DVD +R ....DVD-R......Argh!

[Deemo]

Well I thought I was ready to upgrade my PC to an HP a540n.
The only "potential" problem is that it has everything I need except a multi format DVD burner. HP has stuck with +R.
Problem is I won't know until after I buy it if my Sony DVD player will accept +R....what if it only accepts -R???


The only other minor problem is that I would like CATV in for PVR capabilities.
I don't want to shell out for another video card right after I buy it.
Is a cheap TV tuner card the solution?

Any recommendations??

[Janak Parekh]

Moved this post to off-topic.

As for the +- business, do you have a friend with a DVD+R you can create a disc with? If your Sony DVD player is recent, it should work with both, but it can't hurt to test.

--janak

[Deemo]

Banished to the off topic wasteland...oh well.
I have no friends.....or at least any tech savy friends.
Perhaps I need to rely on my PPC User Group buddies.
I may just ask the Futureshop guy to burn me a demo before I buy.
They are on commision after all.

[Janak Parekh]

Banished to the off topic wasteland...oh well.
Huh? :confused totally: Just Chattin' is a Pocket PC specific forum. This is Off-Topic discussion. Nothing wrong with that.

I may just ask the Futureshop guy to burn me a demo before I buy.
They are on commision after all.
I think you might get away with that on a demo computer if you bring your own DVD+R media. It ain't that cheap. :|

--janak

[bigkingfun]

I think you might get away with that on a demo computer if you bring your own DVD+R media. It ain't that cheap. :|

That's what I would suggest - buy a DVD+R and see if the store will burn you a demo disc that you can test. Even then, it would depend on whether they have a video file they can burn for you. If they don't, I would check around a little to find a store that would.

As a general guideline, if your DVD player is less than a couple of years old, it will more than likely (say 80% chance) play both formats. Over a couple of years, it may not play either one. The -R format is supposed to be a little more compatible, but all the players I've tried (probably 5 or 6 - Sony, Toshiba, RCA) will either play both or neither one.

[Falstaff]

How can you not know if your Sony accepts DVD-R until after you try, find the model # and check <a href=http://www.dvdplusrw.org/Search.asp?mid=0&sid=2&Brand=Sony&Filter=FILTER1">this</a> list. Also, when you say HP has stuck with DVD+R, so have Sony, Phillips, Dell, HP, Mitsubishi, Yamaha and a couple others. That will hopefully become the standard format. I think it look s a lot better than DVD-. Here (http://www.cdfreaks.com/article/110) is a very good article that talks about the formats and the author recommends DVD+R/RW. Also you can check out the sites listed below.
dvdplusrw.org (http://www.dvdplusrw.org/) - Good site, lots of references and links.
DVD+RW Alliance (http://www.dvdrw.com/) - The official site for DVD+

[Jason Dunn]

Methinks you should wander over to www.digitalmediathoughts.com. ;-)

[buckyg]

Okay, I'll admit, I forgot about www.digitalmediathoughts.com, will be headed over there.

This is an interesting thread, actually, was just discussing it with some friends and family the other day.

I am not disputing what folks are saying about newer players playing both +/- formats. The folks saying that are much more knowledgable than me in this area. What's interesting is that when I shopped for my last DVD player about 3-4 months ago, most would only list one or the other format (+ OR -, not both). I went with one that did - because that's the format of my PC burner. I have since purchased an HP PC which has the + format. Hmm... I've got both burner types now and 2 players under 2 years old, I'll have to do some experimenting when I have time.

[that_kid]

I have a generation 2 dvd player (circa 1998) and while it doesn't play cd-r's it does play the DVD+R and -R's that I create. I've read that DVD+R's play in most players, i'm not sure how true that is but i have a range of dvd players from different years that I use to test my dvd's in. i figure if it plays in my oldest player, than it will play in anything else.

[GoldKey]

I have this burner in my home theater - http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00009KXA3/qid=1078091399/sr=1-3/ref=pd_sbs_e_1/102-3041321-4833729?v=glance&s=electronics&n=507846

and it only does DVD-RAM and -R, the -R disks that that burns have worked in every DVD player I have put them in.