[Natron]

What is the difference between DVD-RW and DVD+RW?

I read that there was a difference, but I'm not sure what it was.

-Natron

[Hörnchen]

The first ones write DVD and probably CDs, the other only reads DVDs and writes only CDs.

[CRASH HARDDRIVE]

http://www.dvdplusrw.org/faq/dvdplusrwfaq01.html#1.1

1.1 How is DVD+RW related to DVD-RAM and DVD-RW?
DVD+RW, DVD-RAM and DVD-RW are all rewritable DVD formats, however, only DVD+RW is designed from the start to be compatible with existing DVD-ROM drives and DVD-Video players, both on a physical as well as a logical level. This means that a DVD+RW disc recorded in a DVD+RW video recorder can be played in virtually all DVD-Video players or DVD-ROM equiped PCs, and that any DVD+RW disc recorded with data on a PC DVD+RW drive can be read by most DVD-ROM drives.

The other formats do not offer this level of compatibility, or only provide for a very limited "compatible mode". For example: with DVD-RW video recorders you can only record 1 or 2 hours of video in compatible mode because it does not support lossless linking to allow for variable bitrate, and it does not offer the possiblity to write menu screens on the disc in a DVD-Video compatible manner. Furthermore you have to decide to use this setting up front, you cannot make a non-compatible recording DVD-Video compatible afterwards. The compatible mode does not offer editing features, and it requires the disc to be "finalised", which takes from 5 to 15 minutes minutes. Furthermore, the physical disc format of DVD-RW differs from DVD-Video in such a way that even in compatible mode it can only be read by less of existing players.