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The compact disc (CD) is a digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony and released in 1982. It is a standard optical disc used for music storage, data storage, and video storage. The CD is an optical disc that uses laser light (780 nanometers) to read and write data.

CDs were originally developed to store and playback sound recordings, but their capacity was later expanded to include data storage. Audio CDs have a diameter of 120 millimeters (4.75 inches) and can store up to 74 minutes of uncompressed stereo digital audio. CD-ROMs (Compact Disc - Read-Only Memory) have the same physical dimensions as audio CDs but are used for data storage and can store up to 700 MB of data.

The CD format was developed to store and play back music with much higher quality than the audio cassette formats that were prevalent at the time. Digital encoding allows for better error correction than the analog mechanisms used for tape recording. This digital data is stored as a series of microscopic pits encoded on a metallic layer of the disc. A laser is used to read the pattern of pits, and an optical sensor translates the results into the original digital data.

The CD format has several advantages over analog formats like vinyl records and cassette tapes. It is more durable, with a much longer physical lifetime, and is less prone to wear and tear. CD players can provide random access to any part of the disc, while cassette players have to wind the tape to access a specific location. CDs also have a higher fidelity, with a much wider dynamic range and lower noise levels than analog formats.

Despite the advent of newer digital storage formats like DVDs and Blu-ray discs, CDs remain a popular and widely used medium for music and data storage. They are inexpensive to produce, and many music albums, software programs, and other digital content are still released on CD. The CD format has become a standard in the music industry, and its longevity and widespread adoption have made it a cultural icon of the digital age.

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