Just tell me what I need to know?
How are CD-Rs different than professional music CDs?
What do "disc write speeds" mean? (32X, 40X, 48X, 52X, etc.)
How long do CD-R discs last?
What is a "re-writable CD-RW"?
Will airport security scan X-Rays hurt my CD-R discs?
What is the difference between DVD-R/DVD-RW, DVD+R/DVD+RW and DVD-RAM discs?
Lists of DVD-R and DVD+R recorders
Which DVD players can play and record +/- DVDR's?
How long do recorded DVD discs last?

All you really need to know?
This is the short list for photo archiving discs. If the disc only has an "R" on the end it is 'write once' and can be used for archiving your photos. If it says RW or RAM at the end it is rewritable and OK for back-up but shouldn't be used to archive your photos. A rule of thumb is to buy discs from brands you recognize and are confident has a commitment to making reliable products. Its that simple. If your curious about the difference between formats feel free to read on.

How are CD-Rs different than professional music CDs?
A CD-R is a blank "compact disc - recordable". However, the music or software CD-ROM is a "compact disc - read only memory". The CD-ROMs you buy in stores are not recordable. They were never recorded. Instead they were mechanically stamped or pressed, like the old-fashioned vinyl LP albums.

Store-bought pre-recorded CD-ROMs use tiny pits or holes arranged in the tracks of the disc to encode the music, video or game software that you play. In a similar way, your CD-R burner uses laser-light bursts during your recording sessions to create tiny bubbles in the tracks around the CD-R. The burner's laser blinks rapidly on and off, heating tiny areas of the bottom of the disc which expand into bubbles that closely resemble the stamped pits of a CD-ROM. Later, when the CD-R is played back, the CD-R is now actually a CD-ROM. CD players read CD-R and CD-ROM discs equally well in almost all cases. (A few CD players may have difficulty reading CD-R discs, but playback problems are usually caused by scratches, poorly applied or too-heavy off-center CD labels, and discs that have been exposed to heat or UV light -- discussed below.)

You have probably heard of several types of CD-ROM discs, including those that contain music, software, video, photos, and games. On each of these types of CD-ROMs, the data is formatted differently. CD players are made to be able to read or decode each of these CD-ROM formats so you can easily use the disc, without knowing much about its contents. CD-R discs can be burned in the same formats as CD-ROMs, and played the same simple, easy way. CD creation software lets you select the final format of the disc you're creating. After you make a few optional decisions, the actual recording of a CD-R is usually quite simple. See the manual for your CD creation software for more details.

Once fully recorded or burned, a CD-R disc cannot be erased and used over. Therefore CD-Rs are sometimes called "write-once" discs. There are also erasable "re-writable CD-RW" discs. CD-RW discs are sometimes called "write-many-times" discs, and can be fully erased and re-written up to 1,000 times. Unlike CD-Rs, CD-RWs cannot be played by most CD players.

What do disc "write speeds" mean? (32X, 40X, 48X, 52X, etc.)
CD-R discs are described by their recording capacity or runtime length. You can buy both 74-minute and 80-minute CD-R discs. Today most CD-Rs are sold in 80-minute lengths, but you will see some brands that offer both 74 and 80 minute sizes. The actual cost of making the discs is about the same. However, some of the very old CD burners do not recognize the 80-minute CD-Rs, so the short 74-minute discs are still offered by some makers. Both of the discs are the same physical dimensions or measurements - 120mm (12cm) in outside diameter, with a 21mm center hole.

CD-Rs are also described by their write-speed certification. A 2X speed means that the disc can be BURNED or recorded in 1/2 the length of the disc total runtime or 40 minutes for an 80-minute disc, an 8X disc at 1/8 the runtime, or 10-minutes -- on down to as little as 2 minutes or less at 48X speeds!

CD-Rs are tested and certified by their factories to be properly recordable at the rated speed. Today's fastest write-speeds are usually 48X, but 52X rated discs are also available. The most popular write speed purchased in today's market is the 48X rated CD-R (2004). Today's fastest rated discs can burn at up to 52x speeds on 52x capable writers.

In order to burn at a given speed, your CD burner, your computer and your software must be able to work at that speed, as a total CD recording system. CD burners come rated with a triple speed rating, often written like "52X/16X/60X". That statement would mean that the drive can WRITE CD-R discs at up to 52X, RE-WRITE CD-RW discs at up to 16X, and PLAY at up to 60X. (To read about the differences between a "re-writable CD" and a "write-once CD-R", see our question #12 below - What is a "re-writable CD-RW"?)

Whether or not you actually are able to achieve those speeds depend on many factors: The disc must be rated at that speed. Your computer needs to be able to handle data that fast through its connections, cables, motherboard and hard disc. Your CPU needs to be fast enough to do the work of translating the music or other signals you're recording into the encoding used to store the data onto the disc, and the CD creation software you're using needs to be able to handle the given speed. Each part of your system needs to be able to do its part of the job.

