Non-recordable formats

• DVD-ROM: These are pressed similarly to CDs. The reflective surface is silver or gold colored. They can be single-sided/single-layered, single-sided/double-layered, double-sided/single-layered, or double-sided/double-layered. As of 2004, new double-sided discs have become increasingly rare.
• DVD-D
  DVD-D
  DVD-Ds, also referred to as disposable DVDs, are a type of digital video disc that is designed to be used for a maximum 48 hours after the containing package is opened. After this time, the DVDs become unreadable to DVD players because they contain a chemical that, after the set period of time,...
  
  : Self-destructing disposable DVD format introduced in 2008. Like EZ-D, it is sold in an airtight package, and begins to destroy itself by oxidation after several hours.
• DVD Plus: combines both DVD and CD technologies by providing the CD layer and a DVD layer. Not to be confused with the DVD+ formats below.

Recordable formats, supported by the DVD Forum

DVD Forum

The DVD Forum is an international organization composed of hardware, software, media and content companies that use and develop the DVD and formerly HD DVD formats...

• DVD-R for Authoring: a special-purpose DVD-R used to record DVD masters, which can then be duplicated to pressed DVDs by a duplication plant. They require a special DVD-R recorder, and are not often used nowadays since many duplicators can now accept ordinary DVD-R masters.
• DVD-R
  DVD-R
  DVD-R is a DVD recordable format. A DVD-R typically has a storage capacity of 4.71 GB. Pioneer has also developed an 8.5 GB dual layer version, DVD-R DL, which appeared on the market in 2005....
  
   (strictly DVD-R for General): can record up to 4.7 GB in a similar fashion to a CD-R
  CD-R
  A CD-R is a variation of the Compact Disc invented by Philips and Sony. CD-R is a Write Once Read Many optical medium, though the whole disk does not have to be entirely written in the same session....
  
   disc. Once recorded and finalized it can be played by most DVD-ROM players.
• DVD-RW
  DVD-RW
  A DVD-RW disc is a rewritable optical disc with equal storage capacity to a DVD-R, typically 4.7 GB. The format was developed by Pioneer in November 1999 and has been approved by the DVD Forum. The smaller Mini DVD-RW holds 1.46 GB, with a diameter of 8 cm.The primary advantage of DVD-RW over...
  
  : can record up to 4.7 GB in a similar fashion to a CD-RW
  CD-RW
  A CD-RW is a rewritable optical disc. It was introduced in 1997, and was known as "CD-Writable" during development. It was preceded by the CD-MO, which was never commercially released....
  
   disc.
• DVD-R DL
  DVD-R DL
  DVD-R DL , also called DVD-R9, is a derivative of the DVD-R format standard. DVD-R DL discs hold 8.54 GB per side by utilizing two recordable dye layers, each capable of storing nearly the 4.7 gigabyte of a single layer disc -almost doubling the total disc capacity...
  
  : a derivative of DVD-R that uses double-layer recordable discs to store up to 8.5 GB of data.
• DVD-RW DL: a derivative of DVD-RW that uses double-layer recordable discs to store up to 8.5 GB of data.
• DVD-RAM
  DVD-RAM
  DVD-RAM is a disc specification presented in 1996 by the DVD Forum, which specifies rewritable DVD-RAM media and the appropriate DVD writers. DVD-RAM media have been used in computers as well as camcorders and personal video recorders since 1998.-Design:DVD-RAM is one of three competing...
  
   (current specification is version 2.1): 2.6 GB, 4.7 GB or 9.4 GB (double-sided) discs compatible with only a small proportion of other-format DVD drives. DVD-RAM discs were originally typically housed in a cartridge, though these are now less commonly required. Discs can be removed from their caddy and used in compatible standard-tray drives. Rewritable many more times than other rewritable formats.
• DVD-AR: Recordable version of DVD-Audio
  DVD-Audio
  DVD-Audio is a digital format for delivering high-fidelity audio content on a DVD. DVD-Audio is not intended to be a video delivery format and is not the same as video DVDs containing concert films or music videos....
  
  

Recordable formats, supported by the DVD+RW Alliance

DVD+RW Alliance

The DVD+RW Alliance is a group of electronic hardware, optical storage and software manufacturers who in 1997 created and promoted a format standard of recordable and rewritable DVDs, known as the "plus" format. As of 2004, plus format DVDs were available in three forms: DVD+R, DVD+RW, and DVD+R...

• DVD+R
  DVD+R
  DVD+R is part of optical disc recording technologies. It is a format for optical disc data storage that utilizes digital recording. It is similar to, but incompatible with, the older DVD-R standard...
  
