DVD or CD Burner? Recommendations

[Gotham33]

So I need another DVD or CD Burner/Drive. I'm hesitant to get DVD because I don't know how much I'll use it. It seems like a decent combo DVD/CDRW is pretty close to some DVD Burner prices though. Actually this computer has a DVD drive (though it's SCSI and i'd like to sell it). I haven't even watched DVDs or anything on the computer in a long time. Sorry for kind of thinking out loud.

Can anyone recommend a good, cheap CD Burner?

 

[gsellis]

For under $80, you can get a Pioneer 108 or NEC3500a DVD burner. The NEC burns CDs faster (32x). And as a bonus, you get the DVD burner. Consider that 4GB disc are now under $.50 for more than 5 times the storage of a CD... So, getting a DVD burner just adds some degrees of freedom for expansion later. But, it will be about $50 more than a cheap CD burner.

 

[fell8]

Yeah, might as well drop the money now. It looks like the next generation of optical drive won't be coming out for a while and when it does, it won't be cheap. Meanwhile, the current generation isn't going to get that much cheaper, certainly not enough to justify the additional purchase later on.

 

[Kaido]

Originally posted by: gsellis
For under $80, you can get a Pioneer 108 or NEC3500a DVD burner. The NEC burns CDs faster (32x). And as a bonus, you get the DVD burner. Consider that 4GB disc are now under $.50 for more than 5 times the storage of a CD... So, getting a DVD burner just adds some degrees of freedom for expansion later. But, it will be about $50 more than a cheap CD burner.

Yeah, get a Pioneer or NEC DVD burner. Go Newegg!

 

[Gotham33]

okay so the Pioneer and NEC can burn at their fastest speeds and have no media problems? I remember reading that some DVD players have trouble with certain DVD brands

 

[xxsk8er101xx]

Read the new DVD DUal layer article on the front page!!! NEC 3500A won the gold as the best current burner.

Originally posted by: Gotham33
okay so the Pioneer and NEC can burn at their fastest speeds and have no media problems? I remember reading that some DVD players have trouble with certain DVD brands

 

[Gotham33]

k i'm ordering the NEC
now i just need blank DVDs and CDs (blazed through like 3 50 packs lol)

which DVDs should I use to burn? + or -? also on the dual layer does that mean you burn to both sides of the disc?

 

[gsellis]

+ or - does not matter too much these days for general stuff. If you are doing video, -r does tend to be better on older machines.

Dual layer means that the data is written on the same side, but one layer of data is deeper in the substrate. If both sides are used, it is called double-sided.

I get 100 8X (Ritek G05) -R Printable Hub media for $53. I doubt you need printable hub media, so I think it is in the 44 cent range per disc. And you can still us CDs.

 

[Gotham33]

cool thanks
i'll try to find the Riteks cheap

 

[Tostada]

Just watch out where you get Riteks. Riteks are the cheapest decent media, but they have graded media. That is, they have A, B and C grades of their discs, and if you're getting a dirt cheap deal from some place like Meritline or Supermediastore, you can guarantee that it's the lowest grade media, not the retail-grade stuff that people use when they review drives.

I'm pretty sure from what I've seen that the Riteks that come in a plastic spindle case are always A-grade. What I'm not sure about is the stacks in the red shrink-wrap. There are also Riteks that come in plastic shrink wrap and do not say Ritek on them. These are the really crappy ones (it should be obvious since Ritek doesn't want to put their name on them). They still are identified by the same manufacturing code as the A grade in DVD Info, but they're bad. I've seen obvious defect spots in the dye on C-grade ones.

If you have semi-important data to backup, I would seriously suggest you only get Taiyo Yuden 8X media. Maybe this is obvious, but no matter what the brand, 8X seems to be better made than the 4X version.

 

[Gotham33]

I just ordered the NEC and Riteks from Newegg

 

[yourdeardaniel]

no point in getting cd burner

when can get good dvd+-r/w / cdr/w burner for $70

i'd get either nec 3500a or benq 1620 (or wait for pro version that does 4x DL instead of 2.4x, u can also update firmware to allow 4x DL speed i think).

 

[Tostada]

I certainly wouldn't say there's absolutely no point in getting a CD burner. Your average person just burns the occasional music CD and that's it. They will not have any use for a DVD burner until dual-layer media gets cheap and they can use it to make simple 1:1 copies of movies. By the time DL media gets under $3 there is a good chance that drives burning 16X DL will be available.

Optorite 52X CD-RW = $25.99
http://www.newegg.com/app/View...description=27-182-021

Lite-On 52X CD-RW / 16X DVD-ROM = $44.50
http://www.newegg.com/app/View...description=27-106-932

NEC 3500A = $72.99
http://www.newegg.com/app/View...description=27-152-032

I'm sure that 99% of people who bother coming to this forum would be better off with the $73 DVD-RW, but there are plenty people who might as well save some money.

 

[superlie]

Geezzzz.... look at that price... still remember where I pay close to $90 for 12x6x24x CD-RW...

 

[Tostada]

And I still remember paying $420 for a 2X Philips SCSI CDR in late 1996... and that was below wholesale.