:11 PM
It seems that HDV is better than the newer AVCHD. Is that your feeling also? Then would it be wise to go with miniDV, or is that format soon to go the wayside as 8mm? From what I've read so far, the newer medium and formats don't seem all that great. DVD cameras have lower quality output, hard drives are fragile and unreliable, and other ones, such as memory sticks, will most likely not catch on that big because of capacity limitations. 8mm was around for a long time, was very reliable, and had good quality. All of my cameras have been 8mm/Digital8 and have lasted more than 6 years each. The only downside is the playback & capture from a tape, instead of being able to just copy a file to the computer. And what about editing? I've read some articles that say AVCHD is not the best for editing, is that true? I know I need to look at HD, but it doesn't seem like there is a solid winner as far as quality, reliablity, and longevity.
johnmeyer wrote on 7/8/2008, 5:38 PM
HDV is easier to edit than AVCHD and will likely remain that way for some time to come. DVD is a lousy way to record, IMHO. DV tape, which can be used for HDV, is very easy to find, so if you are in the field (or on vacation), you can always find some more. Hard drive camcorders require a computer to offload the footage, and the same can also be said about solid state, because it is expensive and not readily available at every corner store so while you can get some more in theory, in practice it is tough.

I would not recommend getting a DV camcorder at this point, and if you go to Circuit City, you will find only a small number of these still available.

Thus, as I said in the previous post, concentrate on HDV or AVCHD HD or AVCHD solid state cameras. Compare them at Camcorderinfo.com. I think you will find that these three combinations comprise the majority of the camcorders receiving top marks at that review site.