HD camcorder reviews: Recording formats
There are several ways to record your HD footage. Here's how they differ.
Mini-DV
Mini-DV camcorder tapes are easy to store and use
Mini-DV camcorders record on Mini-DV tapes. The tapes are roughly the size of a small bar of soap – the type you get in hotels – so they're easy to store and easy to use.
They offer a lot of recording time for your money: a 60-minute tape costs around £3. Switch to long-play mode and you'll get 90 minutes of recording time, though sound quality will be reduced slightly.
There may also be some compatibility problems if you try to play the tape in another camcorder.
Mini-DV is the best camcorder format if you want to get into video editing on your computer, partly because video image quality post-editing is likely to be better than with other formats.
Some manufacturers offer HD Mini-DV tapes – but these aren't worth the extra outlay.
DVD
DVD high-definition camcorders record on blank 8cm DVD, normally using as format called AVCHD.
These discs are smaller than the normal type you buy, though they still fit in nearly all DVD players and computers after you've finished recording on them.
You can normally only record about 10 minutes on these DVDs at the camcorder's highest-quality setting, but some camcorders also accept dual layer (DL) discs which almost double recording time.
You can also find double sided discs, again increasing available recording time, but these are less common.
A typical camcorder blank DVD
Types of disc
Discs themselves come in five main recording formats: DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+RW and DVD-RAM, each with slightly different features.
DVD-R discs are the cheapest type, about £1 each, but unlike other types you can record on them only once. RW and RAM discs are re-writable many times.
You can't play DVD-RAM discs in most DVD players. But with DVD-RAM, DVD-RW and DVD+RW discs, you can do a little bit of editing on the camcorder itself (rather than having to transfer it to your computer and use editing software).
DVD camcorders can usually use more than one format – check each camcorder's specification to see which formats it accepts.
One drawback of DVD camcorders is that start-up time is a bit slow, so they're not the very best for spontaneous shooting.
Hard disk
Without the need for tape or DVD, hard-disk camcorders are often smaller and lighter with a cleaner design. They usually record on an internal fixed hard disk drive. As with DVD, the usual recording format is AVCHD.
These internal hard disks are usually at least 60GB. Very roughly, a 60GB hard disk will hold around seven hours of high-definition footage recorded at the highest quality level.
To transfer footage to your computer, a USB2.0 connection on your computer is virtually a must.
Memory card
These camcorders are usually significantly smaller than other types, and record onto a memory card (usually in AVCHD format).
Check out our interactive memory use calculator to figure out how much memory your footage is likely to use.