[Jacket]

I went to buy DVD media today, and someone i spoke with told me I needed to get apropriate media for my drive, apparently there is a difference between DVD-R and DVD+R media..

can someone explain the difference to me? I ended up going to the Apple store and getting Apple DVD-R media, but I just want to know what the difference.

[icruise]

DVD-R and DVD+R are two different DVD recordable formats (sort of similar to VHS and beta, but as I understand it, both can be played by normal DVD players, so it's not really the same. In fact there is very little functional difference between the two). DVD-R has been around longer and is apparently compatible with more players. In any case, it's what Apple's superdrives are compatible with -- you don't have any choice if you are buying discs for that purpose.

[jtbowden]

It's funny because if you read the DVD+R spec page (I forget where it is) they claim that it is so much better than DVD-R because it is designed specifically to be compatible with commercial players. But when you look at the actual numbers, DVD+R is about 85% compatible and DVD-R is about 84% compatible with DVD players.

Point is, they both will claim to be better, but so far my DVD-Rs (what Apple uses) have worked in all of the players I have tried.

[forcelite]

this has been a debate for awhile. DVD-R is older and more established. Furthermore the top dvd writers are for dvd-r (pioneers a05) which burns a 4x (which in cd-r terms is 72X cause 1X dvd-r is 18x cd-r) so as you can see that is VERY fast. While the fastest dvd+r drive is 2.4x . So as long as pioneer is on top with its dvd-r recorders then I think dvd-r will come out on top.

Forcelite

[forcelite]

I want to make a correction on my last post. 1X dvd-r = 9X cd-r, so my calcualtions are a bit off, but you get the idea

[Jacket]

well, I've acquire Apple DVD-R media, and I've made one data backup on one of them without a hitch.. it is very nice.

does Apple have spindles of DVD-R media at a lower unit price????

[icruise]

No, but you don't have to buy Apple's media. While I don't recommend buying the absolute cheapest, there are many kinds of DVD-R that work fine and are much cheaper. I would suggest buying some and trying them out on your DVD player for compatibility (some online stores have "variety packs" for this purpose).

[parsec_kadets]

I've always wondered who makes good media and who doesn't. I've always heard mixed things about certain companies. I guess I'm wondering what brands, other than Apple, of DVD-R people have found to be reliable. I've had success with Sony and Verbatum for CD-R and Imation for CD-RW. Anyone try their DVD-R media?

[melman101]

I think dvd-r is more compatible with commercial dvd players than DVD+R. Take a look at this website for more info on it

http://www.dvdrhelp.com/dvd

As per that website:

"DVD-R and DVD-RW
DVD-R/W was the first DVD recording format released that was compatible with standalone DVD Players.
DVD-R is a non-rewriteable format and it is compatible with about 88% of all DVD Players and DVD-ROMs.
DVD-RW is a rewriteable format and it is compatible with about 69% of all DVD Players and DVD-ROMs.
DVD-R/W supports single side 4.7 GB* DVDs(called DVD-5) and double side 9.4 GB* DVDs(called DVD-10).
These formats are supported by DVDForum.

DVD+R and DVD+RW
DVD+R/W has some better features than DVD-R/W such as lossless linking and both CAV and CLV writing.
DVD+R is a non-rewritable format and it is compatible with about 84% of all DVD Players and DVD-ROMs.
DVD+RW is a rewritable format and is compatible with about 70% of all DVD Players and DVD-ROMs.
DVD+R/W supports single side 4.7 GB* DVDs(called DVD-5) and double side 9.4 GB* DVDs(called DVD-10).
These formats are supported by the DVD+RW Alliance."

Also, for DVD media, check out

www.meritline.com

They have a sampler pack at
http://www.meritline.com/dvdsamplers.html

And they have one specific for the superdrive. I havent tried them myself, but thats cause i still have a pack of Apple DVD-R left.

Sincerely,
Mel

[bradoesch]

Originally posted by forcelite:
I want to make a correction on my last post. 1X dvd-r = 9X cd-r, so my calcualtions are a bit off, but you get the idea

For future reference, you can click edit above your post to edit your message.