Skip to content
Step by Step Internet 🌐 Guides for learning to surf the Net

Optical discs: what are they, what are they for and what types are there?

Optical discs: what are they

Today optical drives are those that allow to store or remove information contained in optical discs as is the case with Blu-Rays, DVDs, CDs , among other units. Typically, these units use a light laser as part of the process for reading and writing data.

In this way beams of light are used to be able to interpret all the refractions caused on their own emission . These drives usually have a greater storage capacity than floppy disks . But, they fall very short if we compare them with other devices such as hard drives or USB drives.

This type of optical drive receives different types of names, such as the disk drive, CD drive, ODD, Blu-ray drive or DVD drive. With all this in mind , here we are going to explain a little more about this element and what types currently exist.

What is an optical disk and what is this type of computer hardware ?

It is a means of optical data storage that works through a laser light, it consists of a circular disk where the process of information coding takes place, it is saved and stored through microscopic grooves with a laser on one of the faces of this disc.

In this way, this type of unit is based on what is digital technology, where you can store any type of information whether documents, audios, videos, images , among others. It can be encoded in digital format. This is how the ODD use the beam laser to be able to read and write the information on the surface of the disk .

It is also important to mention that this unit is not as fast as a hard disk , but it has enough space available to save a large amount of data. In addition, it characterized by being less sensitive to environmental factors and are many cheaper with portable hard drives .

How does an optical disk work to store the information? Main features

¿Cómo funciona un disco óptico para almacenar la información? Características principales

Today optical disk drives are found on almost every computer. However, most of the new computer models have been eliminating it. But, these units have a wide variety of functions, this is how computers must use a laser to be able to read and write the data that are stored there or to save data on it.

It is also important to mention that these units are much slower than other storage devices, but in turn provide enough space to save a lot of information that does not require fast speed for execution .

Therefore, these elements are mainly used for what is the storage of data . But you should keep in mind that most of them only serve to burn once, unless you use a disc rewritable where The laser is responsible for melting the crystalline metal alloy in the recording layer , getting the device back to its original crystalline shape.

It is also important to mention that these ODD work differently than hard drives, since hard drives keep their speed constantly , while the ODD does not, since its performance will not be constant because differs the distance to the center of the disk .

What are the types of optical discs that exist so far?

Currently we can find some types of optical discs available in the market, where each of them fulfills a specific function and which we explain them below:

Compact discs

Discos compactos

These discs are generally used to record digital audios , they began to be distributed in 1980 by Sony and Philips as an alternative to what is the recording of magnetic tapes and vinyl . All this was updated over the years until it became a tool that will incorporate the functions of data storage and recovery . Because of this, the new CD-ROM compact disc format would be released.

From that moment on, the way to listen to music and to manage all electronic information began to change abruptly. These compact CDs usually have a storage capacity of 700 megabytes of data and about 80 to 90 minutes of playback .

Usually, when we buy a virgin cd they usually have the following sizes available:

  • 21 minutes = 94500 blocks.
  • 63 minutes = 283500 blocks
  • 74 minutes = 333,000 blocks.
  • 80 minutes = 360000 blocks.

It doesn’t matter if these CDs have been manufactured or recorded on a plant or through a disk drive, in these cases any CD-ROM drive is in the ability to read them.

Versatile digital disks

Discos versátiles digitales

Like the previous case, these were also first presented by Philips and Sony in January 1995. 6 months later other companies such as Pioneer, Toshiba and Time Warner presented their own versions of the DVD that developed some different features than those presented by Sony and Philips , as was the playback format.

After this a dispute began over what types of formats should be used, but all this would end when Apple, Microsoft, HP and other large leading software and hardware companies chose to create a report where none of these two formats were used. For this they forced a meeting with all the representatives that developed this technology in search of a solution.

This is how an agreement would show a single format that became a mix of the two formats previously presented by these companies. By 1996, what was the DVD-ROM and DVD-Video formats was ready so that they could be executed by DVD players that were barely released.

These versatile digital cd like the compact ones are made up of a spiral of blocks that start from the center to the edges of the cd . Each of these blocks is 2048 bytes in size .

Blu-Ray Discs

Discos Blu-Ray

Finally we found Blu-Ray discs , which became the new generation to be able to store videos in high definition , where they had larger spaces for data storage . All this new technology became the result of the work of a group of electronics companies that was called the Blu-Ray association that was led by Sony and Philips.

This is how Blu-Rays have a storage capacity of 25 gigabytes per layer, that is to say that a single-CD layer has a playback capacity of up to 4 hours of high definition video , while a two layer Blu-Ray can have up to 46.50 or 54 GB enough to be able to store and play up to 4 hours of HD videos .

These CDs also incorporated multilayer support, allowing them to easily upgrade the disk and increases memory from 100 GB to 200 GB. Currently Blu-Ray reading units can transfer data at a speed of 36 Mbit / s .

Classification by generations of optical storage

Clasificación por generaciones de los almacenamientos ópticos

These units responsible for encode, save and store are classified by different generations, which we will explain below

CD

The CDs are also known as compact discs , and it is a digital media used to store any type of information, be it documents, files, photos , videos or music , the latter being its main means of use. They are also known as CD-ROMs .

DVD

DVDs are known as an optical data storage disk, where its acronym corresponds to “Digital Versatile Disk”. As of the DVD’s release, generate what were DVD players, this in order to bring people the distribution of videos to their homes and work offices.

HD DVD

Video distribution could not stay there, which is why it was decided to launch what was the versatile high-density digital disk , known as HD DVD. This became a storage format developed as a standard for high-definition DVD , which was used by Microsoft, Toshiba, NEC, and several companies movie players . It is capable of storing a amount of 30 GB .

Blu-Ray

Being formed of cd became the new generation and was used to play videos in high definition, in 3D and Ultra HD. In addition, it offered a greater ability to storage than that of the DVD.

UMD

Known as the universal media disk , it was developed by the Sony company and is mainly used to develop PlayStation console games PSP. This type of CD can contain up to 9 00 MB of data or 1.8 GB in double layer. It is capable of storing games, music, movies or the combination of all these elements.

What are the benefits of using physical disks to store data?

¿Qué beneficios tiene utilizar discos físicos para almacenar datos?

Being able to use these optical discs can offer you great benefits, especially because you can store any type of item in an easy and fast way. Also, being a physical object you can manipulate it at your convenience.

Therefore, here we mention the main benefits of using this physical tool to store digital information:

  • It has a durability , they can last for many years as long as they are taken care of and given proper use, taking into account that if one of their lines is scratched or damaged expensive these are often damaged .
  • They are an excellent archiving tool, ideal for backing up information and files that are not used frequently.
  • They offer the ability to transport it very easily . In addition, they are widely used in Windows, Linux and Mac operating systems .
  • It allows you to directly access the document or file you want to see.
  • They are non-volatile medium, therefore, the data disappears from the computer when remove the unit from it.
  • You allows to store music, videos or movies and then play them on other devices such as DVDs or MP3 players .

Optical vs. magnetic disks How do they differ and which is better?

It’s normal to get confused when talking about optical discs and magnetic discs, because nowadays not all people know for sure what each one means. Generally, the main difference between these two elements is that the optical cd stores information optically , using a series of holes and stripes and a laser beam. While the magnetic cd stores the information magnetically, being read and written with a small mechanical head.

With this in mind, here we show you the main differences between these two units: