Hello guys,
for last a couple of years I have been using my Pana NV GS400 3CCD MiniDV camera
altogether with Premiere Pro for editing, mostly for home videos, occasionally some events for friends.
Now I want to buy some new camcorder in HD format , but I am a little bit confused among the formats which different cameras are using.
Could you explain me or give me an advice which format is better ?
Also I assume that 3CCD has been replaced by 3MOS , correct?

Thank you

Here is a just a breakdown of how to figure out what works best for you. I can't answer all your questions, but I can give you question that you should be able to answer to help you make a decision.

1. What is your budget? When you figure that out keep in mind you may have to upgrade your computer for edting or maybe your software depending on what version of PPro you are on.

1a. Within your budget, if you don't want to upgrade your computer or software, then what format works best with the system that you currently have? Some formats, like mp4 AVCHD, are much harder to edit on slower systems. At the very least I would recommend a fast quad-core processor with at least 4 gigs of ram. Not counting how much hard drive space you may need.

2. Dealing with a camera, what type of features do you need or want? A lot of manual control? Microphone input? 3 chip vs 1 chip. Many of the new cameras have 1, (usually CMOS), chip and still produce very high quality video. For example, DSLRs that shoot video only have 1 chip. I'm not sure I've ever heard of one with more that one. I know that it is not apples to apples, but it is something to be aware of.

2a. With a camera do you also like or take a lot of still pictures? Although I have a prosumer video camera for events and other events like that, I just bought a new DSLR so I can take one camera that does both. Depending on the event, I now don't have to choose to take stills or video. For example; my son is a street dancer and does performing in various venues. When I went to his events I would have to choose do I want to take stills or video, since I didn't want to carry two cameras. Now I don't have to. What I like to do is find the model number of a camera or cameras you are interested in and then go to Vimeo and do a search for the model number. You'll almost always find examples there.

3. Format for shooting: This also highly dependent on your computer power and software. I think it's safe to say that most consumer/prosumer cameras shoot some form of mp4 now. Although they wrap it differently, meaning mov, mts, mp4, etc. You need to figure out what works best with your current or future set-up.

I hope this helps. Cheers!

Hello,

thank you for a feedback.
Basically at the moment I need something for my family so no pro camcorder.
Since I stayed for a long time with DV , I usually cut everything in Premiere.

Now I want something for taking a family videos, but with goog stability and picture.
Maybe basic manual control would be good.

I have older Nikon lens camera so I dont think about buying DSLR.

Could you recommend something ?

What is your price range? In the sub $300-$500 category I like many of the Canon cameras. Sony is good too. I would highly recommend something that can take an external microphone. In the $1000 to $1200 there are a lot of good choices. Panasonic has some nice cameras. This site does some really nice reviews on all levels of video cameras. Camcorder Reviews, Ratings and Buying Guides - CamcorderInfo.com (http://www.camcorderinfo.com/)

no new camera yet? As a former GS400 user I actually know the answer: A Panasonic HC-X920. Sorry about the touchscreen and that you'll probably have to upgrade your computer, but there you go.

Thank you so much,
Panasonic HC-X920 seems very nice, a little bit out of my range, but really thinking about that.
I assume I would need to upgrade the computer for any camera anyway, right?
So I will always end up with mp4 cutting in Premiere?

I can live without wifi tethering and so on...

Could you please also explain me difference between AVHCD and MPEG-4 ?
I went through a couple of cameras , for example

Canon Vixia HF G20 Review - CamcorderInfo.com (http://www.camcorderinfo.com/content/canon-hf-g20-review-3) but also small budget range like

Amazon.com: Canon VIXIA HF R40 HD 53x Image Stabilized Optical Zoom Camcorder 8 GB Internal Drive Dual SDXC Card Slots and 3.0 Touch LCD: CANON: Camera & Photo (http://www.amazon.com/Canon-Stabilized-Optical-Camcorder-Internal/dp/B00AWZFI8C)

but there have been stated that some AVCHD cameras shoot only in AVCHD and some also in Mpeg-4.

I thought that all these cameras ends up with mp4 files, or ma I mistaken. Professional cameras ends up also with mp4 file, correct?

Thank you for support

AVCHD is form of mpeg 4 that has support for different resolutions and bitrates. Also it carries more meta data making it more suitable for professional work. If you do some searching on the web you'll find a lot of information. I think you would be fine with a camera that shoots either format.