By Kire Terzievski, RMIT Test Labs
June 18th, 2002.
1. AOpen RW 5120A
The AOpen drive uses DVD+RW technology. This drive does not support the +R format, which is good for a number of applications including archiving and information distribution. The +R format also extends compatibility for older DVD-Video players and DVD-ROM drives that do not have the firmware support for +RW playback.
The AOpen drive records DVD+RWs at 2.4x, CD-RWs at 10x, and CD-Rs at 12x. Like the Ricoh it also reads CDs at 32x.
The AOpen drive was only slightly slower than the Ricoh in all our speed tests, but still significantly faster than the DVD-RW and -R drives. The software bundle was quite impressive. It included Nero 5 Burning ROM, which is a very stable, powerful, user-friendly recording package and one of our favourite pieces of recording software. Also bundled were InCD 3 (packet writing software), Cyberlink PowerDVD, Cyberlink PowerDirector (a powerful video editing program), and Ulead PictureShow, which lets you create custom photo slideshows that you can play on standard DVD players. Single DVD+RW and CD-RW discs were also supplied.
| Product: | AOpen RW 5120A |
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| Price: | AU$999 |
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| Vendor: | Servex |
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| Phone: | (02) 8745 8400 |
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| Interoperability: |  ½Writes to DVD+RW discs only. |
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| Futureproofing: |
Future is uncertain and too difficult to predict. |
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| ROI: |
½
Least expensive, fast CD burning, excellent mastering software. |
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| Service: |
1-year parts and labour warranty. |
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| Rating: |
Can't write to DVD+R discs. |
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16%
7%
