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Optical Disk

What Does Optical Disk Mean?

An optical disk is any computer disk that uses optical storage techniques and technology to read and write data. It is a computer storage disk that stores data digitally and uses laser beams (transmitted from a laser head mounted on an optical disk drive) to read and write data.

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Techopedia Explains Optical Disk

An optical disk is primarily used as a portable and secondary storage device. It can store more data than the previous generation of magnetic storage media, and has a relatively longer lifespan. Compact disks (CD), digital versatile/video disks (DVD) and Blu-ray disks are currently the most commonly used forms of optical disks. These disks are generally used to:

  • Distribute software to customers
  • Store large amounts of data such as music, images and videos
  • Transfer data to different computers or devices
  • Back up data from a local machine
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