Some DVD blanks have a lifespan of just a few years, say investigators

[The News Bot]

According to the Digital Content Association of Japan, some recordable DVDs are so unstable they could lose data and become unplayable in just a matter of years. A new longevity test by the Japanese Association of 18 brands found massive differences between brands from Japan and Taiwan. Rather unhelpfully, the group has refused [...]
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Hi,

I’ve been saying this for years, I have had loads of people say that they have lost data on all sorts of disks but normally the unbranded disks or discs with 'Princo' dies or the fake TDK disks that they produced.

If you stick with brand name disks from trustworthy dealers, record them in a properly working recorder and then store them in the dry, cool and dark place they should last 20-30 years without problems.

The same applies to CDs, you can get super high quality disks that are designed for long term storage and those should last 100 years, but they cost 2-3 pounds each for 650mb CDR disks.

[dannydj]

ive been using sony and panny disc exclusively for around 2 and half years for this very reason.........and so far have had no problems. although my macbook pro doesn't seem to write to the panny dvd+r i have at the moment. the thing is how does one know if indeed the discs you are buying are fakes?? any ideas people, as the idea of losing 300+ films makes me rather sad!

[pjclark1]

I've lost data in less than a year on some DVD-r
Mind you I have also lost data from commercial DVDs through disk rot after a year.
Indiana Jones, Tom and Jerry Spotlight collection and a few others that the name escapes me.

[Halcion]

This is a known fact in archival and storage professional circles. Similar results have been found by NIST/OSTA, c't magazine (GER) and people who have done their own tests (yours truly, LongevityFreak and couple of others).

Under normal hot & humid conditions (think Singapore as an example), even high quality discs can lose their data beyond readability in less than 6 months. So much for advanced error correction, which btw isn't very advanced on DVD - it's based on decades old algorithms and the field of EC algorithms has progressed enormously since. It's all due to patents - again.

The problem for us consumers is that all the best studies do not indicate the worst offenders in terms of materials or origin of manufacture. The same goes for the best discs. We don't know which company makes them and using which materials.

However, in a longevity round up I did over a year a go, I found the MAM-E "gold" discs to deteriorate the least. That is, their PIE/PIF/POE/POF rose the least as a function of time in the acceleration oven (raised temp / humidity). Unfortunately even the best name brands like Verbatim (MCC) and Plextor (TY) faired much worse.

Also, there was a significant correlation with burn speed and longevity 4x burned discs last longer than 8x which last longer than 16x (other factors being the same across burns).

Some discs are also quite sensitive to sunlight exposure (esp. ultraviolet range), but this should be obvious to anybody who wants to store their data properly (i.e. do not leave the disks on the desk or on the windowsill exposed to sun).

Hi,

If you want a rough idea of how long your disks will last then put them writing side up on a south facing window sill.
If it will last for a month in bright sun light mid summer (I wish i was like that now ) then it should last quite a few years tucked away in the fire safe in the cellar next to my collection of wines from the world ( or did I mean in the back of the cupboard under the stairs)

[Blade2005]

are Verbatim MCC dye marked "made in Taiwan" are they good disc's?

thx.

[andrewb150]

For anybody thinking this is a myth I can 100% confirm that even in good conditions (dark room not hot or humid) some dye will start to loose data after less than 2 years.

[Simba]

just aswell i stick to only Verbatim TY discs