Digital8 camcorders and VCRs use the same tape as 8mm and Hi8 camcorders -- they're what's called "backward compatible." This feature has been one of the major selling points for this format: 8mm tape costs less than Mini DV tape. You'll have to decide whether this is an adequate reason for buying a Digital8 camcorder.

On the down-side, tapes recorded in Digital8 won't play on your 8mm or Hi8 VCR, nor will they play in a Mini DV VCR. So if you decide to buy a Digital8 camcorder you'll either have to use the camcorder to play back your tapes, copy the tape from your camcorder to a VHS tape to play in your VCR, or purchase a Digital8 VCR.

Sony makes two VCRs on which to play and edit Digital8 tapes, the Sony GV-D200 and GV-D800. The GV-D800 "Digital8 Walkman," which lists for about $900, has a four-inch color active matrix LCD screen and built-in stereo speakers, and is palm sized. The GV-D200 lists for about $700. A web search can often turn up much lower "street" prices, however.

Our hunch is that Digital8 is a transitional format, designed to ease 8mm and Hi8 camcorder owners into the digital video world. We think the format will disappear in a few years, giving way to mini DV and perhaps other recording media formats.

Based on what we have seen of the Digital8 cameras, our advice is not to buy one. There are too many comparably priced excellent DV camcorders (miniDV) on the market to invest in the eccentric technology that the Digital8 format represents.

So the bad news is that Digital8 is probably not the wave of the future. A comparably priced miniDV camcorder will give better image quality and put you in the main stream of digital video for the foreseeable future.

The good news is that VideOccasions can handle editing, duplications and format conversions from Digital8 to VHS if you've already bought a Digital8 camera and need help.