Dual-layer DVDs hold more stuff

Q: My DVD drive on my laptop says it is dual-layer. What does that mean and will I need to get special discs for it?

A: In the most basic sense, dual-layer refers to the capacity of the DVD. In other words, how much stuff can you fit on the DVD.

A standard, single-layer DVD holds up to 4.7 gigabytes of data. That’s roughly the equivalent of 6 CDs. A dual-layer DVD, on the other hand, can hold up to 8.5 gigabytes of data or roughly 10 or 11 CDs.

The increased capacity is due to the fact that dual-layer DVDs have two layers on the disc. At some point during the reading of the DVD, your DVD player will switch from the first layer to the second. If you have ever watched a movie on a dual-layer DVD you may have noticed this switchover in the middle of your movie when the movie suddenly pauses for up to two seconds and then starts playing again.

As far as what this all means to you, it means that you can store nearly twice as much stuff using writable dual-layer DVDs. However, you will need to buy special writable DVDs marked as dual-layer to pull this off.

The bad news is that these writable dual-layer DVDs are still fairly expensive and may not be worth the added cost. It might still be cheaper to purchase the standard single-layer DVDs and just use more of them.

The good news is that your DVD drive can still read and write single-layer DVDs so you only need to invest in the dual-layer technology if you want to.

And remember, almost any DVD player or DVD drive can read dual-layer DVDs. What sets the DVD drive on your laptop apart from others is that it can record on dual-layer DVDs.

This post was originally broadcast Friday, September 14, 2007 on Tech Talk with Noobie, a weekly radio show on WCBK 102.3 FM in Martinsville, Indiana. Tech Talk with Noobie airs every Friday between 11:30 a.m. and noon. If you have a question you would like Noobie to answer on the air, simply e-mail your question to .