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Video quality
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thezeronumber
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This is (sadly) quite a slow moving part of the forum so i wouldn't expect fast replies like in other sections.
Don't quote me on this but so far i've got the impression that sensor size has no real-world effect on the quality of video, it just changes expected things like focal length in an equivalent term. Putting camera differences aside and imagining they are both identical, 720p recording on a full-frame DSLR will result in the same image quality footage as a 720p recording on a crop-sensor DSLR. The same applies to 1080p. To find any differences i imagine you'd need to compare frames one-by-one and scrutinise every pixel of every line of every object. If you're using a full-frame lens that has poor performance on the sides/corners then there may be a small quality increase if such a thing was used on the crop-sensor, but it's a minor difference and you'd be hard pressed to notice it.
Don't quote me on this but so far i've got the impression that sensor size has no real-world effect on the quality of video, it just changes expected things like focal length in an equivalent term. Putting camera differences aside and imagining they are both identical, 720p recording on a full-frame DSLR will result in the same image quality footage as a 720p recording on a crop-sensor DSLR. The same applies to 1080p. To find any differences i imagine you'd need to compare frames one-by-one and scrutinise every pixel of every line of every object. If you're using a full-frame lens that has poor performance on the sides/corners then there may be a small quality increase if such a thing was used on the crop-sensor, but it's a minor difference and you'd be hard pressed to notice it.
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The simple answer is yes, a large sensor will produce better quality video than a small one - i.e. all other things being equal it'll gather more light, have a better s/n ratio, have more dynamic range and provide better control over depth of field. Top-end HD cameras have much larger sensors than consumer HD cameras, e.g. the new Sony F65 has a Super 35mm 8K sensor while the sony PJ10E has a tiny 1/4 type sensor. The F65 has 16bit raw output and can produce real 4K moving pictures (4 times HD) - whereas the PJ10E definitely can't.
http://www.sony.co.uk/biz/product/4kcinematographycamcorders/f65/overview
It seems Nikon's D3s and D3100 use different forms of video compression (Motion-JPEG & H.264 respectively) which may explain why the D3s only goes to 720p.
http://www.tested.com/news/motion-jpeg-vs-h264-the-best-choice-for-dslr-video/667/
Chris Primadona
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Its a bit off topic, but even the best of the 4k cameras are just interpolated. To get a true 4k you will need to wait quite a few years! 
Its a bit off topic, but even the best of the 4k cameras are just interpolated. To get a true 4k you will need to wait quite a few years!
http://nofilmschool.com/2011/04/sony-demonstrates-f65-4k-camera-8k-sensor/
http://www.fdtimes.com/news/sony/new-sony-camera-4k-and-beyond/
Chris Primadona
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Oh, I guess I'm a bit behind on tech these days
Maybe I should have said "before you can buy one at asda"
