Optical drives record with a high speed laser onto removable discs. Depending on the format you choose, you'll be able to store from 650 MB to several GB of data on a disc. There are two types of commercially available optical drives.

CD
The fastest growing type of optical storage is the recordable CD drive, which allows you to record data onto a disc that can be played in any CD-ROM player. There are two types of recordable CD drives: CD-R (write once, read many) and CD-RW (write many, read many).

With blank CDs going for under $2, CDs are an inexpensive and convenient form of storage.

DVD
DVD is essentially a denser, faster compact disc (CD) that can hold video as well as audio and computer data. DVD-RAM drives can record 2.6 GB on a single-sided disk and 5.2 GB on double-sided media.

These drives can also read (but not write) most types of CDs and DVDs. Unfortunately, discs recorded on DVD-RAM drives don't read well on other types of DVD players. Major DVD RAM manufacturers have said, however, that upgrades will be made available in the near future. See Price Guide