Digital Versatile Disc or Digital Video Disc (DVD)
 
When DVD (a type of optical disk similar to CD-ROM) technology first appeared in households, users were simply popping DVDs into their DVD players to watch movies--an attractive option to the then-conventional VCR. But just as compact disc technology evolved so that users could record and erase and re-record data onto compact discs, the same is now true of DVDs. With so many different formats--DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD-RAM, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD-ROM--how do users know which DVD format is compatible with their existing systems, and why are there so many different formats for DVDs? The following information hopefully will shed some light on DVD's different formats and the differences between them.
 
     • Why So Many DVD Formats?
 
The crucial difference among the standards is based on the standards to which each manufacturer adheres. Similar to the old VHS/Beta tape wars, when VCRs first hit the markets, different manufacturers support different standards. Often called a "format war", both the industry and consumers are still waiting to see which format will emerge as the industry standard.
 
     • Plus or Minus - What's The Difference?
 
The different variations on the term DVD (e.g., +R, -R, -ROM, and so on) describe the way data is stored on or written to the disc itself (“burned”, the slang version we use).
 
          1. DVD+R and DVD+RW formats are supported by Philips, Sony, Hewlett-Packard, Dell, Ricoh, Yamaha and others.
 
          2. DVD+R is a recordable DVD format similar to CD-R. A DVD+R can record data only once and then the data becomes permanent on the disc. The disc cannot be recorded onto a second time.
 
          3. DVD+RW is a re-recordable format similar to CD-RW. The data on a DVD+RW disc can be erased and recorded over numerous times without damaging the medium.
 
Note: DVDs that have been made using a +R/+RW device can be read by most commercial DVD-ROM players. We can and do support +R/+RW DVDs. For the disc media we support, please click here.

          4. DVD-R, DVD-RW and DVD-RAM are formats supported by Panasonic, Toshiba, Apple Computer, Hitachi, NEC, Pioneer, Samsung and Sharp. These formats are also supported by the DVD Forum. 
 
          5. DVD-R is a recordable DVD format similar to CD-R and DVD+R. A DVD-R can record data only once and then the data becomes permanent on the disc. The disc cannot be recorded onto a second time. (There also are two additional standards for DVD-R disks: DVD-RG for general use, and DVD-RA for authoring, which is used for mastering DVD video or data, and is not typically available to the general public.)
 
          6. DVD-RW is a re-recordable format similar to CD-RW or DVD+RW. The data on a DVD-RW disc can be erased and recorded over numerous times without damaging the medium.

Note: DVDs created by a -R/-RW device can be read by most commercial DVD-ROM players. We use Taiyo-Yuden DVD-R discs. For the disc media we support, please click here.
 
          7. DVD-RAM discs can be recorded and erased repeatedly, but are compatible only with devices manufactured by the companies that support the DVD-RAM format. DVD-RAM discs are typically housed in cartridges.
 
Note: We cannot support DVD-RAM discs. For the disc media we do support, please click here.
 
         8. DVD-ROM was the first DVD standard to hit the market and is a read-only format. The video or game content is burned onto the DVD once and the DVD will run on any DVD-ROM-equipped device. DVD-ROMs are similar to CDs. DVD-ROM can hold a minimum of 4.7-GB (gigabytes)-enough for a full-length movie.

Note: For the disc media we support, please click here.
 
          9. Dual-layer technology is supported by a range of manufacturers including Dell, HP, Verbatim, Philips, Sony, Yamaha and others. As the name suggests, dual-layer technology provides two individual recordable layers on a single-sided DVD. Dual-layer is more commonly called double-layer in the consumer market and can be seen written as DVD+R DL or DVD-R DL. DVD+R DL (also called DVD+R9) is a dual-layer writeable DVD+R. DVD-R DL (also called DVD-R9) is a dual-layer writeable DVD-R. The dual-layered discs can hold 7.95-GB. The double-sided dual-layer (called dvd-18) can hold 15.9-GB.

Note: Please click here to see the disc media we support.
 
Note on DVD Burners: Until 2003, consumers would have to choose a preferred DVD format and purchase the DVD media that was compatible with the specific DVD burner. In 2003, Sony introduced a multi-format DVD burner (also called a combo drive or DVD-Multi) and today many manufacturers offer multi-format DVD burners that are compatible with multiple DVD formats (as listed above). 
 
        10. DVD-Video is a video format for displaying full-length digital movies.

Note: We can support DVD-Video. Please click here to see the disc media we support.
 
     • What Are the Successors to DVD?

Several technologies are seen as successors to the standard DVD. These include High Definition (HD)-DVD (now on its way out), Blu-ray Disc (BD), Advanced Optical Disc (AOD) and Holographic Versatile Disc (HVD). With so many formats competing, it is similar to the old VHS, versus Beta wars, but with one main exception, the difference in quality between VHS and DVD was extremely noticeable, and this encouraged consumers to quickly and easily transition to DVD from VHS. With these new standards, however, consumers are not seeing the drastic quality difference of high-definition-DVD over DVD, for example, and adoption has been slow. Additionally, the media players and the media itself are quite expensive. Overall the industry suggests that consumers are just not ready to leave DVD behind quite yet. 
 
Note: Should you choose to have your scanning or slide show completed with HD technology, we use BD technology. Please click here to see the Blu-ray disc media and video disc formats we support.