  : can record up to 4.7 GB single-layered/single-sided DVD+R disc, at up to 16× speed. As with DVD-R it can only be recorded on only once.
• DVD+RW
  DVD+RW
  DVD+RW is a physical format for rewritable DVDs and can hold up to 4.7 GB. DVD+RW was created by the DVD+RW Alliance, an industry consortium of drive and disc manufacturers...
  
  : can record up to 4.7 GB at up to 16× speed. Since it is rewritable it can be overwritten several times. It does not need special "pre-pits" or finalization to be played in a DVD player.
• DVD+R DL
  DVD+R DL
  DVD+R DL also called DVD+R9, is a derivative of the DVD+R format created by the DVD+RW Alliance. Its use was first demonstrated in October 2003. DVD+R DL discs employ two recordable dye layers, each capable of storing nearly the 4.7 GB capacity of a single-layer disc, almost doubling the total...
  
  : a derivate of DVD+R that uses dual-layer recordable discs to store up to 8.5 GB of data.
• DVD+RW DL: a derivate of DVD+RW that uses dual-layer recordable discs to store up to 8.5 GB of data.

Recordable format compatibility

DVD drives from 2004 should be able to read either of the competing recordable formats, older drives may favour DVD-R discs. Modern drives (certainly at time of writing in 2007) typically allow writing to both DVD-R[W] and DVD+R[W] discs making the difference largely irrelevant to the average consumer.

Application formats

VR Mode

DVD-VR

The DVD-VR standard defines a logical format for video recording on DVD-R, DVD-RW, and DVD-RAM style media, including the dual layer versions of these media. As opposed to media recorded with the DVD+VR recording standard, the resulting media are not DVD-Video compliant, and will not play back in...

(aka Video Recording): This is a new format that allows editing/deleting titles and getting the total of space of deleted titles back/recording of copy once broadcasts/defect management. Used by DVD-RAM (DVD-RAM only uses this format) and DVD-RW. Because it is a newer format than DVD Video, it will only playback in modern DVD Players that support it.

Video mode

DVD-Video

DVD-Video is a consumer video format used to store digital video on DVD discs, and is currently the dominant consumer video format in Asia, North America, Europe, and Australia. Discs using the DVD-Video specification require a DVD drive and a MPEG-2 decoder...

This is the standard DVD Video mode format, the same format DVD films come in. Because the DVD Video format was invented before DVDs were recordable it doesn't allow editing on the disc, doesn't support defect management (so not as robust for continuous everyday recording and wiping), if you delete a title you may not get the space back without completely erasing the disc, and needs a finalise step to play elsewhere. As it is the same format as commercial DVD films, it is normal for it to work in most DVD Players. Can be used on DVD-RW and DVD-R discs, never used DVD-RAM. Most (but not all) recorders that use DVD-RW will give you choice of VR mode or Video mode.

+VR

DVD+VR

The DVD+VR standard defines a logical format for DVD-Video compliant recording on optical discs. It is intended to be used on DVD+R and DVD+RW media. Most DVD video recorders in the market that support these two types of media also use the DVD+VR format for recording video on them. It is possible...

Introduced by Philips for use on DVD+RW

DVD+RW

DVD+RW is a physical format for rewritable DVDs and can hold up to 4.7 GB. DVD+RW was created by the DVD+RW Alliance, an industry consortium of drive and disc manufacturers...

. The idea was to keep compatibility with the DVD Video format so it could be played elsewhere, but try and introduce some features as found in the VR mode used on DVD-RW/DVD-RAM. DVD+RW normally always uses this mode in set-top recorders. It doesn't need a separate finalise step to play in other DVD recorders; finalisation is just done in the background, which makes it bit easier to use (i.e. you can't forget to do it), but it does put extra wear on the disc, as the same area of the disc is updated every time it is used. Due to DVD-Video not being able to take advantage of defect management and the extra overheads of background finalising after each edit or recording, the +VR mode has always been the least reliable, and the editing features may be missing on some DVD recorders to make it more robust.

Because Video Mode and VR mode are Forum standards, they are only used when recording to DVD approved formats i.e. DVD-RAM/DVD-RW/DVD-R discs. DVD+RW isn't approved by the DVD Forum so can't get a license to use the above modes, hence Philips introducing their own +VR mode, so DVD+RW gets +VR and generally they are not mixed.

However, many cheaper recorders are mixing these formats up now and typically this means not bothering to get the recorder approved by the DVD verification labs and so not paying the appropriate licence fee or reaching a certain level of quality or compatibility, and so just use +VR mode on DVD-RW and DVD+RW. You can tell these by the lack of the DVD-Video logo.

+VR mode error: copy protection shown when attempting to copy a program that has been copy protected, and the unit records in +VR mode.