- There are several types of Mini DV tapes.dv tape - (space for message) image by Kirubeshwaran from Fotolia.com
Miniature Digital Video, or Mini DV, allows home and office camera operators to take high resolution film without spending thousands of dollars on professional HD film equipment. Still, like most technology, mini digital video tapes come in many brands and types. These types vary in resolution quality, size and compatibility. - According to DVD Creators, "Mini DV, short for mini Digital Video, offers the clearest and most vivid colors out of all the types of camcorders on the market." Additionally, Mini DV tapes are small enough to fit in the palm of the hand and can record from 60 to 90 minutes of footage. The advantage to Mini DV over Digital 8 is higher resolution and the ability to transfer data from the tape directly to a computer using a FireWire cable. Although several later models of camcorder use DVD or flash memory to record footage, Mini DV tape still offers some of the best resolution on the market and was also one of the first technologies to allow consumer HD recording.
- High Definition is a high quality Mini DV tape that has a recording data rate of 19 to 25 Mbps and offers either 720 or 1080i resolution. This tape, available in 60 minute lengths, records in 16:9 widescreen HD format using the same size 0.25 inch tape as a Mini-DV by changing the compression format of the tape to MPEG 2. Footage from this type of Mini DV tape can also be transferred to the computer by using a FireWire cable.
- Digital 8 is the successor to Hi 8 camcorder tape format and is used in several camcorders as both full size and mini format. Although Digital 8 is used in small camcorders such as the Sony Handycam, Mini DV tape is 56 percent smaller than its Digital 8 cousin. Despite this difference the length of Digital 8 tapes is shorter than many Mini DV tapes. The main difference between Mini DV and Digital 8 tape is the central technology used. According to Panasonic, "Mini DV was developed as a future digital video format in 1994, while the 8mm technology that Digital 8 uses was developed a decade earlier, in 1984." Digital 8 camcorders are also much less abundant than Mini DV and are currently only offered by Sony and Hitachi. The highest resolution for Digital 8 tape is 540 lines.
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