Firewire offers transfer rates of up to 400 MB/sec so they are largely all the same. Unless you are planning on using more expensive software (such as Avid Xpress DV), it doesn't really matter which card you get so long as it is OHCI compliant (basically meaning compatible with Windows - assuming you're using Windows and not Mac).

Assuming Windows... the application you use to "capture" the footage from your camcorder will determine which format the digital files end up in. With Windows, the most common format is an AVI with DV-compression, although it is possible to save the files in other formats such as Quicktime.

There have been some compatibility issues with earlier versions of Adobe Premiere and firewire cards that use the Texas Instruments (TI) chipset, so if you're planning on using Premiere to edit your work, it's probably worth avoiding TI cards (although there is help at the Adobe site for troubleshooting this too).

In a nutshell, it doesn't matter which card you buy.

filmmaking.net

--
filmmaking.net
(Incorporating the Internet Filmmaker's FAQ)

Please note the opinions expressed here are those of the author only and do not constitute legal advice. The author cannot accept and liability whatsoever for inaccurate or outdated information contained within.
--