A simple answer to your question is that going by track record, that is as far as mechanical problems are concerned, Sony should generally give less problems. However anyone who has experienced a problem with their JVC camcorder that involved the infamous "lens cap" issue cannot really blame JVC, that is if they knew the reason for the problem, and something not widely broadcast, and which was due to JVC having been supplied with a massive quantity of defective CCD image sensors of Sony manufacture, and which caused Sony own brand devices a massive problem as well as JVC, as these same sensors are used across a few different brands of camcorders. As far as costs are concerned, most camcorder manufacturers are roughly the same as far as service charges are concerned, so its a case of going by track records of whats liable to go wrong, and how often! A camcorder treated correctly (which many are not!) should give 8 to 10 years of use, albeit the battery will require replacement at the very least once within this time.