Am involved in the industry by profession so I'll offer my 2 cents worth.
MiniDV tapes are fine, not very easily breakable (unless you have a mind to break it, keep it safe of cos) and they've been used semi-pro and professionally for a long time. It's rugged enough and all of us use them for broadcast standard jobs (this being relative).
So my suggestion: stick to MiniDV, even though you'd have to fork out a little more, and Panasonic's fine. Firewire capabilities for PC work very well. Shun DVD camcorders like the plague, they're a nightmare and a gimmick.