If saving to tape, MiniDV is much better. But MicroMV could be useful when making dvd or svcd because it's already in mpeg2 format. The conversion should be minimal. With MiniDV, you'd have to convert it first with iDVD or other apps. Some of my relatives have Sony MicroMV camcorders. My impression of it is that MicroMV has better saturation but less detail than MiniDV. MiniDV has sharper detail. But, it has that uh, "synthetic" feel because the colors are a bit washed out compared to MicroMV.