Full-Steam-Ahead DVD

Performance Gains

Compared with the drives in our August DVD burner chart, performance results this time around improved dramatically. Plextor's PX-740A and Sony's DRU-810A each posted record-setting times during write-once tests, using both single- and double-layer media. Using 2.4X double-layer Verbatim media to burn at a faster speed (in this case, 8X) than the media is rated for, these drives bested the times of their predecessors (the Plextor PX-716A and the Sony DRU-800A) by more than 10 minutes, completing our test burn in about 40 percent less time. In our experience, however, the Sony device required a rest between double-layer burns; otherwise, as Sony confirmed, the drive's thermal protection circuit would automatically step down the write speed to prevent the drive from overheating.

Some other drives rated at 8X for double-layer DVD+R didn't achieve such lofty results. For example, Lite-On's SHW-1635S performed more like a 4X drive in our tests. According to Lite-On, in spite of its specs the drive is designed to suppress the burn speed, so as not to write faster to slower-rated media; the company says this approach minimizes the potential for burning an error-riddled disc. (For more on faster double-layer writing, see "Firmware Update Required?").

Though we've tested drives in the past that counted 8X DVD+RW among their specs, this month we saw the first true 8X packet-writing performance, delivered by Plextor's PX-716AL. This drive burned our 2.64GB batch of test files and folders to 8X DVD+RW Verbatim media in a blistering 6 minutes, 30 seconds. The speed boost could help you complete your backups in a little over half the time required by the previous generation of 4X-rated drives and media.

The PX-716AL's stellar test results are even more impressive when you compare them with the times we recorded for the other six 8X DVD+RW-rated drives in our tests: None of those burners reached their advertised 8X speeds, peaking instead at speeds closer to 4X or 6X.

A potential cause of this sluggishness is the drive's firmware (software installed in flash memory on the drive), which contains instructions detailing how the drive should write to specific media. Typically you can update the firmware easily with a download from the drive manufacturer's Web site. We suspect that every drive maker whose drive spec calls for 8X +RW will make the necessary firmware adjustments once media starts to ship in volume, and will issue a free update to increase performance, so you won't be left behind if you buy a drive today.