How long is the life of the DVD?

Post by **Uli** » January 7th, 2007, 6:35 am

Hi guys! Need help here and will be very grateful if someone is able to dispel the mist.

It's about this - there's a dvd-set among my movie-collection that I happen to be addicted to. I've wacthed it so many times (and keep watching it sometimes twice a week) that I've lost count. But a couple of days ago my dvd-player started to trigger some short pauses during the playback and I got panicked. I guess that the cause could be the hardware but please tell me, for "just in case" -- How long is the life of the DVD? Generally...

Thanks in advance

Post by **Randall** » January 7th, 2007, 9:30 am

In most cases, a DVD should outlive you, as far as I know. There is not really any "wear and tear" on a disc like there is a VHS tape. It just spins, and is read by a laser. It is possible, though, that there could be delamination taking place between layers. However, I would first check to be sure that the disc is simply free of dust or smudges.

Post by **Ben** » January 7th, 2007, 9:37 am

As with LaserDiscs, there have been cases of "DVD Rot", where between the layers, the glue can corrode and the disc essentially becomes unplayable.

Out of hundreds, if not almost a couple of thousand, of discs, I've only had this once or twice. I know my "Kentucky Fried Movie" jammed after playing fine for years and just can't be read in any player now.

On average, and as with LD, the format should outlive us, but in practice it's anything but. A good, well-pressed DVD should live for 20 years + if taken care of and kept in its case. It could be as low as 5 years if the disc is not handled correctly.

That said, playing the same disc over and over shouldn't affect the life of the disc at all, since as Rand says, it's not being "played" as such, just being read. However, there is some link some have discussed between the heat generated by the player affecting the glue used in the layers, so a disc that continually gets played could just be getting hot and cold more often.

But you'd have to be playing that disc literally all the time...!?

Hope that helps a bit, but the safe option is to back-up your discs to a copy, or as I do, buy a couple of those titles that you know you're going to kick yourself over if it becomes unplayable.

Post by **ShyViolet** » January 7th, 2007, 4:31 pm

Didn't Disney/Eisner try to institute a Disney DVD a few years ago that self-destructed after 24 hours?

(seriously)

Post by **Ben** » January 7th, 2007, 4:49 pm

It wasn't Disney-specific, though they did promote the format. Essentially the disc went "bad" after 24 hours from when it was played. It was basically a "rental" type deal, where you'd only pay $3.99 for it and then have to hook up to a phone line to "unlock" it again.

In a word: dumb.

Post by **Daniel** » January 7th, 2007, 4:50 pm

Yes.

I remember reading about it in the paper. Seemed silly, thank goodness it was created

Post by **Ben** » January 7th, 2007, 4:53 pm

You mean "wasn't".

Which it was.

It just never took off.

Post by **Daniel** » January 7th, 2007, 4:57 pm

Oops, yeah I meant "wasn't".

It did? Funny, I never knew. Thank goodeness again!

Post by **ShyViolet** » January 7th, 2007, 8:19 pm

"This disc will self-destruct in 60 seconds..."

Post by **Meg** » January 7th, 2007, 9:43 pm

Post by **Uli** » January 8th, 2007, 7:06 am

Thanks a lot, guys! I hope you're right saying that the DVD should outlive its owner, all the more that I always keep my discs inside their cases and undust them each time with a soft piece of cloth.

I guess it's probably the player that needs to be checked/repaired/replaced. And yet, it's a good idea to get another copy of that title considering how much I love the flick

And about those self-destructing discs, I remember myself reading about them some time ago (I think they were also called "paper discs") but that's not my case - the DVD I am talking about is a regular release 2-disc collector's edition...

Post by **Uli** » January 8th, 2007, 8:52 am

There's something I forgot to ask --

Could a disc be damaged (partially or completely) by a player if the player happens to be out of order?

Post by **Ben** » January 8th, 2007, 9:16 am

It is possible for the laser to go haywire and burn the disc.

I've not come across it in DVD-land, but I had an old LD player I had to throw out because the laser went bad and burnt a line in my Aladdin disc. For 5/10 seconds in Prince Ali now, I get a drop-out mark the size of Texas across the lower third of the screen.

I'm assuming that DVD lasers could do the wrong thing too (or if the disc isn't coated properly, the laser could get through rather than just be reading it) but as I say it's not a widespread problem, if at all.

Not to say it couldn't happen, but I very much doubt that's what's happened to yours. Sounds like a player fault possibly, but DVDs are not safe storage formats at the end of the day.

Post by **Uli** » January 8th, 2007, 4:51 pm

I checked the disc for visible damages but did not spotted any. Hope everything's OK with its content...

Anyway, that was all I needed to know for the moment. Thanks for shedding that ray of relief, Ben. And also to Rand for the info.

Sorry about the Aladdin LD though

Post by **eddievalient** » January 9th, 2007, 8:01 pm

The info puts my mind at ease as well. It took forever to get the classic Disney shows on dvd (Ducktales, Rescue Rangers, etc.) and I wasn't sure how long the discs would last (ya know, just in case they're never released again on any future format).