Today's 800mhz or faster CPUs, with fast hard drives and also with state-of-the-art internal motherboard hardware, are capable of easily handling any 32X or faster CD-R creation task. However, experienced users often choose to record their discs at a much slower speed. This gives their system an extra "cushion" to avoid many burning errors that sometimes occur at the faster speeds.

Since each different software, hardware and CD-R disc brand or type delivers a slightly different speed and recording-quality capability, a little experimentation will help you decide which speed to use. If you change your hardware, software, burner or other system components, or if you begin using a new type of CD-R disc, it's time to do a bit of experimentation again.

How long do CD-R discs last?
It depends on the media. Good quality media can last 30 to 100 years with proper care and in the right conditions (avoiding hot conditions like automobile interiors and window ledges, other UV light sources and scratches, etc.) A rule of thumb is to buy discs from brands you recognize and are confident has a commitment to making reliable products. Some companies sell "archive grade" media. These products typically have higher quality standards and should be a good choice for protecting your photo files. Your CD-R recordings should last for many years.

What is a "re-writable CD-RW"?
A regular CD-R is a write-once disc. That means that anything you burn onto the disc cannot be erased. Ever. By contrast, A CD-RW disc is "re-writable" or "write-many-times". Because it can be accidentally erased its not recommended for archiving purposes. Stick with CD-R.

Will airport security scan X-Rays hurt my CD-R discs?
In today's crazy world, we're getting this question more and more often. The answer is, at the moment, a qualified "no". At least in theory, most x-rays merely zip right through a CD without being absorbed and "burning" the dye layer. Even though the silver layer does reflect many of the x-ray frequency photons, a CD-R disc's organic dye layer is designed to absorb a specific (and much lower) frequency of light from CD burning lasers. Of course, CD-R discs CAN be ruined due to exposure to UV ultra-violet light from the sun or other strong sources. This is because that light closely matches the laser burning light in color or frequency. Since scanning x-rays are much higher in frequency, they are not very likely to be absorbed by the organic dyes used in CD-Rs.

What is the difference between DVD-R/DVD-RW, DVD+R/DVD+RW and DVD-RAM discs?

DVD-RW, DVD+RW and DVD-RAM discs are eraseable formats and are not recommended for photo archiving

DVD-R and DVD-RW
These 2 disc types were created by the DVD Forum (see it at DVD Forum Site).

Both DVD-R and DVD-RW types generally come in the single-sided, single layer 4.7 GB capacity, which is roughly equal to 120-minutes of standard playing time.

You can also now find 9.4 GB double-sided discs entering the market, although there are no players which will automatically play both sides of the disc without ejecting it and turning it over. Eventually, there will be DVD-R discs available that will hold around 20 GB of data, recorded into two layers on each side of the disc. At this time, these 20gb discs are not yet available.

The most common DVD-R is a write-once 4.7gb disc that comes in two sub-types -- "general purpose" and "authoring". The general purpose discs are part of the industry's copy-protection scheme, which employ CES scrambling to protect movies and music and game discs from being copied. These discs can only be burned by general purpose type DVD writers such as the Pioneer DVR-A04/104/A03/103 machines, the Panasonic LF-D311 and D321, Apple Superdrive, etc. Such machines cannot copy the playback descrambling codes on DVD movies or game discs, so they cannot be easily copied. Authoring DVD-Rs must be burned by the Pioneer DVR-S201 DVD Writer, which produces non-copy protected discs for use in the industry for professional, retail DVD duplicators and distributors. Once recorded, either a general or authoring DVD-R can be played on most DVD players (if the player is DVD-R compatible).

By contrast to the write-once DVD-R types, the DVD-RW is fully re-writable or eraseable up to 1,000 times. However, unlike the older DVD-RAM format, these particular erasables are NOT "random access", meaning that you cannot erase bits and pieces of them. Instead, you have to completely erase the whole disc to reuse it. The DVD-RW can be played on many DVD players, but not quite as many as the DVD-Rs. Of course, DVD-RAM discs are playable on only a few types of DVD players.

Most DVD-R burners like the Pioneer DVR-104s and compatibles, can also burn DVD-RW discs. An exception is the popular Panasonic DVD burners, which burn only DVD-R and DVD-RAM. This drive is great for users who want both data storage and editing features from DVD-RAM, and DVD-R production capabilities for disc copying and distribution.

DVD-R is the most popular format for most Windows users, and is almost universally accepted by Mac users as their standard DVD recordable format.

DVD+R and DVD+RW
These two types were created and are backed by the DVD+RW Alliance ( see it at DVD+RW Alliance Site ). A few companies who back the DVD Forum (above) are also active in the DVD+RW Alliance, but the two standards are not compatible.

