what are the different DVD formats?

MyComputerAid — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 03:50:08 +0000

Comparison of DVD Formats

There are five distinct types for a standard red beam DVD: DVD-ROM, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, and DVD+RW. The ROM is a commercially produced disc, it can’t be altered by the end-user. DVD-R and DVD+R are two different manufacturer standards, both will play commercial discs, but they won’t play discs made on or for the other manufacturer. The -RW and +RW discs are likewise made using the two standards, but the W means they can be written to over and over. Typical capacity is 4.7GB of data.

Blu-ray and HD-DVD style discs offers up to 25GB of storage. This is achieved because the blue beam laser creates a smaller dot on the disc surface. Blu-ray discs are able to read a standard, or red, DVD, but this isn’t true in reverse.

The thing to watch for is the multi-layered red beam discs being developed. By adding additional layers to a disc, capacity is likely to be expanded to as much as 50GB. This type of mechanism will also be backwardly compatible. While it’s only starting to gain recognition, this could well be the way to go.