Until late 2008 the A1 was the only affordable HD cam in town for us so, everyone jumped on it thats why you see so many samples with this cam. I too was going to take the HDV plunge with the A1, but something told me to wait and I just got the HMC150. I even passed up my first gig to wait for the HMC150. It is great and editing with AVC is not a problem in FCP with a simple log and transfer. I just need to get another gig now, it's too bad too it was a nice affair and nice people- cute couple. Would have been an amazing first wedding for my book. HMC150 takes 32GB cards and a little pricey at $275+ but better than tape costs with no dropouts.