First off let me say that I prefer Mini DV camcorders to the direct to DVD type. If you plan on editing you video then a Mini-dv will end up giving you a better quality result because it will stay uncompressed until you are done and ready to author the DVD. In the DVD camcorders you get MPEG compressed video on the disc so any editing will uncompress and then recompress resulting in lower quality.

To answer your questions:

1. The mini dvd's are either DVD-R or DVD+R discs these differ not in the content on the disc from normal DVD's but in the actual disc itself. The recordable disc's both mini and full size use a color changing dye to record the bits of data while a normal dvd is a pressed layer. Most newer DVD players and DVD-ROM drives in PC's will read either format with no problems. However you can go to Video Help.com and look up your DVD Players, others have put in feedback about what type's of disc your player works with.

2. The CCD is the electronic device that actually converts the incoming light signal to the electronic format, the number value attached is typically a resolution number, the higher the resolution (pixel count) of the CCD the higher quality the captured visual information can look. There are higher end models that employ three CCD's to give an even higher resolution image.

3. Both digital camcorders (a sony and a panasonic) I have owned had this feature, its name varies by manufacuterer.

4. Nope no adapter is typically required. If you look closely at the tray there is normally an indention to hold the smaller disc's, this has been a standard back to the mini CD.

5. Sound sync issue you experienced is likely due to the way you captured the video/audio. You dont say much about it so I can only speculate. In any case the MiniDV and the DVD camcorders should not have this issue is setup properly. You can also go the videohelp website for tips on how to capture analog video and convert if you are still interested in that for you old tapes.

6. Dont know check the manufacturers specs for their camera.

Are you certain that the Panasonic was mini VHC (VHS-C)?? If its miniDV then I think you need to reconsider a new camera and look at how you edited and converted the video to DVD, it should not have the problems you described. Here is an excellent camcorder buying guide at Cnet.com

Cseyer, thank you so much for your information. But now I am a little confused about something else. You said,

"First off let me say that I prefer Mini DV camcorders to the direct to DVD type" and " In the DVD camcorders you get MPEG compressed video on the disc..". But the only camcorders I have seen so far, are those that are way too small to contain a standard size DVD disk, so I just assumed that all of the DVD-style camcorders use small disks. I didn't know there were any that would record directly to a full-size DVD. At least I've never seen any.

The camcorder that we have now is a Panasonic Model PV-L550D, VHS-C model (says all that right on the camera). It also says "150x Digital 18x High Definition Zoom Lens". It has the standard eyepiece plus a color LCD screen that can open out from the side of the camera.

I think what's confusing me is the term "mini DV". Can the term "mini DV" apply to a camera that records to tape, or does it just apply to a camera that records to a disc?

You are correct the recorders use Mini DVD's, but still they are dvd's and store a MPEG compressed video signal.

VHS-C stores a low resolution video signal. MiniDV is a tape format but stores a full resolution digital video signal. The digital video is easily transferred to a PC via a IEE1394 (Firewire or i-link) connection. Once on a PC it is easily edited and then converted to MPEG DVD format. Most professional's prefer this format. MiniDV is one format of camera there are several others including Digital8mm, MicroMV, VHS-C, MiniDV. Check out the guide on Cnet I linked in my previous email for + and - on each format.

Thanks again, Cseyer. I see now that I was confusing "Mini-DV" (the format) with "Mini DVD" (the actual disk)!

I found the owners manual for the Panasonic camcorder that we have, and cannot find anything in the specs that mention mini-DV format. It says:

Video signal: EIA Standrad (525 lines, 60 fields) NTSC color signal
Video recording system: 2 rotary heads plus flying erase head. Helical scanning system
Audio: 1 track
Pick-up system: Sequential color difference field reverse system
Pick-up device: One integral color filter Charge Coupled Device (CCD)

So it looks as if what we have is the low-resolution VHS-C type for sure. Thank you for the link, it explained the different formats nicely. Since we would want the best picture possible, it does seem as though it would make more sense for me to buy a "tape" camcorder that is Mini-DV format, rather than the "hot" new mini-DVD types. I was just assuming (in ignorance) that the slightly grainy and out of sync videos that came from this camera, was a result of it using tape instead of a DVD. But now I see that it is most likely the result of low resolution to start with, plus the conversion of the audio and video from the VHS format to that of the final "burned" DVD. And when viewing the DVD on a large screen TV, any poor elements are even more noticeable!

I guess part of the attraction of having a DVD-disk camcorder is that all you need do is pop the mini disk out of the camera and into the CD/DVD drive of the computer, without bothering with any sort of hardwire connection. Just load the DVD, launch your editing software, do whatever's wanted, Save it, and you're done. But if the resulting quality of the DVD is not as good as would be obtained from converting a mini-DV tape, then that's certainly something to think about.

Thank you both for this post & info. I found it very useful now that I'm shopping for a new camcorder too.

Mrs. C

Thanks for the discussion and the web sites. I was just llooking at camcorders to buy for myself, went into a store and walked right out. The options are overwhelming. I really need to know more about what I'm planning to get into. Life is getting so complex and CONFUSING! I still have a Brownie camera in its box. Now how low tech is that?