Well, tough question. Yes and no.
The formats on the DVDs and hard drives are more compressed, but with better compression techniques than were available in the past. It is still very hard on a PC to work with them, but PCs are getting faster.
You might find Premiere Pro works great with them, but because MPEG is not included in the trials, it confuses the issue for you. At least for the time being.
I would stick with MiniDV if I were you. When you move up to HD, then you have to figure out what to do again. Stick with tape? I would. Go with AVCHD? Not yet, although it can be converted to HDV with a $75 tool.
Steven
https://www.stevengotz.com