Blank Media Buyers' Guide

Brian Peterson
November 2007

» Next Image Previous Image « Click to Enlarge Click to Enlarge Click to Enlarge Click to Enlarge Click to Enlarge

"What are the best media I can buy?"

Second only to "where are the bathrooms?" it is the one of the most common questions we hear from attendees at Videomaker workshops. If there really were a definitive answer to this question, we'd tell you. Honest! But it remains an excellent question, one we hope to help you answer here.

Who thought that in 2007 we'd still be using an uncompromisingly linear media format like tape, in our increasingly non-linear world? Well, we are, because it's dependable, it holds gobs of data and it's cheap. Formats used back in the days of analog camcorders, such as the various flavors of VHS and 8mm, are all but extinct, but Mini DV tape is still the predominant format for consumer and semi-professional SD and HDV camcorders.

Many factors in the production process influence the cost and performance of tape. It is made of microscopic magnetic particles, affixed to a base layer and covered with a protective coating. Manufacturers grade their tape from low to high quality (sometimes called Pro), and prices commonly range from $2.50 to $15. So, what do you get if you pay more? Usually, the tape will use special metals instead of the common iron oxide used on cheaper tape. Also, advanced manufacturing processes, strict quality control and special formulations that reduce friction, improve tape-to-head contact and reduce static electricity, will mean the tape has fewer dropouts, will last longer and will withstand more use. A common by-product of using better tape is usually cleaner heads.

Beware of prices that seem too good to be true. You may find you are actually buying used or "evaluated" tape, or tape that has been rejected by more reputable manufacturers. While this may be marginally acceptable for duplication of promo videos, don't stick one of these in your camcorder. New formulations that claim to be specially designed for HD acquisition may be part hype, but they should perform at least as well as or better than most Pro-grade stock. Remember, even if you use the most expensive tape, it still remains the least expensive way to store magnetic information.

DVDs are a truly versatile type of media. Like VHS used to, they can serve as both an acquisition and a distribution format. Manufacturers introduced a slew of new camcorders in 2007, mostly designed for casual shooters, which use the smaller 8cm disc. Besides the two disc sizes, there are five different disc types: -R/RW, +R/RW and DVD-RAM. There are also single- and dual-layer versions that extend the normal 4.7GB capacity to 8.5GB. While each requires a unique encoding process, nearly all newer DVD players can play most of them (with the exception of DVD-RAM).

Prices range from twenty-five cents each for 50-packs of single-layer DVDs to about $3.50 each for premium dual-layer discs. As with tape, when you pay more, you can expect increased durability, data integrity, longevity and consistency from disc to disc. Better discs will be made of high-quality substrate material to form the actual disc and superior dyes to form the reflective coating. This reflective coating and its application largely determine the disc's longevity. Higher-quality discs will also tend to have higher write speeds.

The epic battle continues between incompatible HD formats Blu-ray and HD DVD, and it is still too early to predict a winner. Recent price drops have put HD DVD in the lead for standalone players, but more Hollywood studios continue to back Blu-ray. Burners are now available for both formats, but both hardware and media remain very pricey and slow, and their compatibility with current players remains to be seen. Current Blu-ray discs can hold up to 25GB of data (50GB on dual-layer). You can cram 15GB of data on an HD DVD disc (30GB on dual-layer). Toshiba recently announced triple-layer technology, extending HD-DVD capacity to more than 50GB, but no production date has been set.

The capacity and speed of flash memory cards continue to increase, while prices plummet. Demand for this type of media, largely fueled by the breakneck pace of adoption of high-resolution digital still cameras, is set only to increase. While formats such as Memory Stick, compact flash, SmartMedia and XD capture limited video, the camcorders we commonly use have the tiny SD and newer SDHC cards. Panasonic has its own brand of solid-state media called P2, but it reserves this primarily for its own high-end camcorders.

With SD cards, capacity and sustained write speeds are chief considerations. SD cards are now reaching capacities of 8GB. Write speed is measured as with CD/DVDs, in terms of a multiple of real-time performance, 1x equaling 150kbps. Current speeds are at 133x or 20MB/sec. Several new HD camcorders use SDHC. They are more expensive than SD cards and, in many cases, are not interchangeable. If you have a camcorder designed specifically for SDHC, it's best to stick with that format.

There have also been compatibility issues with card readers and some production lots of cards from a few manufacturers. These problems have largely been resolved, but it is worth considering using readers from the manufacturer whose cards you use.

• Digg This!
• del.icio.us
• Technorati
• StumbleUpon
• Reddit