DVD Size: Everything You Need To Know About Capacity And Formats

No matter how alike they look, not all DVDs are the same. Among the most essential aspects in selecting the right DVD for any kind of project is the DVD size or the amount of data it can store. If you are looking for a new DVD to burn, you must wonder how many DVD formats are avalible, what sizes are good for an amount of data, or what type of DVD you should go for.

There are a variety of DVD models available, each with a distinct physical size and storage capacity. As a result, there may be a great deal of uncertainty concerning DVD sizes. For example, you may not be aware of the sort of DVD that can carry a certain amount of information. Dealing with insufficient storage when you are ready-to-burn DVD can be frustrating, but not when you know well aware of DVD storage capacity and formats.

DVD Terms You Need To Know

Before moving ahead, let’s have a look at some DVD terms that might be new to you.

• DVD; abbreviated as Digital Versatile Disc or Digital Video Disc. It is a sort of optical disc technology that is comparable to CD-ROM technology.
• DVD-Video; is a video format that is used to display full-length digital movies on a television set.
• DVD-ROM; read-only compact disc with a storage capacity of at least 4.7GB (gigabytes), which is sufficient for a full-length movie.
• Burn; is a phrase that refers to the act of writing data on a DVD or DVD-ROM.

Moving ahead, we are going to discuss different types of DVD capacity in-depth along with formats and how you can burn or rip your DVD at home.

Types and Sizes of DVDs

At this point you may not ask “what is a DVD”, but what type of DVDs are there and how do they differ in terms of storage capacity. There are different sizes of DVDs, often classified into three common categories; DVD-5, DVD-9, DVD-10.

DVD-5

A DVD-5 is a single-layer DVD that can store up to approximately 4.7GB of data on a single disc. In terms of videos, it takes around 120 to 133 minutes of video, depending on compression.

DVD-9

Type DVD-9 consists of two layers; a solid layer and a semi-transparent layer. It can store up to 8.5GB of data on a single side. Depending on the compression, it can store around 240 minutes of video depending. It can hold almost twice the amount of data as a DVD-5 and is often utilised to maintain a higher bitrate or quality than would be possible on a DVD-5.

DVD-10

DVD-10 is a two-sided DVD that can carry up to 9.4GB of data on each side, which makes it a total of 18.8GB. In terms of videos, it makes around 266 minutes of video, depending on compression. Unlike DVD-9 which comes with two layers, a two-sided DVD needs to be flipped to display or burn the data on each side.

However, it comes in handy if you want to record two different video formats on the same disc.

How Many DVD Formats Are Available?

The format basically determines the compatibility of the data on the disc to the system or a platform you wish to play it on. Despite the sizes of DVDs, there are various formats, each of which enables a different storage capacity.

Here are some commonly used and preferred DVD formats you must know about before moving onto DVD discs size. The plus and minus in formats refer to the physical formats. DVDs with +R or +RW formats are compatible with commercial DVD-ROM players.

DVD+R and DVD-R:

• These discs can only be recorded once.
• The recorded data becomes permanent on the disc.
• DVD capacity in GB for these discs is up to 4.7GB.

DVD+RW and DVD-RW:

• RW is abbreviated as “re-writable”.
• These discs are re-recordable.
• You can modify data on these DVDs.
• The data can be deleted, and rewritten several times.
• DVD storage capacity for +RW and -RW DVDs is up to 8.54

DVD+R DL and DVD-R DL:

• DVD+R DL and DVD-R DL are both dual-layer discs.
• The writing and rewriting on these DVDs take a little longer because of their dual-layer.
• +R DL and -R DL DVD storage capacity is up to 8.50GB.

The question arises, “how much data can a blu ray hold”?

What is blu ray DVD?

The common ground between a Blu-ray and a DVD is the laser technology used to read data on both, which leads to other factors that impact the quality and Blu-ray DVD capacity.

DVDs and Blu-ray discs seem to be identical to the naked eye, however, the grooves on Blu-ray discs are considerably closer together and narrower than those on DVDs. It is because the blue laser can read much more accurate data, unlike red laser technology used in DVDs.

Therefore, the answer to “how much data can a blu ray hold” is that a double-sided Blu-ray can hold up to 50GB of data.

Factors Affecting DVD Discs Size

There are a few factors that directly impact the DVD storage capacity, for instance;

• DVD layers; there are single and dual-layer DVDs. Each layer carries a specific amount of data, enhancing the DVD capacity.
• DVD sides; DVD size is increased by the number of sides it has. There are single and dual side DVDs. The dual side is a hi capacity DVD in comparison to the single-sided.

If you are looking for a hi capacity DVD, DVD+R DL comes with high burning speed and up to 8.5GB of data storage capacity. On the other hand, blu-ray DVDs offer a massive amount of DVD capacity in GB.

Convert DVDs To Other Formats; Pros and Cons

We live in a world where everything is becoming digital, so are DVDs. There are now various ways to convert DVDs to other formats, specifically mp3 or mp4, for different purposes. However, It comes with its own set of pros and cons. For instance;

• DVDs are not compatible with all players and devices.
• Old DVDs are prone to physical damage.
• If poorly compressed, the content on the DVD can be fuzzy, blocky, and vague.
• DVDs do not fully support HDTV.
• Some DVDs have built-in copy protection and regional lockout.

