Normal digital camcorders use CCD (Charge Coupled Device) to process the incoming informationa nd turn it into an image. Most consumer camcorders have 1 CCD to process all the incoming information and spread the colors appropritately. Cameras with 3 CCD process Red, Gree, and Blue separately with one color going to each chip. In proper lighting a 3 CCD camera will give you a sharper image than a single CCD. The problem with consumer camcorders is that the CCD's are physically small in size limiting the amount of light they can take in. So even if you buy a consumer grade 3 CCD camera the image will still suffer some in low light condition like a concert, but not as badly as a single CCD camera like the one you linked originally. A good site to look at is
www.camcorderinfo.com. Panasonic makes a line of consumer grade 3 CCD cameras, the PV-GS series. Right now the PV-GS320 is still readily available. It is a good, compact camcorder but has no mic input. The previous model, the GS300 does have a mic input.
Now, going into a whole other ball park the new hi def camcorders like the HV20/HV30 use a single CMOS sensor which is I think about 4-5 times larger than a typical consumer CCD sensor. One large CMOS sensor is about equal to 3 CCD's. Being physically larger means the CMOS lets in more light and will perform well in lower light situations.
Basically, for the price range it looks like you're going for you are not going to get something that gives hollywood quality movies. If you look at something like the Panasonic or comparable models you will definitely get something worth watching though.
Topic: Is this camera good? (Read 3180 times)