Originally Posted by Jim_Gunn

There's a lot of issues to consider when trying to figure out what camera to purchase and sometimes the newest release isn't always the best option. In particular the format it records in (AVCHD vs HDV) and the media it records on (mini-DV tape vs SD or P2 cards) and how they will affect your editing workflow. Also the other features of the camera like if it has XLR audio inputs may affect how you use it. Here's a little reading about AVCHD
http://blogs.zdnet.com/Ou/?p=998. In any case, I'd worry as much or more about lighting as I do about the camera itself