1) Do you have a DVD reader(not necessarily a burner)? If so, a DVD burner is not required until you would need to burn again onto a 4.7GB DVD.
2) Try to see if Windows actually recognizes the disc when it is put into the drive. (It might say "Blank CD", but don't worry, that doesn't necessarily mean that the data is lost forever.)
3) Download ISOBuster (Hint: Google.com) and see if it will recognize the disc. If so, see if you can retrieve the data. (If using a Mac, try Handbrake.)
Now some questions...
1) Does the disc play in the camcorder? Can you actually view the footage or is there an error?
2) Is the DVD able to play in a DVD player?
3) What is the exact error message you receive? Try looking at the back of the manual since they sometimes offer tips on what you should do if you receive such a message.
OK, before I start I will completely prostrate myself to the gurus of video recording - I SHOULD NEVER HAVE BOUGHT A DVD CAMCORDER (and once I did, I should've admitted my error and bought a replacement).
That said, for the umpteenth time, my 20 month old Panasonic VDR-M53PP decided to record an important childhood milestone (my daughter's 2nd birthday) and then unexpectedly gobble up the disk and produce a disk error, which appears to be unrepairable, and unfinalizable, rendering the mini-DVD-R unreadable.
Big shock at my question: CAN I RECOVER THE DATA????
Next question (as I've done enough research to get scared): any advice as to which utility to try (will any of them hurt this disk more?). I've seen positive reviews of CDRoller (although not on cnet), Virtual Lab, and others. Will any of these work? Are they user friendly enough for me to do it (I'm not a techie at all). I do get that you need a DVD writer to do this, and coincidentally I just bought one, although I haven't installed it yet.
Do I bring it to a data recover service instead? The ones on the net that advertise the ability to salvage DVD files appear to cost a gob of $$$. And my local shop (not much cheaper) doesn't seem to be uber-confident they can do it.
HELP!!!!
And I PROMISE I am sending this stinking, unreliable, rotten machine BACK to Panasonic with a letter imploring them to remove DVD camcorders from the market. This will be my grass-roots mission. Too many sad nights after I lost precious video of my children. Irreplaceable!!!!
Thanks in advance,
Jessica

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