Therefore, converting your DVDs to other formats offer various benefits, including;

• It takes up less space in your space.
• Other formats like mp3 or mp4 offer better quality playback.
• It reduces the size of the files without compromising the quality.
• Storing and organizing mp4 format is much more convenient in comparison to DVDs.
• Digital files are compatible with almost every format.
• Most web services like Vimeo, Youtube, or others support mp4 format.

Therefore, if you are looking for ways “how to burn a DVD free”, DVDFab ripper is an all-in-one software. It allows you to burn or rip DVDs in any format along with other advanced features.

DVDFab Ripper 12; All-in-one DVD Converting Tool

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Whether you want to have a more secure option to keep your data or you want to digitize your DVDs, you need to convert them into other formats. In order to transfer any of your DVD collections to current devices, you must first cope with the massive file size that is generated throughout the process. Converting various size of DVDs to digital formats require software tools. DVDFab Ripper is an all-in-one converting, copying, editing, and creating modules that offer conversion in all kinds of formats.

There are free and paid versions of DVDFab. As per your requirement, you can go for the one that best suits your needs. For instance, if you are fine with basic features, you can enjoy the DVDFab ripper free version. On the other hand, to benefit from all the advanced features and tools, you can get the pro version.

DVDFab Ripper Main Features

Unlike other DVD ripping tools, DVDFab DVD Ripper has the capability of converting DVDs to MKV and other formats. Its passthrough video and 5.1 AC3 audio features are a huge plus for movie enthusiasts who want to enjoy lossless visual quality in their home theatre.

• It compresses video size while preserving the quality.
• DVDFab encoder rips any DVD to 1000+ video & audio formats.
• GPU-accelerated DVD ripping speeds up the process by 50x
• Batch DVD to digital file conversion
• Task Queue
• Built-in video editor

How To Rip DVD to Other Formats With DVDFab Ripper

We have created this comprehensive guide to walk you through simple steps to convert your DVD to digital files.

Step 1: Download and Install DVDFab Ripper

You can download DVDFab Ripper and install it on your system. Once you download the file, it automatically detects your system requirements and installs the software.

Step 2: Launch DVDFab Ripper

Once you install the DVD ripper, launch the application and click “Ripper” module on the main screen. In any case, put the DVD disc you want to rip into the optical drive or navigate to it using the “Add” button if it is already in the drive and not selected. On the other hand, it's as simple as dragging and dropping an ISO file or a folder from your computer's hard drive onto the workspace. You can use this free DVD ripper for Mac and Windows to rip DVDs on your computer.

Step 3: Choose Profile

To convert any size of dvds to MP4 or any other digital formats, click "Choose Other Profile". In the profile tab, choose "Format", and then "Video" from the drop-down menu.

Step 4: Other Settings

Once you upload your video and choose profiles, DVDFab Ripper 12 allows you full control over various settings, including;

• Selecting audio tracks
• Languages
• Extracting subtitles from DVDs into SRT format
• Adding external subtitles

Step 5: Choose Advanced Settings For Output Video

Advanced Settings and Video Edit allows you to customise the video and audio characteristics to meet your own requirements. In “Advanced Settings” tab, you can customize the following characteristics of the video;

• Bit rate
• Resolution
• Frame rate
• Video codec
• Output size
• Pixels or bits
• Audio codec
• Audio channels

On the other hand, if you have subtitles, you can also adjust the settings for that in advanced settings.

Step 6: Start Ripping

Once all your settings are adjusted, to rip DVDs for free, just press the “Start” button. You can view the status or progress of the ripping process in detail in the taskbar.

Conclusion

DVDs are a valuable asset for many people and a huge number of people still prefer using DVDs. However, ripping DVDs or having your data backed up properly, you need a video converter tool. Amongst variable choices for DVD rippers available in the market, find the one that offers free DVD ripping with all essential and advanced features. DVDFab ripper 12 convert any sizes of DVD easy and fast. It is compatible with Windows, Mac, and mobile devices and supports all formats. To make the best use of the DVDFab ripper, this guide helps you rip DVDs with ease.

FAQs

What is a DVD burning and how it is different from DVD ripping?

Burning is the term used to describe the process of copying music, images, and movies from your computer to a blank CD or DVD. On the other hand, ripping is the term used to describe the process of copying music, photos, and movies from a CD or DVD to your computer. Both of these tasks require ripping or copying softwares.

What is the difference between DVD-R and DVD+R?

DVD-R and DVD+R are formats that are essentially similar to one another. Both -R and +R discs look similar in appearance and are compatible with most DVD-ROM players and burners. The sole difference between the two formats is the method by which they detect the placement of the laser beam on the disc to be used for reading data.

Which DVD is the most suitable for burning?

More than DVD discs size, the format of the dics matter when it comes to ripping. DVD-R discs are the most compatible for burning, while DVD+R discs are the second most compatible option. DVD-RW/+RW discs are re-writable disc. It means that the data can be erased and re-written on several occasions. However, they are not always compatible with all DVD players.