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Buying a digital camcorder definitely means taking a step up in image quality. Just as in analog (traditional video camcorders), manufacturers have put some rather sophisticated electronics into very compact sizes. After you’ve chosen the format, most of the features you would consider for VHS, 8mm or Hi8 cameras are very similar for digital, plus a few added goodies in digital. It is the format that is different, not so much the cameras themselves. Read the Digital Camcorder Buying Guide @ BestBuy

Size

In recent years, manufacturers have worked to make their camcorders smaller and smaller, especially with many digital camcorders. The mini-DV cassette is physically so small that cameras can be made to fit a pocket (although small is not necessarily the best way of differentiating camcorders for your purposes). The digital format includes some of the smallest camcorders available.

Size is important for three reasons: portability, ease of use and features available.

Portability is pretty obvious. How do you plan on carrying your camcorder? Carry it in its own unique camera bag, in a purse, or in a pocket on your jacket. The traveler who keeps the camcorder in his pocketed jacket or the mountain climber is going to want the smallest camera possible. The parent videotaping kids playing soccer might be happy with any digital camcorder size (none are huge).

A tiny camera is not necessarily an easy-to-use camera for everyone. For example, the man with large hands may find a very compact camera hard to handle and the controls hard to use compared to how a petite woman reacts to handling the same camera. Some people find it easier to keep a large camcorder that rests on your shoulder steadier than a smaller, primarily hand-balanced unit.

In addition, there are feature limitations with size, especially noticeable with digital camcorders. Many of the smallest cameras today can only be built with smaller lenses (with shorter zoom ranges), small LCD monitors and less controls. Also, as size goes down, built-in LCD monitors get smaller and may be harder to see.

Zoom Lens

Most camcorders come with a built-in zoom lens. You can’t change them (although you can add accessory wide-angle or telephotos attachments). However, as you compare digital camcorders, there are some differences in lenses that are worth noting.

The better cameras often have larger lenses (they physically look larger). Larger lenses offer the manufacturer some leeway in making better quality optics (which can be seen in the higher quality images that video offers) and lenses that let in more light in low-light conditions.

Focal length is very misleading on camcorders. The actual image size depends on the size of the sensor (what is called a CCD chip, a light sensitive electronic device) compared to the size of the lens. The actual millimeters in focal length is rather meaningless if you don’t know the chip size. Luckily, most manufacturers give specs that include the equivalent in terms of 35mm photography (which more people are familiar with). That can help if you realize that 50mm is considered “normal” for 35mm cameras. Any smaller number is a wide-angle; any larger number is a telephoto.

Once you check, you’ll quickly discover that camcorders generally do very poorly at the wide-angle end of things. Most of them barely get even the equivalent of a 40mm lens in 35mm format (which is not much of a wide-angle). And some don’t even go wider than a "normal" 50mm. This makes that "X-factor" for the zoom (6X zoom, 10X zoom, etc.) a distraction rather than a help. If you are doing mostly indoor videotaping or at least you are usually close to the subject, a 12X zoom may be less valuable than a 6X zoom if the 6X has more of a wide-angle.

All camcorders have a decent telephoto end to the zoom, with some giving extreme focal length equivalents that would make a professional wildlife photographer jealous. If you are really serious about videotaping the birds or sports action, definitely consider a camera with a long zoom range. Most of that range will be in the telephoto focal lengths.

You will hear some hype about a “digital zoom.” While fairly common on digital video camcorders, it actually has nothing to do with the “digital” of digital video. What happens is that the camera crops the image in camera, using a smaller part of the sensor. Less sensor, means less quality can be captured. With the digital zoom, image quality drops in a hurry – images look soft, fuzzy, colors are off and so on. There’s no problem in buying a camera with a digital zoom – you don’t have to use it. Just don’t be taken in by digital zoom hype as a reason to buy one camcorder over another.

Image Stabilization

Image stabilization is a valuable feature as it helps keep your image steady when the camera is used handheld. The technology uses special lenses and/or circuits to keep your image still even though the camera might be moving a little. It won’t get rid of all movement, but it will dampen that motion so the viewer doesn’t get seasick. At wider-angles of your zoom, the image can look so stable it seems to be shot from a tripod. At extreme telephoto positions, you should use a tripod.

There are two flavors of image stabilization: optical and electronic. In the optical type, tiny motion sensors detect the camera’s movement, and then use microprocessers to control motors that move special lens elements to compensate for camera movement. Pretty amazing stuff.

In electronic stabilization, the camera actually adjusts what it sees on the sensor (the CCD chip) to a smaller area, then moves this active area around on the chip to compensate for camera movement. This system is less expensive, but since it effectively reduces the sensor size, it reduces image quality and gives you even less "wide-angle" to your zoom.

Still photos

Some digital camcorders offer a “digital camera” option. This allows you to use the camcorder for still photos as if it were a digital camera. This can work, but it has some serious limitations, so I would not use this as a criteria for buying a camcorder. The biggest problem is resolution – video is shot at 640 or 720 x 480. This is a low resolution, not even close to even a one megapixel digital camera. It is okay for the email and the Internet (yielding about a 6x10-inch picture on your monitor), but not for prints bigger than about 3x5-inches (and even then, they won’t compare to a 35mm print). The still images are stored on the camcorder in two ways – on tape or on a memory card. The tape method can be a problem in finding and downloading the images. Memory cards are easier to use.

A viewfinder includes an eyepiece for you to look into, and what you see is a magnified color video mini-monitor. A traditional video viewfinder allows you to see the image under any conditions; it is usually sharper than a large LCD monitor (you can also focus your eyepiece for best viewing sharpness); it uses less battery power; and it is less expensive so a camera that only has a viewfinder can be sold for less.

Lux

This is a tricky item. It is supposed to be an indication of how well a camcorder can do under low light conditions. Unfortunately, there is no standard accepted by camcorder manufacturers as to how it should be measured. The lux numbers of camcorders within a given brand can be compared because any given manufacturer will usually measure lux consistently. Comparing lux ratings from brand to brand is a futile exercise.