Since we’re about to be new parents, we’re having to stock up on parental items. Diapers, outfits, formula, blankets, bedding, bottles, and booties. That’s Elizabeth’s department. I get the cool stuff: eye-gaugers, choking hazards, thrill rides, and gadgets. Naturally I started with the gadgets since I get to play test these items now.

Most every new parent goes straight for the digital camera, camcorder, or both. We’re no different. We got the digital camera (the Nikon D70) in February and I put it to good use. That’s my first [digital] SLR camera and I couldn’t have been happier with the purchase. We’re about to buy a digital camcorder and, again, this will be my first. Not knowing much about camcorders, I needed some solid info on the various models as well as some objective reviews.

I like to perform my own research, so I started out at Best Buy since they reflect general market on what’s available. I was rightfully skeptical of the new DVD camcorders and the lack of knowledge every salesperson I talked to proved my point. I’m not a rookie shopper and I know this isn’t the best way to get information, but I wanted to see what they would say, plus I wanted to hold the cameras in my hand.

Saving me a whole lot of time, my friend Jason send me to www.camcorderinfo.com. This site seemed to have everything I wanted as far as reviews and ranking go. Not quite perfect, their rankings lacked a little bit of information for me to make my decision without have to read every single review.

Well, I read every single review and I’m passing that knowledge on to you. I took Camcorderinfo.com’s rankings and added to it based on the information I pulled from their rankings. I put this info in the rankings chart and color coded the items that were ultimately going to make or break my purchase.

What I found:
You should first decide on the size, price, recording media, and above all, the picture quality that you are willing to settle for. The secondary items to sort through would be the battery life, hot shoes options, and what ports match your computer needs. The zoom capability of the camcorder is a non-factor for me.

About the list:
All of the data compiled was taken from Camcorderinfo.com. The data I added to their rankings should be 99% accurate. Any links with this list will take you to Camcorderinfo.com. The camcorders are ranked by their picture quality as well as the other features they provide.

My recommendations:

Brands:
After review each item myself, I have a few preferences. As far as the brand, I mistakenly would have said Sony is the best because of their name. Sony shares the same problem Apple has for many years: their products only work with their products. Most of the Sony camcorders have a hot shoe option, but it only works with Sony hot shoe products.

What’s a hot shoe?
This is the receptacle at the top of camcorders and cameras that allows you to attach devices such as a flash, light, or microphone. It’s called ‘hot’ because it draws power from the device it is attached to. On my list you will see the word ‘cold’ listed under the Hot Shoe category. A cold shoe means that your attachment must have its own power source in order to work with that device properly. Even though you may not need a hot shoe option on your camera, you might consider your future needs, for you cannot add a hot shoe to a camera that was not built with one.

Media:
The media you use for your camera will affect you only when you don’t want it to. You say you like the idea of recording video straight to a DVD so you can play it on your DVD player when you get home? When happens if you scratch that DVD, or worse yet, when the camera just doesn’t record to it? Just like the CDs you tried to burn music to, those DVDs will now become expensive coasters and you’ll be without your footage. Stick with MiniDV for the recording format. You can buy the tapes everywhere and you can swap them with your neighbor, the SoccerMom. If you’re considering 8mm Digital 8, then you probably won’t mind watching your videos on a VHS tape.

Battery Life:
I should have to explain this, but the longer the better. Camcorders that can record 2 hours of video are better than ones than can only record 1 hour of video, right? Canon as a whole has had bad battery life on all their digital products, especially if it’s a proprietary battery. If you are planning on getting a Canon camcorder, just consider an extra, longer-life battery as part of the purchase price.

Ports:
You computer probably has a USB 2.0 port on it, but it may not have a Firewire port as standard unless it’s a Macintosh. Firewire will transfer your video from the camcorder to your computer fast, so look for those if you want to save yourself some time. I personally want one that has Firewire built in. Also, the Sony models may not have these ports built in, but rather most come with a docking station that does. Make sure you know what you’re getting.

USBwire what?
You know you’re looking at a list of digital camcorders, right? Chances are because you will be hooking them up to a computer to edit your videos before you distribute them. If you don’t understand this part, you should learn the basics about this and do a little more research first.

The List, finally:
After looking at the list, I think I’m going to go with the Panasonic PV-GS150. It’s on the high side of what I want to pay, but it has all the features I want, plus it’s in the top 5 of picture quality. Thanks go to Camcorderinfo.com for providing a free website full of superb information. What I wrote here is not meant to be an exhaustive list/review. Camcorderinfo.com has already done the hard work by providing accurate information with their multi-point reviews. Please visit their site.

My 2005 Camcorder Comparison Chart can be found here (or you could have just clicked the picture at the top.