Sony DRX-530UL External DVD+RW/CD-RW 8X Drive 40X/24X/40X

I had been very reluctant about buying a dvd burner for quite awhile.The technology didn't quite seen mature considering all the complaints with format wars,compatability issues,disc problems ect...I finally took the plunge on a wing and a prayer when I saw this recorder and it's price.I was pleasantly surprised at how easy the 530UL was to install and use.The included software is pretty standard and mediocre,but it gets the job done.There are better down-loadable freeware programs on the net though.

Over the last 2 months,I have made over 50 DVD+R's (I haven't tried making any -R's yet..) without a single glitch as of yet.I have been using Memorex 4X discs with this burner and they work perfectly.Amazon has good deals on bulk amounts of these discs in case you want to stockpile....I've had no problems playing them on a JVC DVD player that is about 3 years old or a brand new Pioneer model.

Overall I am more than pleased with my purchase.The only little glitch is psychological:not long after buying this,Sony introduced the 700UL which is a new dual layer burner.If I had known about it,I may have waited to purchase it instead.It's a bit aggravating,but then again that's the marketplace.Get rid of the older technology at a lower price and charge a premium for the new.That's the chance you take when you are an early adopter.

Still,the burner is an excellent deal and good quality.I rarely recommend a product,but this one has my complete support.

I have made approx. 30 DVD's in the last 4 months with this SONY DVD writer. I have had the best luck with the Memorex DVD+R or Memorex DVD+RW. There is an occasional glitch that trashes a DVD, but for the most part I'm happy with the recorder. Copy from DISC to HARDRIVE to DISC, never from DISC TO DISC. I've heard that using the 2x speed for DVD-R / DVD-RW is the best. But I haven't proven that theory yet. The reading speed is great.

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I was suckered into purchasing this unit because of the SONY reputation. A huge mistake! The unit arrived DOA, SONY's anti-customer service people are programmed to say: "You agreed to the terms of the warranty when you opened the box, you must return it to us at your cost and we will fix it if required, it will take 6 8 weeks." What a great way to treat a customer NOT! I recommend the PLEXTOR 712UF instead, great drive, great price, and they still appreciate their customers.

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I have two of these (actually the very similar DRX-510UL model). I have burned dozens of DVDS on both drives with no problems. This is a very reliable drive. I have avoided Sony products in recent years since they are often overpriced, but I stumbled upon these on sale and I have been very pleased.

They run very cool and extremely quiet. Just be careful when you install the included software. Much of it is unnecessary and can cause conflicts with some of the popular after-market burning software. I use this drive with both 321 Studios software and Nero 6 Ultra Edition.

I recommend you stick with media manufactured by Taiyo Yuden. This includes Panasonic DVD-Rs and the Fuji DVD-Rs made in Japan. Be careful, some of the Fuji DVD-Rs are made in Taiwan and are not Taiyo Yuden. You can also pick up non-branded Taiyo Yuden DVDs from a variety of e-tailers including Amazon. This is a dual format drive, but I stick with the DVD-R since I have never had a problem.

I have produced only a handful of coasters and the burned DVDs have been tested and played accurately on over 20 different types of DVD players.

I have heard some people say digital is digital and all DVD media are created equal. This is not true. You want to buy DVD media that is manufactured with quality. You might save a few cents buying a cheaper DVD; however, you have to factor in bad burns and lost data. With the cheapo DVDs, you will have more coasters and more DVDs that initially burn fine, but lose the data after a few months. After all, many of us are archiving data / video we will want to be able to access for decades into the future.

You might want to take the time to Google and then download a free utility program named DVD Identifier. You simply put your recordable DVD media into your computer's DVD writer and DVD Identifier will tell you who actually manufactured the DVD (many of you might be surprised the brand name on the disc and the actual manufacturer are often different).

My units also came with all the necessary cables (three types of USB / firewire).

As far as the disadvantages:

1.) There are faster writers available nowadays, but this is fast enough for me and faster burns can lead to more errors.

2.) There are dual layer drives available nowadays, but dual layer recordable DVD media is still pricey.

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I bought this burner one year and two weeks ago. The bad news to me is it's a one year warrenty and the drive just went bad two days ago. The year I had it I probably burned about 100 good discs and 30 bad ones. Sometimes It worked great and other times I fought with it. A year ago I paid $130 for it and expected it to last a whole lot longer than it did. Now I have to look for a replacement. If you buy this burner I would suggest an extended warrenty to cover yourself. Good Luck !