DVD: Minus or Plus?

[markannab]

If I want to have DVD's I burn to be compatible on the most DVD players - both in being able to be played & in playing well - which should be used: DVD+ or DVD-? I would be very interested to see which way the majority go. Thanks.

[lordsmurf]

There is no such thing as a "minus" disc. You don't call it "DVD minus R" anymore than you'd call it a "CD minus R" disc.

It's simply "DVD R" and "DVD plus R".

At any rate, just use good discs. Verbatim DVD-R or Taiyo Yuden DVD+R

Read more at www.nomorecoasters.com

[guns1inger]

If they are modern players, it won't make any difference so long as you use good quality discs. On older players +R is less compatible unless they are +R specific. Bitsetting +R discs can close the gap some way.

I rarely use +Rs and have never had a playback problem that could be traced to disc format.

[aedipuss]

if your burner can bitset dvd+r to dvd-rom then dvd+r is as compatible as dvd-r. if not stick to dvd-r.

[EddyH]

heh, popular poll ... my vote makes it 50-50

it seems more really that you tailor what you use to the hardware it needs to be played on.... the twin format thing is a pain that way.

personally i use mainly +R as it seems more reliable and more compatible with my own equipment. -R is ok, but seems more failure prone and my DVD player hates it with a passion. +RW vs -RW is more moot; surprisingly the player likes -RW just fine, and it actually seems to be slightly better quality / more resilient than +RW... but it also doesn't have that handy "no reformatting necessary" high-speed overwrite feature

[trhouse]

If you plan to use a dvd recorder, look carefully at the specifications. I found, for example, the LG RC797T can record to both dvd-r/rw and dvd+r/rw but it is easy to edit out commercials with -rw and not all with +rw.

[EddyH]

odd... you mean it doesn't use VR properly with +RW media? (even though ostensibly they're easier to overwrite)?

[trhouse]

The full test of the edit features are on this thread,

https://forum.videohelp.com/topic279460.html

[EddyH]

Hmmm. It does look like it falls down a bit in some other areas too, maybe as a side effect of cramming a vhs player into the same box... no SVideo input, other oddness with +RW vs -RW and RAM, recording modes, etc.

Interesting and informative thread there, even if OMG REPETITIVE IMAGE OVERLOAD. I was thinking of getting a DVD recorder. I shall check back there first on the details of it... or perhaps search around the site to find similar reviews of PAL / DVB-T hardware... (now all I need is somewhere that hosts reviews of audio equipment along the same lines - i need a new stereo but don't want to be landed with a clunker, and most magazines seem concerned more with expensive seperates and turntables that "offer outstanding value"... at £2995... o_O... my CAR cost less than that, jeez

[JudgeGarth]

I have more luck with +R's playing in my own standalone player, but if I send any out to other people they're usually -R's (8x if I can spare them).

[edong]

There is no such thing as a "minus" disc. You don't call it "DVD minus R" anymore than you'd call it a "CD minus R" disc.

It's simply "DVD R" and "DVD plus R".

This has been discussed here many months ago. Although I understand your point because DVD–R is supposed to be written with a dash and not a hyphen, it is still my opinion that to call it minus is logical and convenient. Most people, including you and some DVD media makers, write it with a hyphen. If we will strictly stick to "dash" principle, how will we read this: DVD±RW? It will be confusing to read it with silent "dash" sign, if it were really a dash.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DVD-R

[lordsmurf]

it is still my opinion that to call it minus is logical and convenient. Most people, including you and some DVD media makers, write it with a hyphen.

I'm sure that puts a smile on the face of Ricoh/Sony/Philips. Their goon marketing has worked on somebody. But it's still not correct.

If we will strictly stick to "dash" principle, how will we read this: DVD±RW? It will be confusing to read it with silent "dash" sign, if it were really a dash.

No such "DVD±RW" format exists. The correct verbiage for this is "dual-format DVD burner".

[edong]

it is still my opinion that to call it minus is logical and convenient. Most people, including you and some DVD media makers, write it with a hyphen.

I'm sure that puts a smile on the face of Ricoh/Sony/Philips. Their goon marketing has worked on somebody. But it's still not correct.

If we will strictly stick to "dash" principle, how will we read this: DVD±RW? It will be confusing to read it with silent "dash" sign, if it were really a dash.

No such "DVD±RW" format exists. The correct verbiage for this is "dual-format DVD burner".

If somebody asks me what "dual" refers to, I will say one is for +R and the other to R. Just ignore the other sign. And it is more correct to refer the DVD±RW as dual-format DVD burner than DVD-R as DVD minus R (to distinguish it from DVD+R). Perhaps, if they did not invent the +R format . . . .

[EddyH]

I was always told it was "plus R" and "dash R"
Where in the world is "-R" media ever written just as "R"?

hmmm...
anyway who cares so long as it allows you to easily identify between the two major types eh?

Had further funs with it; the laptops at work seem to like everything except +R... incompatibility HO!!! Damn format wars.
(then again the drives do seem generally faulty and have +R/RAM markings on, so how can you ever be sure?)

[JohnnyMalaria]

DVD-R (Verbatim Advanced Azodye)

The -R and -RW variants support a whole bunch of features not available with +R and +RW. My standalone Sony DVD recorder can do all kinds of nifty things with -R and -RW.