DVD MEDIA LIFe span.

[slimmx]

I have heard many many times that most cds will not work after a couple of years. Does that go for only the dvds that you burn yourself on to DVD-R/+R or for commercial dvds that you buy in the stores too. And what is the difference.

[indolikaa]

Lies! All lies!

There's been active debate regarding how long media REALLY will last. Most say write-once will last longer. Few say rewritables will last longer.

I have some CD-Rs I keep in my truck, and have since the early part of 2000. They are beat-up pretty bad, but they still play fine. I haven't experienced any problems with media 'falling apart' and neither have any of my friends.

[hech54]

I agree....total BULL. I've even heard a term used recently either on this site's message board OR the DVDPlusRW.org site's message board.....ready for this?

Disc Rot

Unbelievable

[holistic]

"disk rot" - is legit ... however.

Lasers do not rot or cause anything to rot, and plastic and metal do not really rot - only organic materials rot when attacked by bacteria.

The problem is probably oxidation, chemical reaction, or delamination due to faulty quality control.

"Laser Rot" - affected LaserDisks, and may also affect CD, DVD simply due to their similar structures. Metals oxidize when exposed to oxygen.

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[Magyck]

I've just been dicussing dvd life spans with my sister. see I'm trying to convert our home videos from vhs to dvd, but she reakons that some kinds of media will only last a few years then they won't work... does anybody know how true this is? I was under the impression that dvds lasted AGES if kept in good condition... so what gives? is it only certain kinds of media, and if so which ones??

[Thorn]

I've personally never lost a disc to anything except scratches (although one disc I gave to a friend supposedly had an air bubble in it - I suppose I could have verified the contents...). Leaving CDs in the car in Arizona for several years seems like an effective test.

Not to say that anecdotal evidence really proves anything. I never use cheapo media for important stuff, because it has the highest probability of failing over time or just plain being defective. Actually, I make duplicate copies for certain things. The liklihood of both copies failing is negligible for good media. The VHS tape is going to loose more data than the DVD over time.

Moral of the story: the media list on the left should shed some light on which brands to use and avoid. Honestly, though, you know whey you're buying noname media for cheap. "Steals" usually are.