File Size Expansion.

[ericthekraut]

I'm having a real problem with all dvd burning software. Roxio is just the latest I've tried. Every file I import expands to about 7 or 8 times the size of the original. For example, a 462 MB file becomes 3.51 GB. I'm using mp4s and avi files. Is this a Mavericks thing? Apple tech support is no help on the issue as they no longer want to deal with dvd burning. Has anyone else had this problem?

[Brendon]

Hello,

 

Video DVDs are written with uncompressed video, which [although it is the standard] is not very economical for storage.

 

MP4s and AVIs contain compressed video, and depending on the compressor used, it's quite common for the video in the file to be compressed down to one sixth or one eighth of its original size. In that state it can be stored on a Data DVD, but not on a playable Video DVD.

 

When you import a compressed file into a DVD burning program it is expanded back to its original size and format to comply with the Video DVD standard. There lies your problem. A single layer Video DVD will hold about an hour of video at best quality, so if your AVIs or MP4s add up to much longer than an hour, they aren't going to fit on a Video DVD.

 

Sorry, it's the Video DVD standard.

[tsantee]

Forget file size. What matters is length in time. Toast can fit up to (I believe) about three hours of video on a single-layer DVD disc. Toast adjusts the compression needed within the allowable range that meets the DVD spec. Quality declines the longer the total amount of video. You'll see the best quality up to about 1 hour 15 minutes in total and then it declines from there. I suggest staying within 2 hours per disc.