High-definition video has arrived -- in under-$1000 consumer camcorders, and supported by sub-$100 consumer video software that can run on your desktop.
Camcorders are moving from tape to disc to memory cards, like the Panasonic HDC-DX1 DVD camcorder (back) compared to HDC-SD1 memory card camcorder (front). And new memory-card camcorders -- around the the size of a soda can -- also can shoot HD video.
However, while today's computers can easily handle the demands of standard-definition video, the advent of HD places heavy demands on a standard computer. HD video is big -- some four times bigger than standard def -- so it takes more storage and bandwidth just to move clips around. And HD uses new video compression formats like HDV and AVCHD, which require more processing power even to display the frames, much less to edit your clips.
As a result, consumer software applications again have to play catch-up with the new formats, new demands, and new hardware developments like multi-core processors.
See my article -- HD on the Desktop: HDV and AVCHD: Consumer Software for HD Playback & Editing for more on HD camcorders with these new formats, and working with them using the newest generation of consumer video software for playback and editing.