Editing Optical disc (section)

{{Short description|Flat, usually circular disc that encodes binary data}}
{{About|digital storage media such as CDs and DVDs|a similarly-named anatomic feature of the eye|optic disc}}
{{Redirect|Optical media|transmission media for light|Optical medium|broader definition|optical storage}}

[[Image:Compact Disc.png|thumb|The bottom surface of a 12&nbsp;cm [[compact disc]] ([[CD-R]]), showing characteristic [[iridescence]].]]
[[Image:CD drive lens.jpg|thumb|The optical lens of a [[compact disc]] [[optical disc drive|drive]].]]
{{Memory types}}
{{Optical disc}}

An '''optical disc''' is a flat, usually<ref group = note>Non-circular optical discs exist for fashion purposes; see [[shaped compact disc]].</ref> <!-- don't forget business card CDs or whatever they are called before you go deleting this --> disc-shaped object that stores information in the form of physical variations on its surface that can be read with the aid of a beam of light. Optical discs can be reflective, where the light source and detector are on the same side of the disc, or transmissive, where light shines through the disc to be detected on the other side.

Optical discs can store analog information (e.g. [[Laserdisc]]), digital information (e.g. [[DVD]]), or store both on the same disc (e.g. [[CD Video]]).

Their main uses are the distribution of media and data, and long-term [[archival]].