Here are some common devices and their capacities ...
| Device | Image | Typical capacity | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| RAM |  |
500Mb-8Gb | |
| SSD (Solid State drive) | 250Gb - 2Tb | Flash Ram storage. Faster than magnetic HD's, and use less energy and produce less heat, but have smaller capacities and are expensive. | |
| Hard disk drive (magnetic) |  |
1 - 8Tb | Hard disc drives are discussed here |
| USB memory sticks |  |
2-64Gb | Flash RAM |
| Floppy disc 3.5 inch DS/DD |  |
800Kb | Double sided / double density |
| Floppy disc 3.5 inch HD | 1.4Mb | High density | |
| Compact disc - |  |
650-740Mb | This can be extended up to 800Mb through a process known as "over-burning", though there is no guarantee that all CD drives will be able to access the extra data. NOTE: Some of the different compact disc standards are discussed in our article on CD mastering. |
| Compact disc - CDROM | 650Mb (+ 90Mb error correction data) | If a blank disc is used to backup computer files in data, or CD-ROM format, approximately 90Mb of capacity is used for error correction purposes, leaving 650Mb for data. |
|
| Compact disc - Red book audio | 740Mb (74 minutes) | If a computer CD-R blank disc is used to create a so called "Red book" audio disc, suitable for domestic audio players, all 740Mb of capacity can be used for music. Error correction is handled by the players themselves. If the files are burnt in data, or CD-ROM format (as .wav, .aiff, or .mpg etc) capacity is as CD-ROM (650Mb). NOTE: Computers CD-R drives can create red book audio CDs from computer CD-R blank discs (avoid CD-RW for this purpose). Domestic audio CD recorders use pre-formatted CD-Audio discs. |
|
| DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) | 4.37-15.9Gb | Click here for a full overview of the DVD format | |
| Blu-Ray | Single layer = 25Gb, Dual layer = 50Gb | Adopted for HD video delivery and 3rd gen gaming platforms, but has not taken off for computer storage/backup yet. |