Need camera/camcorder advice

[always]

ok my digital camera is going down hill and the battery in my hi-8 camcorder is shot.
so its time to upgrade.
1 should i get one of those camcorders that also takes pics?
or are they sucky?
2 for camcorders whats the best technology out there(within price reason) should i look at getting a camcorder that records on the min dvd's or on a media card and if a media card what kind of storage capacity do they have and hour? 2 hours? looked through circuit city and didnt really explain what the camcorders could record on a media card it just told how many pics you could get on one.
any other options i should be looking at or thinking of
i have a dvd burner so i can burn the videos off a media card.
advice or model recommendations apreciated. thakns in advance

[Chizzmo]

Personally I have a Panasonic DVD camcorder. It is great obviously uses mini discs. The only problem with that is the discs are 30 min each, but I use RAM discs so I really have endless recording b/c they are re-writable. It does have the picture taking mode but I wouldnt recomend that on any camcorder unless you use a tripod. Mine also has a remote with it so you can use a tripod and still be in the picture / movie. As for the battery none of them these days are all that great due to the size of LCD screens and all the other features that just drain them really quick, but you can get them cheap if you look hard enough. I just bought two new batteries for mine on eBay and paid twenty five dollars including delivery. Either way good luck with your decision.