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Today's digital camcorders offer several recording formats. Read on to learn the pros and cons of each type.
 MiniDV-Tape Format
MiniDV-tape format is the most common format for digital camcorders and records conveniently onto MiniDV tapes, which record DV-format video.
Pros of MiniDV Format
- High-quality video ? MiniDV format is a standard-definition DV-format video that produces about 500 lines of horizontal resolution. High-definition footage also uses MiniDV tapes and records HDV-format video. High-definition camcorders allow you to record in full 1080i high-definition for playback on your HDTV!
- Most common format ? MiniDV-tape format is found in a broad range of camcorders. It is widely supported by video-editing software and offers CD-quality audio dubbing. You may watch your video simply by connecting the camcorder to a TV or connect it to a VCR/DVD recorder to copy the video. Some MiniDV camcorders provide analog-to-digital conversion for digitizing older video.
Cons of MiniDV Format
- Playback ? Playback from a MiniDV camcorder must be done by connecting the camcorder to a TV ? unless you transfer the video to another medium, like a DVD. Playback of specific segments requires fast-forwarding or rewinding to queue up the tape and locate a desired segment.
- Editing ? It takes a significant amount of time to transfer video for editing on a computer. Thirty minutes of video will take you approximately 30 minutes to transfer to your computer.
 Mini-DVD Format
Mini-DVD camcorders record MPEG-2 video directly to a convenient mini DVD-R or DVD-RAM for playing in home DVD players. These DVDs come in many different versions: -R/-RW/+RW/-RAM/-R dual layer and -R/-RW double-sided. This format is convenient for sharing videos with family and friends.
Pros of Mini-DVD Format:
- Convenient playback ? Mini-DVDs can be played on most home DVD players with easy searching ability and random access to specific video segments. It is a convenient and stable format for archiving your home movies. Both video and still images can be recorded onto the discs.
- Faster editing ? The transfer time to edit on a computer is faster than the MiniDV format.
Cons of Mini-DVD Format:
- Good-quality video ? The quality is a bit lower than Mini-DV tape format due to MPEG-2 video compression. The video quality is greatly affected by the amount of compression selected, especially if more recording capacity is selected, requiring more compression.
- Editing ? Not all video editing programs can edit Mini-DVD. Try Adobe Premier Elements 2 or Pinnacle Studio versions 9.4 or newer (10.5) for editing this type of video.
 Hard Drive Format
Hard-disk drive camcorders record high-quality MPEG-2 video directly to a built-in hard drive. The size of hard drives increases each year with current camcorders boasting 20GB and 30GB storage capacity. This allows you to store hours of video (depending on the quality setting) without worrying about tapes or discs.
Pros of Hard-Drive Camcorders
- Convenient playback ? Playback is easy with simple searching and random access to specific video segments. Select from different video quality levels and store large amounts of video (capacity depends on the size of the hard drive).
- Good-quality video ? These camcorders compress the video using MPEG-2 video compression. The video quality is affected by the amount of compression selected.
- Fast editing ? Computer editing is fast and easy. The recorded files can be copied from a camcorder's hard drive onto the computer's hard drive for immediate editing within minutes.
Cons of Hard-Drive Camcorders
- Good-quality video ? The image quality of hard-drive camcorders is slightly lower than Mini-DV tape format due to MPEG-2 video compression. Video quality is greatly affected by the amount of compression selected ? especially if more recording capacity is desired ? requiring more compression.
- Playback ? Playback must be done by connecting the camcorder to a TV, unless you transfer the video to another medium like a DVD.
- Storage ? As you fill up the camcorder's hard drive, you will want to copy its contents to your computer's hard drive or onto blank DVDs to make room for additional recording.
- MPEG 2 files are not compatible with iMovie. They must be converted to the DV format for use (which could be time consuming)
 Flash Memory Format
Flash memory camcorders record MPEG-4 video to built-in flash memory or a flash memory card.
Pros of Flash Memory Camcorders:
- No moving parts ? By recording to solid-state memory, shock and vibration are decreased, allowing you to record even while doing extreme sports!
