On Tue, 20 Aug 2002 11:50:55 -0500, "Paul Tauger" wrote:

[...much deleted...]
>The poor low light characteristics of miniDV are directly attributable to
>smaller CCDs, higher pixel counts (and the smaller lenses needed for a
>smaller CCD).

[see part of thread below for more on this...]
I hate to disagree with you so soon after your
wonderful post on copyright, but..., a "smaller"
lens does not affect low light range at all, if
the maximum relative aperture is the same.
The tiny lenses put on small camcorders often
have the same widest f-stop as those on much
larger cameras, so they deliver the same
unit-area light intensity to the sensor. The
differences in low light characteristics are
attributable to CCD area, pixel size, CCD type,
and associated electronics, but not to the lens
(assuming the same maximum relative aperture...).