Which Sata PC DVD drive?

[GaryRW]

Title says it really. I've tried finding reviews but bog standard DVD drives are obviously old news and not worth reviewing any more

All the specs seem to be roughly the same, so was just wondering if any drive or manufacturer are better than any others?

I would like Sata so that I can dump the big IDE cable and hopefully make my case a bit tidier. Would ideally like one that I can get Nero with - I had seen this for instance that didn't seem to charge too much on top: Lite-on LH-20A1S-11C SATA Retail 20x DL DVD +/-R/RW RAM Black/silver beige bezels - LH-20A1S-11C - www.microdirect.co.uk or Samsung DVD RW SH-S203N BEBN SATA 20x DVD ± RW Lightscribe OEM - SH-S203N/BEBN - www.microdirect.co.uk

(Just so I don't confuse anyone, I'm not after a lightscribe - I print my disc labels. The one above is just an example drive.)

oh .... needs a black bezel

[Webby]

I know if its the same price with Nero thats better but on the whole I wouldn't worry about it if it doesn't come with it after all its not that expensive

Computer hardware and software at amazing prices, available online from Scan Computers UK

I have an Optiarc DVD and its fine under normal operation, like a hurricane though if its spinning full speed!

On the hole though nice enough and its Silver (in my case, which is important what with me having a silver case ) I would recommend it but only if the noise at full speed wont be an issue, not used any others so can't comment but Samsung often get suggested as being good.

[GaryRW]

Thanks Webby. I have to say I wasn't expecting £1 for Nero!!

I started looking for blank dvds as well, and through reading cust reviews on SVP and googling, found CDfreaks.com. I think as much reading as I can handle there.... (can't believe people would be that interested in just one topic)

[peterb]

I started looking for blank dvds as well, and through reading cust reviews on SVP and googling, found CDfreaks.com. I think as much reading as I can handle there.... (can't believe people would be that interested in just one topic)

LOL! It does seem to be an apparantly dull subject! However... there is more to the humble DVD than meets the eye - as I'm sure you discovered before your eyes glazed over! Longevity and thermal stability seem to be the (sorry for the pun) hot topics. I found that some cheap/unbranded disks were unreliable in my car CD player (they had mp3 tracks on) and started skipping after about 30 minutes, which I could only ascribe to heat affecting the disk geometry - not by much, but enough to stop the laser tracking correctly.

As for writers - I have seen some criticism of Optiarc, personally I use Asus or Pioneer - the price difference between them isn't that great for bog standard ones - if you are looking for blu-ray or HD, the choice is more limited.

[999tigger]

The Samsung 203

[TooNice]

The Samsung 203 is the favourite at CDRLabs these days.

[Blitzen]

They are all much the sameness really.
I stuck 2 of the Optiarc (Sony) DVD-RW Lightscribe into mine and they work fine.

Cant go wrong really for under £20

[EtheAv8r]

I have a Samsung SATA DVD and am well pleased. For less than £20 you can't really go wrong (maybe flash the latest firmware - which Samsung make really easy).

[leoncc]

i use the Samsung SH-S203D works flawlessly so far...

[Mossy]

All depends on what media and what you want to copy, I have always used Pioneer except for the old days before DVD I had a Yamaha lol......

[GaryRW]

Thanks all. It's stability and longevity I'm after most. I'm planning on backing up our photos, which have quickly hit 35GB after we got a 10 megapixel DSR last year. Coupled with a baby = lot's of photos.

My eyes did glaze fairly quickly last night (Been a long weekend trying to network up the house). The Samsungs got generally good comments which surprised me, and the pioneers seem liked as well. It doesn't look like price is an issue so just wanted to avoid any turkeys.

LOL! It does seem to be an apparantly dull subject!

One of the mods had 20,000+ posts

PS - Are official Tayo Yudens worth it or just go for verbatim? they seem to be the 2 favourites.

[Agent]

PS - Are official Tayo Yudens worth it or just go for verbatim? they seem to be the 2 favourites.

Verbs have started to change their dyes lately, meaning you are not 100% certain on what you'll get without checking the codes on the disks

TY's are good as always. Also the latest G05 (16X) Ri-teks have been giving good results too

[chrestomanci]

I brought a retail boxed Liteon drive from Scan a couple of weeks ago. It came with a extra bezels in other colours & some software. Perhaps I wasted the extra couple of quid it cost over the cheapest available but I am happy with it.

I have put it in my Linux box where it works very nicely. My old NEC drive was theoretically capable of burning DVDs at 8x, but in practice it rarely managed 2x. My new drive does 8x without breaking a sweat. (I don't have any faster media to test higher speeds).

[donkiddik]

I have a Samsung SH-S203N/BEBN Sata Dvd writer and no probs at all

[Webby]

If you fancy the Samsung SH-S203 then look here, cheaper than a cheap things cheap bits

Samsung SH-S203 20X DVDRW - SATA - Black - Aria Technology

[Pyr0]

i ordered 2 of these recently for £15.99 each including delivery

Samsung S203 20x DVDRW / SATA Drive With Nero Software @ Play.com


when they arrived i checked the ID and they are S203B's