40x CD Writer Shootout - PAGE 2
Anthony Roberts - Monday, July 29th, 2002

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-- Article Quick Nav -- 1 - Introduction2 - Plextor 40/12/40A3 - Samsung SW2404 - MSI MS-83405 - Lite-On 4012s6 - The Tests & CDRW Results7 - CDR Burn Test, DAE & Conclusion

In this small shootout, we compare 4 drives, each from Plextor, Samsung, MSI, and Lite-On. We weren’t able to bring drives in time from Teac and Toshiba, both of whom are crowd favourites (and whose drives we may include later in a follow-up).

Plextor 401240A

Online Price ~ $115-120

Celebrated and decorated by users and reviewers, the Plextor 401240A drive is chock full of what’s come to be expected from Plextor: a 4MB buffer, PowerRec-II technology for perfect burns with different media, and BURN-Proof buffer underrun protection.

Unlike the 241040A drive, which sported a mini cooling fan at its rear, this 40X burner is a lot more ascetic and resembles any other burner. One thing that will stand out, is the extra DMA settings jumpers on the back. This is the only drive in this shootout that has the ability to switch between default UDMA and Multiword UDMA modes. Multiword UDMA is only used if your system is crashing or locking up under regular UDMA mode.

Another notable feature on the Plextor drive is its ingenious use of the drive LED to give basic indications of the write speed during burns (the LED blinks at preset intervals of varying length depending on the current burn speed).

Plextor’s drive, is the only drive in our roundup to come with Roxio’s Easy CD Creator instead of Ahead’s Nero Burning ROM suite, although we’ve found versions of the Samsung SW240 with Roxio software as well. While not better or worse, buyers may want to be aware of what software their drive comes with (many, for instance, prefer the nearly ubiquitous Nero software).

I think the most notable aspect of Plextor’s drives is their unparalleled documentation. Not only does the drive come with a high quality and detailed colour installation foldout pamphlet, it also comes with a highly detailed manual that covers everything from IDE cable setup, to media cleaning and handling tips – the troubleshooting section alone spans 11 pages, and that precedes an FAQ section. We’re talking about the most thorough documentation to come with burning hardware, period!

Nero CDRinfo

Nero CDSpeed

Digital Audio Extraction

next: Samsung SW240 »

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