Now this is a test I have longing for to see, I found it pretty informative.

However, what is a huge mistake in your test is that on most of the discs you do not burn to its maximum capacity (your tests stop at 4106 MB). As disc quality usually gets worse the further to the edge you burn, you miss out on checking the quality on perhaps the most important area of the disc.

You chose to prepare an ISO to record, but you should have used the function in Nero CD-DVD Speed that creates a data disc for testing. This records the maximum capacity of the disc.

While you correctly specify this in the last paragraph on the last page, that quality might differ with a different recorder, you seem a bit too conclusive whether a brand of media is poor or not. It would be a good idea to test media that got poor results on the Lite-On, a second time with a different quality recorder.

To my own experience (I have Pioneer, NEC and BenQ recorders), the exact same media can perform well on one recorder but horribly on another, which makes it a real hard job to work out exactly which media is best for exactly which recorder.

But I am happy that you acknowledge this.

Agreed. Only one brand of drive was used...You should have got Plextor, Pioneer, and NEC drives to see the effect of different media on different drives...That would be the "Ultimate Test".

Just my song matbe nut were is mam-e

I'm currently using the TDK DVD-R 8x in my NEC-3500A and I haven't had any problems whatsoever in writing.

All of my burnt discs are also compatible with my PlayStation 2 console and LG standalone DVD-player.

very good effort.

However, you need to understand a couple of things:

1) Errors are not on the disc - they are in the reading

2) Testing with one of the best readers (LiteOn SOHW-1653s) can be very misleading

3) Testing with one maker/model drive only _IS_ very misleading

Quality is a function of burner + firmware + speed + media used (along with generation/batch/factory) + the reader.

It is impossible to deduce disc quality, unless you eliminate the other variables from the equation through proper test methodology.

Well, I can't say that this is complete test. There is lack of Taiyo Yuden media, none of them exactly, and I prefer to see reading curves of CD DVD Speed test - if they fluctuate too much,or reading is too slow, it's not good media for using.
What matters is reliability of media in time. Will the media be readable in one year time.

HB

Never had any problems with any dvd-r's Teon's were great. Loved those. My favs are the Verbatim DVD-R 8x. Simply the best I've had.

Where's the Tayo Yuden Discs ?

I echo everyone else's comments. Unfortunately, MTK have dropped the ball on their DVD chipsets & as a consequense Liteon DVDRW are a far cry from their halcyon CDRW days. The 1673s is reputedly better but haven't looked at it. NEC, BenQ, Pioneer & LG are better units. Plextore may have been used as an alternate.

Dear Andrey Kazetcov,

Excellent DVD media expose, and an illustrious photos/charts layout!

Can I look forward to this same type of "forensic" investigative reporting following the "proposed" marriage Blu-ray & HD-DVD - however, not when the resultant media format/product is in its "twilight", but, rather, when it is no more than an "infant" crying for consumer attention?

Thanks again for a very useful and enlightening article/review!

YOur reveiw is noted. Where did you get your Philips media made by Optodisc. I work for Philips and we do not source from this maker, possibly why your quality rating was so low. Where did oyu buy this disc? I would like to obtain some for testing to determine who is using our brand in an unauthorized way

Princo dvd discs are absolutely NOT my favorite discs, too many failures.

BenQ DW1620 Pro Dual Layer 16X DVD Drive put into USB 2.0 ide box that support CD-R/RW, DVD-R/RW, 3.5" HDD. How to do the configuration. Seems never worked when i try. The DVD is not appear in My Computer window.

Plz help me, where did i when wrong

Nice idea, however the test is flawed because you ise only one DVD burner.
What really makes no sense is the idea that Verbatim is bad quality (OK it is for LiteOn) but Verbatim is always represented on the recommended media list for NEC and Plextor DVD-burners. Yes recommended media list not compatible media list!
Please repeat the test with a NEC or Plextor Drive and compare the results.
See for yourself @ cdrinfo.com the LiteOn gives a lot of quality problems. So You should state clearly in the review that the test results are not generally apllicable!
Please let us know if you will repeat the test with a better burner

I'm looking for a quality DVD-R printable disk? Any suggestions?

I am totally amazed when I went to pull off a post that I had stuck to a cd. The post it pulled off the metal media. Tell this is not poor adhesion. The bad thing about it I think it was a needed disk that had info on now unable to retrieve.

I feel that the manufacturer's adhesion test is inadequate.

I will send it to them if I can get the address to the company.

The disk was a TEON CD-Recordable.
I missed some words in my last message. It was a post-it that was stuck to the metal side. I would think the adhesiveness of the post-it shoud be soft enough not to affect the media but it wasn't.

Poor performace. Poor product in my opinion.

Rocky

You test something called Digitex, Dyson, Imation, Xidex and Creation and you don't test Taiyo Yuden, Maxell or Ricohjpn? What kind of comprehensive test is this when you test no-names and don't test the best and most popular?

Thank you for a truly interesting and enlightening document. Must say I was quite surprised by some of your results (some big names suddenly do not sound so big anymore...). One "dumb" (?) question from a neophyte: How about quality in time? as in family movies we might hope to keep for a lifetime and more....
Thank you, regards from sunny south of France...