I would probably go with the mini dv model. Get a reputable brand with a lot of optical zoom, in my opinion digital zoom is pretty much worthless unless its high noon and you have the camera mounted on a tripod. I would suggest talking to one of the salespersons at a local store and see what they recommned, but be sure to pick the video camera up and hold it in your hand and buy one that has all the record buttons and such that are located convenientlyfor ease of operation. I am a loyal Sony consumer and their cameras seem to take a fair amount of abuse considering they are not really manufactured to do so. Hope this info helps you out somewhat.