On Thu, 3 Feb 2000 00:00:32 -0800, "TB" wrote:

>I'm a bit confused about the CCDs and correlation to video quality.
>
>1/4 inch 1070k
>1/4 inch 680k
>3 x 1/4 inch 380k
>1/3 inch 680k
>
>The 3 CCD camera is supposed to generate better color saturation, but how
>does overall image sharpness/quality change between these CCD formats? Not
>concerned about stills, just video.
>
>Obviously I'm looking to buy and want good vid quality and sharpness and
>reasonable color under reduced light conditions.

Go by the picture you see, not the specs...
But, *in general*, chips larger than 1/2" are likely
to be on pro gear (with all that that may imply...);
larger chips are likely to provide better low-light
ability than smaller chips; unusually high pixel count
is likely intended to sevice DIS and/or still-photo
needs; "OIS" is not necessarily better than "DIS";
"pixel-offset" is not necessarily better (it trades
better low-light ability for sometimes-visible
negative picture artifacts and some color-resolution
irregularities); 3-chips generally do provide better
color. Look at the various things people have to say
about specific models (including my own reviews,
under "I babble" on my web page, of course! ;-),
then go look at the images made by the camcorders
of interest under as many conditions as you can,
then decide for yourself the best picture image
characteristic trade-offs for your work (all
camcorders are compromises, nothing is universally
perfect for every application - though some are
more "general-purpose" than others...).