The oldest "plus type" DVD is the DVD+RW. It, like DVD-RW, is a re-writable 4.7 GB DVD kind of disc. DVD+RW, does have a couple of technical advantages -- (1) lossless linking (which enables some editing after recording without a full erasure that DVD-RW requires), (2) up to 2.4X recording speeds on some burners, and (3) a special drag-and-drop file support on the desktop (otherwise known as DVD+MRW). Unfortunately, the DVD+R disc type does NOT even begin to compare with DVD-R as far as DVD playback compatibility. However, the actual level of DVD workability on players of DVD+RW is claimed to be about equal to DVD-RW. Of course, even so, neither the DVD+R nor the older DVD+RW discs are as popular as DVD-R and DVD-RW are. See our DVD+RW disc info and prices offerings at... DVD+RW Product List

The newer DVD+R write-once type disc is aimed at becoming more compatible with DVD players. However, the fact is that so far it is only about as compatible as DVD-R discs are. Also, the DVD+R discs are more expensive in today's market, and not burnable by "1st generation" plus-type burners, which were designed only for the DVD+RW re-writable discs. If you want to create +R discs, you'll need the newer "2nd generation" type burners, such as the Sony 120A, the Ricoh 5125A, and so on. See our DVD+R disc info and prices offerings at... DVD+R Product List

DVD-RAM
DVD-RAM is used for data backups and storage, and for editing of video or audio content prior to the production of a final distribution DVD. The DVD-RAM disc type is made to act a lot like a hard drive, where the disc can be formatted for HFS+ Macintosh or Windows type computers, and so on. It can handle 100,000 or more erasures, and should last for many years. Of course it is not playable on many DVD players. Type 2.0 DVD-RAM discs can be removed from their cases to enable playback on the few players in which they are compatible.

Lists of DVD-R and DVD+R recorders
DVD+RW ALLIANCE'S OFFICIAL LIST
DVD+RW Compatibility Overview

DVDplusRW.org LISTS
Home DVD Players
Computer DVD Drives

DVDRHELP.COM LISTS
Main DVD Player Search Form

HP LISTS
HP DVD Player Compatibility List

Which DVD players can play and record +/- DVDR's?
Model by Model Lists of Reported Features
by DVDRHELP.COM
Reported DVD Compatibility

60% DVD-R "minus" COMPATIBILITY - 2204 of ALL 3688 TOTAL DVD PLAYERS
(click to check your model of DVD player for Minus or General compatibility)

47% DVD+R "plus" COMPATIBILITY - 1731 of ALL 3688 TOTAL DVD PLAYERS
(click to check your model of DVD player for Plus compatibility)

In practice, as shown on the pages linked here, about 53% of today's DVD players don't work with either DVD+R or +RW discs, a number which is substantially more than the "minority" they admit to on the page above.

And, the number for DVD-R and DVD-RW discs is only a bit better, with as many as 40% of today's DVD players not working with the "general" or "minus" type of blank DVD recordable.

However, the percentages are improving. More and more of today's current DVD player models actually support playing most DVD-R and most DVD+R discs. The number of DVD players actually on the shelves in stores that play recordable DVDs is around 90%. Only a few models don't play at least some brands and kinds of blank, recordable -R or +R discs.

It is our experience that thousands of consumers do in fact report greater DVD player compatibility of the DVD-R and DVD-RW "minus" or "general" type discs, compared to the "plus" type +R or +RW discs. Some sources report similar findings of about 60% player compatibility for DVD-R, and only 47% or so for the DVD+R. As always, your own compatibility may vary...

Furthermore, the actual performance of any particular BRAND of disc can vary within a type, due to variations in proprietary (patented) design issues relating to differing bottom dyes used, dye laser light absorption factors and silver reflectivity values. As a result, any particular brand may not perform with a particular model of DVD player, even though the player is designed to theoretically handle some brands of "plus" or "minus" type of blank DVD.

The DVD+RW Alliance group that controls that "plus DVD" recording industry claims that their disc format is at least theoretically compatible with ALL of the DVD players. See their page at... http://www.dvdrw.com/why/compatibility.htm.

How long do recorded DVD discs last?
All DVD recordable discs are extremely sensitive to heat, UV light and humidity. You should avoid exposing them to any extremely hot environment such as automobile interiors in the sun, or inside near radiators or heaters, or near an outside window, and so on.

It's best to keep all DVD-R discs stored in a cool, dry place, closed up in a blank plastic DVD movie case. This will ensure that they last the longest.

Avoid any abrasive, scratching or etching treatment of the disc's top or bottom. Remember that they are much more sensitive than DVD Video or Game discs, and that even a small scratch can make them unplayable.

However, a scratched DVD-R can be destroyed in seconds, and one exposed to high temperatures, humidity or strong UV light sources can become unplayable within anything from a few hours to a few days. One study of average DVD-R discs stored at 80 degrees and high humidity showed that many of them became unplayable in only a few hundred hours. Imagine what storage in a sun-heated car interior's "oven" at about 200 degrees would do!

Treat your recorded DVD-Rs with care. Handle them by their edges, gently. Avoid harsh chemicals in marking pens, ink and label adhesives. Avoid touching the top or bottom surfaces. Don't slide them across tables, players or computer cases. Return them to their black DVD cases immediately after playing. Don't stack DVD-Rs one on top of each other and shuffle them like a deck of cards.

With proper handling and protection during storage, a DVD-R disc can last for longer than you will probably want to re-play them.