subject: What Are The Differences Between Hard Drive, Mini Dv & Mini Dvd Camcorders [print this page] All the major manufactures make the three types of camcorders. They produce many different high quality models for the everyday consumer. Each kind of camcorder has aspects that differentiate them from one another in ways that may or may not be to your advantage. If you are looking to invest in a new camcorder, knowing the differences between the three types will help you make a better decision. This is how you will know which will better fit your needs. Recording both video and audio digitally, these camcorders differ from each other in how they record and store information until it can be uploaded. This is the main difference and it is a big one.
Hard drive camcorders record directly to a memory drive similar to the one you have in your PC. Some models allow you to get a memory card for additional memory. A hard drive camcorder can come in many different capacities; they range from 4 to 240+ GB and, depending on the size of the hard drive and recording quality, can hold anywhere from 1 hour to over 100 hours of video. These are great because there is no need to buy and change tapes. But once you are out of space you are out of luck until you can download and erase.
Mini DVD camcorders record to a small DVDs that can be played by most standard DVD players. Each DVD can hold only thirty minutes of video per side (some disks come two sided). While it records to a convenient media, because the camcorder has to burn a disk, battery life on these guys can be an issue. Also, it is nearly impossible to edit your movies in this format; if you are into splicing and compiling a whole movie stay away from this type.
Mini DV camcorders record to digital tapes that are about a quarter the size of VHS cassette. The cassettes usually come in 60 minutes but you can reduce the quality and get 90 minutes. They cannot be played in a VCR with any kind of adapter but can be downloaded to the computer for editing very easily. You will need some kind editing software for that though.
Hard drive and mini DVD camcorders have basically the same features like scene settings that help you record better videos. Generally they also incorporate a digital still camera. Mini DV camcorders will have the fewest features; however, they are the least expensive of all the types. Mini DVD camcorders are the mid-price ranged variety but buying disks all the time adds to cost quickly. And finally, the hard drive type is typically the most expensive to begin with but, in the long term, will be the least expensive if you use it regularly.
