Calling All Cams: Buyer's Guide (page 3)

The first digital consumer format to appear was Mini DV, on 6.35mm (or about 1/4-inch) cassettes. Actually the little brother of full-sized DV cassettes, Mini DV cassettes still hold enough tape to record up to 80 minutes of "better-than-broadcast-quality" video. This video has a 720x480 image size, and includes either stereo, 48kHz, 16-bit audio, or four tracks of 32kHz, 12-bit audio. Mini DV camcorders span a broad range, from value-priced basic models, like the Samsung SCD67 at $600, to professional-level units, such as the Sony DSR-PD250 for $5,330 and the Canon XL1S at $4,699.

The larger, professional full-size DV cassettes and cameras (such as the Panasonic AG-DVC200) can record as much as 210 minutes, but are about twice the size of the pocket-sized Mini DV cassettes. An important item of note is that DV is actually three standards. First, it's a data format, where video is compressed 5:1 into a 25MB/s stream. Second, DV is a tape format. Finally, it is a physical tape cassette format, meaning that some decks or camcorders will accept both DV and Mini DV cassettes, others will only accept Mini DV.

Sony introduced the hybrid Digital8 format in 1999. This format uses the same cassettes as Hi8, but instead of writing video, audio and control tracks, it writes a digital bit-stream. That digital bit-stream is the same DV formatted data used by Mini DV models, even though it is going to a different tape.

One of the more notable things about Digital8 cameras is that they are backwards compatible, meaning they can play back Hi8 and regular 8mm videotapes. If you are busy editing on a computer, you can simply play it in your new Digital8 camcorder, and it sends it down the FireWire (IEEE 1394, or i.LINK, as Sony calls it) cable. And there it is, on your hard drive digital video. This is a huge feature to someone with a substantial analog 8mm library. Plus, it's a great image acquisition format, offering small (although not pocket-small like some Mini DV cams) camcorders with lots of features.

Another Digital8 feature is its ability to use Hi8 cassettes. Hi8 tapes are significantly cheaper than Mini DV tapes, although Mini DV prices are dropping. But in some out-of-the way places, finding Hi8 tapes is easy while finding Mini DV may be next to impossible.

This placement of the Sony 8mm videocassette domain squarely into the middle of DV-land makes a strong format even stronger, while also strengthening Mini DV by the commitment to digital video in general. Although Sony introduced Digital8, it was actually developed by a group of companies, and there are other camcorder makers issuing Digital8 models, including Hitachi's VMD875LA. This open standards way of doing business makes this a strong format, too. If only Sony had played ball like this with Beta!

Regardless of which camcorder format you buy, it is your own style and imagination that will make your videos come alive for you and your viewers. Technical advances and industry squabbling and competition come and go, but creativity and entertaining ideas endure.

When you head out to shop for a new camcorder, or just to enjoy playing with the demo models, remember that each format has its own strengths and weaknesses, and that there are trade-offs in even the best gear. Try to find what works best for you, and don't let a salesman's quota sell you something that doesn't make you happy.

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