What Is the Difference Between DVD Burner & CD Burner?
The difference between DVD burners and CD burners is how they write data and what types of data they write. Both are considered data storage systems; they take data from a computer and write it to a disc using a laser. DVD and CD burners use different methods to transfer this data, depending on what type of data they are writing. CD burners are formatted to write audio and text files while DVD burners are formatted to write audio and video files.
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Technique
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Both DVD and CD burners write files to an optical disc using lasers. The laser creates markings on the disc by heating the writable layer of the disc. The markings are a series of bumps and valleys that the reading laser can then interpret. On a read-only disc (ROM), the laser creates permanent markings on a layer of photo-sensitive dye while on rewritable discs, the laser creates marking on an alloy layer, which can be melted and have data written on it a number of times.
The laser used by a DVD burner has a shorter wave length than a CD burner, which allows it to write data at a significantly faster rate. The wave length for most CD burners is 780 nm and the wave length for DVD burners is 650 nm.
CD Formatting
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CD burners write information in digital format. The computer converts audio analog files into a digital format before sending the data to the burner. The files are burned onto the disc and then reconverted back to analog files for playback. Data, such as documents, that are written to CDs are already in digital format when they are created and are sent straight to the CD burner without any type of conversion.
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DVD Formatting
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DVD burners write audio information in digital format, much like a CD burner, but it can also write video files in either MPEG or PAL. MPEG is a generic format used by digital television stations and PAL, phase alternating line, is an analog file code used by broadcast television. The DVD burner writes the MPEG files in a digital format which results in a video created by pixels. The PAL files result in a video picture that is made up of alternating color-coded lines.
CD Types
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Audio CDs are formatted to store audio files and come in a variety of different storage sizes. The files are written to the disc in a digital format that is contained in frames; each frame consists of 66 bytes of data. The frames are organized into tracks. CDs typically contain 99 official tracks although some contain more, which are referred to as hidden tracks.
Data CDs can hold audio, video and document files and have replaced the floppy disc as the most popular data storage system.
Video CDs are formatted to hold videos and movies, but that's where the similarity to a DVD ends. Because of the way video files are burned onto the disc, the picture and sound quality are much poorer than the quality found on a DVD.
DVD Types
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DVD video discs are used to burn movies or video. The disc is able to support both MPEG files and digital audio files. Video discs can consist of one or two layers; single-layer discs contain video files that are embedded with audio files while dual discs have one layer for video files and one for audio, which are burned simultaneously.
DVD audio discs are similar to CD audio discs but because of the way that the data is burned onto the disc, DVD audio discs can hold more audio files in a higher quality. The audio data is burned onto the DVD in a similar fashion as a audio CD, but the DVD's red laser burns faster than a CD's ultraviolet laser thus creating a higher number of compact files.
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