We explain that what is the difference between DVD-R and DVD-RW? with definition in detail and in tabular form.
There are still people who are fans of cassettes, who still want to give concrete integrity to memories or preserve essential data by saving it on cassettes, CDs, DVDs or hard drives. This era has sensationalized the use of Android phones, pen drives, laptops where the storage extension is unlimited but the extra effort to preserve memories or essentials is absent.
So if you want to store your information on digital video disc while choosing to archive files, you can choose carefully between DVD-R and DVD-RW discs. These discs have the same capacities, making it easy for you to store the same amount of data on either disc, no matter what you choose. However, the main difference between digital video disc-R and DVD-RW is the ability to clean or erase the content on digital video disc-RW.
Before we go on to the difference between DVD-R and DVD-RW, let’s give you a little preview of the history of DVDs. On March 31, 1997, DVD (Digital Video Disc) came into force in the United States of America. It was on this day that the DVDs were put on sale in the country. Rather than mark the end of DVD’s troubled past, newer and better versions of DVDs were brought into the field. It seems that people were caught up in the idea that DVDs were given.
The difference between DVD-R and DVD-RW is that, unlike DVD-R, it can be completely erased and written over and over again if necessary. The data is saved in digital form. This device is known as an optical storage device. We can say that digital video disc-RW is a developed and evolved form of digital video disc-R.
Comparison table between digital video disc-R and digital video disc-RW
DVD-R DVD-RW comparison parameters
| Full form | Recordable digital video disc. | Rewritable digital video disc. |
| Characteristics | Data can be written and stored only once. | Data can be erased and rewritten over and over again. |
| Use | It can be used to store data. | It can be used to store data, audio files, videos, voice messages, and images. |
| Storage | It can store a large amount of data. | It can store less amount of data compared to DVD-R. |
| Velocity | It is slower than DVD-RW. | Faster than DVD-R. |
What is DVD-R?
As mentioned in the introduction itself, the full form of DVD-R is a recordable digital versatile disc. DVD-R is a circular disc with a diameter of 120 mm and a thickness of 1.3 mm. The disc also contains two polycarbonate substrates 0.6mm each. Almost all DVD players can easily play the disc. It is tested and approved by the DVD Forum founded through the merger of several international firms.
The founder of DVD-R was Pioneer. It was founded in 1997. The disk is mainly used to store important data. The only flaw with an otherwise efficient device is that it can only be written once. The data is incorporated with the use of lasers in it. The disc is known to store up to 4.7GB on single-layer and single-sided discs, 8.5GB can be stored on double-layer discs, and 9.4GB can be stored on double-sided discs. The storage capacity of DVD-R is greater than that of DVD-RW. DVD-R is cheaper than DVD-RW. Also know that both albums were released in 1997.
What is DVD-RW?
As mentioned above, the expanded form of DVD-RW is Digital Versatile Disc Rewritable. As you can already understand from its name, it is a circular disc that is 120 mm in diameter and 1.3 mm thick. Similar to DVD-R, DVD-RE also has two 0.6mm polycarbonate substrates each. The only noticeable difference that separates the discs is that DVD-RWs can be erased and written over and over again, as many times as you like. Data is stored on disk only in digital format.
This is also an optical storage device. The specialty of DVD-RW is that it can save any type of digital data such as audios, video messages, images or any type of multimedia program. The disk is widely used to install various operating systems on computers. DVD-RW is faster than DVD-R and is more flexible when it comes to storage. Another notable feature on DVD-RW is that the data, once loaded onto this disc, remains there forever, unless voluntarily erased by the user. DVD-RW due to its efficiency and improved features is slightly more expensive than DVD-R. However, the difference is not much. Both albums were released in 1997.
Key differences between DVD-R and DVD-RW
- The full form of DVD-R is a recordable digital video disc. Whereas the full form of DVD-RW is a rewritable digital video disc.
- Data on DVD-R can be written and stored only once. Whereas, on DVD-RW, data can be erased and rewritten over and over again.
- The DVD-RW can be used to store data, audio files, videos, voice messages, and pictures, while the DVD-R is limited to storing only valuable data.
- DVD-R can efficiently store a large amount of data, while DVD-RW can store a smaller amount of data.
- Digital video disc-R is slower than digital video disc-RW in speed.
Final Thought
So now, after a thorough discussion and analysis of digital video disc-R and digital video disc-RW, we understand the clear difference between widely used discs. In case you are looking for a portable device to store your information, you can give DVDs a try while choosing to store files. Now you can choose carefully between digital video disc-R and digital video disc-RW discs by weighing the qualities of both.
These discs come with more or less similar features, easier to save to either disc, no matter what you choose. However, it should be noted that the main difference between digital video disc-R and digital video disc-RW is the ability to clean or erase the content on digital video disc-RW, which is not possible with digital video disc-R. So be careful with your choice depending on the type of data you want to store.
