Compatibility Forum

Fequently Asked Questions

What exactly are DVDs, VCDs and SVCDs?
Creating DVDs, VCDs and SVCDs that can play on any DVD player
DVD Compatibility
What is DVD Video?
What is DVD-R and DVD+R?
What is DVD-RW and DVD+RW?
What don't all these formats play on any DVD player?

1. What exactly are DVDs, VCDs and SVCDs?

DVD stands for Digital Versatile Disc and is the generic name for a family of related disc formats encompassing video, audio, and computer file storage on an optical disc format. We'll talk about the different formats in a moment. A single layer (DVD-5) DVD stores up to 2 hours of very good quality DVD-Video, including several audio tracks in formats like stereo, Dolby Digital or DTS and also advanced menu systems, subtitles and still pictures that can be played by standalone DVD Players and computer DVD-ROMs. If you choose to lower the video quality it is possible to store several hours video on a DVD using low bit rates and low resolution with video quality more like SVCD or VCD. It is also possible to have up to 4.37 GB ordinary data or mix DVD-Video and data on a DVD that can be played by computer DVD-ROMs.

A DVD can be played on:

Standalone DVD Players
Sony Playstation 2 and Microsoft Xbox game consoles
All computers with DVD-ROM drives

VCD stands for Video CD and consists of a CD that contains moving pictures and sound. If you're familiar with regular audio/music CDs, then you will know what a VCD looks like. A VCD has the capacity to hold up to 74/80 minutes on 650MB/700MB CDs respectively of full-motion video along with quality stereo sound. VCDs use a compression standard called MPEG-1 to store the video and audio. A VCD can be played on almost all standalone DVD Players and of course on all computers with a DVD-ROM or CD-ROM drive with the help of a software based decoder / player. It is also possible to use menus and chapters, similar to DVDs, on a VCD and also simple photo album/slide shows with background audio. The quality of a very good VCD is about the same as a VHS tape based movie but VCD is usually a bit more blurry. If you want better quality check out SVCD or DVD.

A VCD can be played on

Standalone VCD Players (most common in Asia)
Most standalone DVD Players, check here for compatibility list
All computers with a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive and a software DVD/VCD player.

SVCD stands for Super Video CD and is very similar to a VCD but offers higher quality as it uses the compressions standard MPEG-2, but offers less capacity as a result. An SVCD has the capacity to hold about 35-60 minutes on 74/80 min CDs of very good quality full-motion video along with up to 2 stereo audio tracks and also 4 selectable subtitles. A SVCD can be played on many standalone DVD Players and of course on all computers with a DVD-ROM or CD-ROM drive with the help of a software based decoder / player. It is also possible to use menus and chapters, similiar to DVDs, on a SVCD and also simple photo album/slide shows with background audio. The quality of a SVCD is much better than a VCD, especially much more sharpen picture than a VCD because of the higher resolution. But the quality depends how many minutes you choose to store on a CD, less minutes/CD generally means higher quality.

SVCDs can be played on

Many standalone DVD Players (check here for compability list)
All computers with a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive and a software DVD/SVCD player.

2. Creating DVDs, VCDs and SVCDs that can play on any DVD player

Today it's possible to use your PC to create your own DVDs and Video CDs that allow play back of your movies, photos and music on any DVD player (usually in your living room or those of your family and friends). DVDs in particular allow the most options including large capacity for lots of video and menu pages just like those you see on commercial DVD movies. If you don't have a DVD burner attached to your PC, but have a CD-ROM burner, you can still create lower capacity Video CDs and Super Video CDs that can also be played back on a DVD player. This is one of the easiest ways to enjoy your digital media away from the confines of your PC.

The ability for you and I to create these video discs so easily is relatively new, and there can be a few hurdles for the uninitiated. For example there are LOTS of different types of recordable DVD media out there to buy now, and not all DVD players know how to recognize all the recordable formats. In fact some older DVD players can only play DVD movies you buy or rent, as they physically can't read recordable DVD formats (they weren't designed to). Things are getting better all the time, and while there are older DVD players still in circulation this guide will help you to ensure that your DVDs, VCDs and SVCDs will play back on the vast majority of DVD players out there.

3. DVD Compatibility

The purpose of this section is to explain the compatibility issues faced by anyone trying to creating a DVD that will play on any DVD player. There are a multitude of issues that can affect success in that endeavor, and we explain those one by one.

Roxio can help by producing DVD authoring software that creates DVDs that play on the greatest number of consumer DVD players as possible, within the constraints of compatibility outside of our control, such as compatibility problems between recordable media types and DVD players. Roxio's approach to evolve our software into the best on the market for achieving playback compatibility is explained. Let's start by looking at issues not related to authoring software. In this area, compatibility problems have three main factors:

The DVD formats (e.g. DVD-R, DVD+RW, DVD-RW)
The DVD blank media manufacturers (e.g. Maxell and Verbatim)
The DVD players (e.g. Pioneer and Sony)

These cause complex permutations, but let's start by looking at the different technologies used to make a recordable DVD.

There are now many different types of recordable DVD product.

4. What is DVD Video?

Commercial DVDs, the movies that we all watch, are created by 'stamping' DVDs. This creates small craters on the surface of the readable layer of the DVD, which in turn scatter (rather than reflect back to a sensor as normal) the laser reading the disk.

There can be one, or more commonly two, readable layers. Many earlier players are designed, and their laser focused, specifically to read this kind of 'stamped' DVD.

5. What is DVD-R and DVD+R?

There can be one, or more commonly two, readable layers. Many earlier players are designed, and their laser focused, specifically to read this kind of 'stamped' DVD.

When the organic dye is exposed to a low frequency infrared laser, it's crystalline structure is permanently changed to form reflecting and non-reflecting patches on the disk, readable in a DVD player.

Only since 2001 have players become better at reading these DVDs.

6. What is DVD-RW and DVD+RW?

The rewritable formats-DVD-RW and DVD+RW use phase-change materials.

Two different laser power levels are used for writing and erasing data on a phase-change disc. The highest power level causes the surface of the material to become less reflective, and a lower power level causes the material to become more reflective. Phase-change-based recordable DVD-RW media can be rewritten more than 1,000 times, while DVD+RW can be rewritten more than 10,000 times.

Only now are DVD players becoming better at reading these DVDs.

7. What don't all these formats play on any DVD player?

Several different compatibility problems can occur between a recorded DVD and a consumer DVD player.

Problems include physical, logical and application incompatibilities.