Oh boy. Being an old cynic makes me love posts like this especially when they cover so much general ground and area----vague, vapid, and have no meaning........but I'll hold my tongue----for now.
Look to your own pocket book for the cost of the equipment that you want.
Stick with tape as much as possible and not a hard drive or mini dvd camera.
Attempt to find your model of camera with IEEE\firewire control to your computer but then your computer will still have to be set up to ACCEPT video.....which means a firewire\video card.
Forget 'LUX'....it doesn't mean anything in the long run--your camera should have 'MANUAL' controls so that you may learn how to shoot in low light, focus, and zoom MANUALLY.

Your BATTERY LIFE is a control in your hands and comes from LEARNING how to use your equipment by knowing when to let your camera 'SLEEP', when to turn it on\off, knowing what systems inside your camera SUCK YOUR BATTERY DOWN, and also knowing how to properly charge\discharge your battery and to CARRY A SPARE\S.......!!

Bring on the slams......I can take it.