How to encode/compress 1080i AVCHD on Windows or Mac - best workflow for AVCHD

There have been a lot of questions about opening MTS and M2TS AVCHD files natively in some non-linear video editing apps, both on Windows and Mac platforms. In this situation, people often need to transcode those AVCHD files into an intermediate codec that is suitable for editing with their editor programs. The key point people concern a lot when converting AVCHD footage is which format is best to use without loosing image quality. http://www.pavtube.com/guide/encode-1080i-avchd-on-windows-mac.html