- Small size ? Compact design is easy to take anywhere.
- Fast editing ? Computer editing is fast, thanks to short transfer time. Recorded files can be copied from the camcorder's memory onto a computer for immediate editing within minutes.
- Playback ? Flash memory camcorders provide easy searching and random access to specific video segments.
Cons of Flash Memory Camcorders:
- Low-quality video ? Flash Memory camcorders produce much lower image quality than MiniDV tape or MPEG-2 formats due to MPEG-4 or similar video compression. The video quality is greatly affected by the amount of compression selected, especially if more recording capacity is chosen.
- Playback ? Playback must be done by connecting the camcorder to a TV, unless you transfer the video to another medium like a DVD.
- Recording capacity ? Flash memory camcorders have lower recording capacity compared to MiniDV tape. The amount of storage depends on the quality setting you choose, as well as the size of the flash memory card.
 AVCHD
This is direct competition for the HDV recording format. AVCHD is a high-definition recording format introduced by Sony and Panasonic. AVCHD can be used to record on DVD discs, HDD, or even flash memory cards. AVCHD uses the MPEG-4 AVC compression format. The big advantage is that AVCHD can record the same video as MPEG-2, but it uses less space to do it.
Pros of AVCHD Camcorders:
- You can find faster a particular scene
- You can seek faster and more precisely within that particular scene
- You can delete that scene and free up space immediately
- You can transfer video files to your PC much faster than when capturing from tapes
- iPod-sized hard drives these days go up to 160 GBs which is enough for 14 hours of AVCHD The AVCHD standard does not have the HDV tape-speed limitation and so it can extend its standard to true 1080p recording and true 24p ? without using hacks.
- And even 2k resolutions when the time comes iPod-sized drives take less space than the tape-reading mechanism so camcorders can become smaller 0.25in"
- Snapshot JPEG photos won?t have to be stored to a separate flash card, but on the hard drive as well (making the camera even smaller)
- AVCHD supports Dolby 5.1 surround sound.
Cons of AVCHD Camcorders:
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The biggest problem with editing and converting these files is the sheer amount of resources they require?decoding and re-encoding AVC is much more intensive than, say, MPEG-2.
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AVCHD employs long-GOP frame storage, which while space-efficient, introduces problems into editing and decoding of material. Even so, just as MPEG-2 was originally taxing to home PCs, even needing special PCI decoder cards, AVC's challenges will be overcome with time, especially on multi-core CPUs.
Other formats:
DVCAM
Introduced by Sony, DVCAM is a variation of the DV format. Sony designed the standard for semi-professional and lower-end professional videographers. DVCAM uses the same tape and compression as DV and Mini DV, but it is almost double the speed. A special DVCAM VCR is needed for playback.
HD
This is the new standard for television, also known as HDTV. High-definition television was developed in 1969. HDTV is a set of three standards for resolution. They are 1080i (1,080 actively interlaced lines), 1080p (progressively scanned) and 720p (progressively scanned). All of these standards use the same aspect ratio of 16:9.
HDV
Short for High-Definition Video. Records compressed HDTV video on Mini DV cassette. Will record in either 780p or 1080i and provides crystal-clear video. Prices are coming down, and that will make their popularity grow.
DVCPRO P2
P2 is a Panasonic standard developed for professional video. It is a tapeless recording of DVCPRO, DVCPRO50 and DVCPROHD streams, using a flash memory card. P2 cards have a memory capacity of 2GB, 4GB or 8GB. P2 cards are recorded in sequence; when one card is full, another blank card can be placed in the slot while another card is still being used for recording. Theoretically, P2 cards allow for an unlimited recording time, as long as you have an endless supply of cards. If a P2 card is partially full, the recording will continue until the card is full; the previous data will not be recorded over. Previous data must be manually deleted. P2 cards can be easily placed into a PCMCIA slot on a computer, so it makes their data easily accessible to a PC.
Last update: 08:17 AM Friday, December 14, 2007 |
