Tested: How Many Times Can a DVD±RW Be Rewritten? – Part 2: Methodology & Results
Summary
The article documents Part 2 of an endurance test for rewritable DVDs, detailing the methodology and initial results. It explains the automated testing setup (Opti Drive Control, pyautogui scripts, OpenCV for image analysis, two iHAS120 drives) and reviews multiple disc types across dash and plus formats, highlighting that most discs fail well before 1000 cycles, with one 2x DVD-RW reaching 1000+ cycles. The piece also covers a DC Erase experiment that briefly revived a disc, and discusses limitations and implications for disc longevity and recording quality.