DiscRecordable

DiscRecordable is a term that refers to optical discs that can be written to by a user, as opposed to read-only media. The most common types of recordable discs are CD-R (Compact Disc Recordable) and DVD-R (Digital Versatile Disc Recordable), along with their rewritable counterparts CD-RW and DVD-RW. These discs utilize a dye layer that is altered by a laser during the recording process.

When a laser beam from a recording device heats a specific spot on the dye layer, it causes a chemical or physical change, altering its reflectivity. This change is permanent for CD-R and DVD-R discs, making them suitable for archiving data that should not be altered. For rewritable discs like CD-RW and DVD-RW, the dye layer is designed to be reversible, allowing data to be erased and rewritten multiple times.

The primary use of recordable discs is for data backup, creating music CDs, storing video, and distributing software. While their usage has declined with the rise of flash storage and cloud services, they remain a viable option for certain applications and for users who prefer physical media. The maximum capacity of a standard CD-R is approximately 700 MB, while a single-layer DVD-R can hold about 4.7 GB.