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While AVCHD is probably the wave of the future, it is also currently about the most demanding video format in terms of computer resources. So another of the things you need to be aware of, which the camera manufacturers do NOT warn you about, is that even to play back AVCHD footage, let alone edit it and play it back, you have to have a relatively powerful computer. That means at least an Intel Core 2 Duo or preferably Quad. And Video Studio 11.5+ (not vanilla VS11 or even 11+) can edit it, though doing so even on a powerful machine (I have a Quad) can still be problematic.
If your computer is an older P4 3.0 Ghz with hyperthreading or higher, including the older dual core Intels, then you can at least edit AVCHD using the Video Studio Smart Proxy feature. But it may still not play back smoothly. (I did it on my old P4 3.0 GHz with HT and it was j*rky in playback. I thought the editing had failed but when I played the edited file on my Core 2 Duo notebook, it was smooth.)
The warning that you read relates to burning AVCHD in their native format, whether on a standard DVDas a hybrid disc or on an actual Blu-Ray disc. Both processes create a BDMV structure on the disc which cannot be read by a standard DVD player. You need a Blu-Ray rated player to be able to read and play it. I don't know about such discs damaging standard DVD players because I have never tried it and don't intend to!
However, you can down-convert AVCHD high definition mpeg-2 to standard definition DVD-compatible mpeg-2 and burn that to DVD without problem. The only thing is that it is no longer high definition, which rather defeats the purpose of buying an expensive AVCHD camera, doesn't it?
I have not got to the stage of buying a Blu-Ray burner yet as they, and the Blu-Ray discs, are still ridiculously expensive here in Australia. But I now regularly convert my high definition videos into hybrid AVCHD discs, which means burning AVCHD high def in that format, in a BDMV structure, but on a standard DVD, not Blu-Ray disc. But you still need a Blu-Ray rated player which is also rated to play such hybrid discs. The Sony PlayStation 3 happens to be such a player, so I bought one of them. It is brilliant and will play any of the high definition formats.
The only downside of hybrid AVCHD DVDs is that, with the highest quality settings, you can only fit around 20 minutes of AVCHD onto a single layer DVD. This is because of the much higher bitrate used by AVCHD (around 18000 kbps) as compared to standard DVDs (8000 kbps max).
Note that if you don't have a powerful computer, to me the best current high definition camera to buy would not be an AVCHD model, but a HDV model. This uses the tried but true mini-DV tape, and records in high definition mpeg-2. Mind you, to burn a disc which preserves the high definition, you still need to make either a Blu-Ray disc or a hybrid AVCHD disc as described above! Otherwise, you still have to down-convert to standard definition DVD. But the great plus feature about HDV as opposed to AVCHD is that you don't require an absolutely up-to-date computer. And in fact, VS10+ is sufficient to edit it and play it back, so you don't even need VS11/11.5+!
The latest Canon HDV model is the HV30 which will probably cost less than its AVCHD equivalent...
