Recording media
If you want to edit your footage on a computer, a camera that records in the DV format will be your best option. Look for a camera that uses MiniDV cassettes or a Digital8 model that records DV onto 8mm and Hi8 tapes. If you're not going to do a lot of editing, you might consider a MicroMV or mini-DVD camcorder. Both record MPEG-2 video, the former onto a tiny cassette that enables extremely compact camera designs, and the latter onto an 8cm (3-inch) DVD-RAM or DVD-R. Some camcorders record MPEG-4, which is acceptable for use on the Web and in e-mail but doesn't match the quality of the other digital-video formats. Many recent models allow users to capture MPEG-1 clips on a flash memory card--usually a Sony Memory Stick or SD/MMC media. If you'd like to be able to create e-mailable clips as well as high-quality video, look for this option.