Canon 310, DC311 How to Select a DVD Disc, Dvd-R Dl, Dvd-Rw, Disc specification on DVD-RWs

How to Select a DVD Disc

There are many types of DVD discs but this camcorder uses only the following three types of 8 cm mini DVD discs: DVD-R, DVD-R DL and DVD-RW. Read the differences between them and select the disc that best fits your needs.

DVD-R

Best for Compatibility

DVD-Rs can be recorded only once – you cannot edit or delete the recordings. On the other hand, these discs are comparatively cheaper.

DVD-R DL

Best for Recording Time

Dual-layered discs allow writing up to 80% more data (approx. 2.6 GB) on a single recording side. However, you cannot edit or delete the recordings.

Dual-layered discs have two recording layers. The camcorder will record on layer 1 and then continue to layer 2. During the playback of a recording spanning both layers, you may notice a brief stop (about 1 second) at the point where the camcorder switches to the second layer. The switch to layer 2 will break the recording into 2 separate scenes.

Layer 2	Scene 2
Layer 1	Scene 1

Recording surface

DVD-RW

Best for Reusability

Recordings made on a DVD-RW disc can be edited or deleted. Also, the disc can be initialized. Initializing a DVD-RW disc clears all the recordings and restores the free space on the disc to its initial value so you can use the same disc again.

Disc specification on DVD-RWs

DVD-RW discs can be recorded using either one of two disc specifications: VIDEO mode or VR mode. When you first insert a brand new DVD-RW disc, the camcorder will automatically display the initialization screen where you can select the disc specification for the disc.

VIDEO mode: Once finalized, discs recorded in VIDEO mode can be played back in most common DVD players offering the best compatibility. However, recordings cannot be edited (deleted, rearranged, etc.).

VR mode: You can easily edit the recordings. However, discs recorded in VR mode can only be played back with DVD players compatible with DVD-RWs in VR mode.

Note: DVD-R and DVD-R DL discs can only be recorded in VIDEO mode.

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