| Have you been confused by the different | | | | by 2 different organisations. It is however |
| choices available for blank cd or DVDs | | | | important to know whether dvd burner supports |
| recently? There are so many abbreviations | | | | them. Most dvd burners support both formats |
| such as CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-R, DVD-RAM, DVR+R | | | | but make sure you check with the dvd |
| etc. So how do I know which type of cd or dvd | | | | manufacturer or the manual about the types of |
| is suitable for my use? | | | | dvd formats that are supported. |
| | | | |
| I will provide a brief description of the | | | | There's another type of dvd format known as |
| different types of blank cd and dvd currently | | | | DVD-RAM and it is not as common as the other |
| available on the market. | | | | 2 formats. Again, make sure to check your dvd |
| | | | manual to ensure you can use this format. |
| For cd and dvds, the "R" that is found in | | | | |
| CD-R or DVD+/-R stands for recordable. This | | | | DVD media can typically hold up to 4.7 GB of |
| means you can record data such as photos, | | | | data whereas CD media can hold up to 700 MB. |
| files, database etc. Basically anything | | | | As a result, dvd media are usually more |
| digital can be recorded. These types of cd or | | | | expensive than CD media since it can hold |
| dvds can only be recorded once. So it's | | | | more data. |
| important you record all the data you want | | | | |
| transferred to a CD-R/DVD-R in one session. | | | | There also a new type of DVD media called |
| | | | dual-layer DVD and it can store twice the |
| The "RW" means the media is rewriteable. You | | | | size of a normal DVD. However, it is pretty |
| can erase and record data on the cd or dvd | | | | expensive at this time and most current DVD |
| multiple times. Think of it as a portable | | | | burners do not support this format. |
| hard disk. The cost of a CD-RW and DVD-RW is | | | | |
| more expensive more than a normal CD-R/DVD-R | | | | This is a basic explanation of the more |
| | | | common types of CD/DVD media on the market. |
| One of the biggest confusion comes about | | | | Regardless of which media you use, it is |
| because of DVD-R/RW and DVD+R/RW. What is the | | | | important to make sure your CD or DVD burner |
| difference? In a nutshell, there is no major | | | | support that format. |
| difference except the standards were created | | | | |