What Are the Different Types of Camcorder Formats and How to Choose the Right One

In today's confusing camcorder market, it's harder than ever for the consumer to decide on what type of format is right for them. Should you go with a miniDV camcorder? A DVD camcorder? Or maybe you should choose a camcorder that records video to a built-in hard drive? There's plenty of questions that need to be answered when talking about the many camcorder formats out there, so lets finally set the record straight about the pros and cons of each format and how each type of camcorder is best used in the field.

What Are You Going To Use Your Camcorder For?

The question you need to ask yourself is, "How much will I be using my camcorder and for what purpose?" Will the camcorder sit on a closet shelf for 364 days out of the year, or will you use it on a weekly basis? Do you plan on using it exclusively to shoot family events (birthdays, graduations, family reunions, etc.), or are you a budding videographer looking to shoot low-budget "feature" films? These are questions that will help you decide what type camcorder is the perfect fit for you.

Most Popular Camcorder Formats

The main camcorder formats you'll encounter are miniDV, miniDVD/DVD, HDV, HDD, Flash memory, and AVCHD. Confused yet? You should be! And to make it even more confusing, there are camcorders on the market that use variations and combinations of these formats! So before you get too overwhelmed, lets clear up the confusion about these popular camcorder formats...

miniDV

This camcorder format was the first digital format available to consumers back in the mid-90's. It still remains as one of the most popular formats around the world - largely due to its inexpensive price and solid performance. This type of camcorder uses a small tape for recording video that is only about the size of a matchbox. The miniDV tapes typically record 60-85 minutes of video and they only cost around $5 each. They allow the user to upload video to their computer or watch video directly on their television.

Pros:
Camcorders and miniDV tapes are inexpensive
Capable of shooting good quality, standard-definition video
Connects to a computer or TV

Cons:
Hard to find particular scenes on the tape during playback
Uploading video to a computer is time consuming

Who's it for?

Budget-minded consumers; Indie filmmakers; All-purpose shooting

miniDVD / DVD

This type of camcorder, as the name implies, uses standard DVDs or a mini version of a DVD for recording. The miniDVDs are compact in size, measuring just three inches in diameter, but they'll still play in your DVD player. DVD and miniDVD camcorders allow you to record video and watch it instantly on a DVD player, so it may be a good choice for those people looking for instant gratification. Don't expect to record very much video on each disc - most miniDVDs and DVDs allow for about 30 minutes of video at the highest quality setting. You can also edit the video on your computer, but this format isn't as widely supported by video editing programs as miniDV.

Pros:

Video can be played back instantly using a DVD player
One of the most convenient camcorder formats and easiest to playback

Cons:

DVDs and miniDVDs can get expensive and don't have very high recording capacities
Not very easy to edit video
Video quality isn't as good as miniDV's

Who's it for?

Anyone who wants the convenience of being able to watch video on a DVD player instantly; People who don't plan on editing their videos

HDV

HDV, or high definition video, produces video in crystal-clear high definition (HD). This type of camcorder is very similar to the miniDV camcorders - as a matter of fact, they both use the same kind of tapes for recording - the main difference between the two is the HD factor. This type of camcorder is still relatively expensive (in the $1,000 range), but it has been coming down in price recently. Video shot with an HDV camcorder is easily editable and can be burned from a computer onto standard DVDs, Blu-ray DVDs, or HD DVDs.

Pros:

Shoots high-quality HD video
miniDV tapes are inexpensive (approximately $5 each) and can hold 63-85 minutes of video
Video is easily edited using a computer

Cons:

Camcorders are still very expensive ($500-$1,000+)
Most consumer models don't shoot in "full-HD" (1080p resolution)

Who's it for?

Anyone with an HDTV, of course!

HDD

HDD, or hard disk drive, camcorders record video directly to built-in hard drives, and they come in both standard-definition and high-definition models. HDD camcorders offer tons of internal memory for shooting video-often times 30, 40, or even 120 GB hard drives. A 40 GB hard drive will give you about 5 hours of HD video - much more than that for standard-definition video. One of the biggest advantages of having an HDD camcorder is the fact that you don't ever need to purchase any additional media (i.e., DVDs, tapes). All video is stored inside the camcorder until you choose to delete it or transfer it to a computer.

Pros:

Huge memory capacity for shooting hours of video footage
No need to purchase additional media
Standard-definition models are very affordable

Cons:

If the internal hard drive gets damaged, the entire camcorder will most likely have to be replaced
Hard drive may not be expandable (some models)
Editing is limited

Who's it for?

The traveler (i.e, a week-long family vacation to Disney World); Anyone who doesn't plan on doing any extensive video editing

Flash Memory

This camcorder format is growing in popularity due to the fact that it's inexpensive, durable, and widely accessible around the world. Camcorders which use Flash memory utilize the same type of memory card that your digital camera uses - SD or SDHC memory cards. These small memory cards allow for the design of the camcorder to be very compact and rugged - more durable than HDD camcorders. These camcorders range in price from $100+, and their video quality is directly related to their purchase price. The least-expensive models have low quality video but are very compact and easy to use. Flash memory camcorders are easy to use right out of the box.

Pros:

Compact, rugged, durable design
Uses widely-accessible SD or SDHC memory cards to store video footage
Easy to use

Cons:

High-capacity SD and SDCH memory cards (16-32 GB) can get expensive
Shoots lower quality video compared to other camcorder formats

Who's it for?

Eco-travelers; Anyone needing a small, compact camcorder; Thrifty (aka: cheap!) consumers

AVCHD

This format is relatively new in the camcorder world, and it allows you to shoot HD video onto DVD/miniDVDs, Blu-ray discs, an internal hard drive (HDD), or Flash memory cards. Each AVCHD camcorder model may use one, or a combination, of any of the above memory storage technologies. The AVCHD format allows you to shoot crystal-clear 720p HD video, and while the video editing options are still limited due to this format being in its infancy, more and more video editing programs are hopping on-board the AVCHD bandwagon.

Pros:

Supports HD-quality video
Fast becoming popular in the camcorder market
Allows you to burn video to Blu-ray discs for watching them via a Blu-ray player (or Playstation 3)
Versatile memory storage; some models have multiple types (i.e., HDD + SD card support)

Cons:

Technology is still in its infancy
Camcorders are expensive
HDV camcorders have arguably better video quality capabilities

Who's it for?

People with Blu-ray disc players; Anyone with an HDTV; Gadget lovers who have to have the latest technology!