CD or DVD ReWriter??

[aiglon]

Can't find anything on search so here goes. I've been planning to purchase a CD rewriter so I can make back ups/burn my own music CDs etc. Never considered a DVD rewriter until this evening - and, to be honest, I can't even recall what made me think of it. But now that I have thought of it, I can't work out whether it is worth the expense of a DVD rewriter.

I don't do any video editing on the PC, although I do have a digital videocam and wouldn't mind being able to edit onto DVD. Not sure if my system is high spec enough, though - AMD K7 at 600MHz and 128mB RAM? Apart from that, the only advantage I can see for a DVD RW is that I can create bigger data discs.

Is a DVD RW really worth having and if so, is it worth going for the fastest speed - which seems to be 8x - bearing in mind that most DVD RW disks seem to be a max of 2x.

Any advice gratefully received.

Aiglon

[Naples Air Center, Inc.]

Aiglon,

Your system might be a little weak for a DVD Burner, you will just not be able to do other things while you are burning on your comp. The prices on this end of the pond have been dropping quite fast lately. I picked up my Lite-On 4X DVD+/-RW Drive for $79. Make sure you get a dual spec DVD Burner. There are two competing specs right now, and you do not want to end up with the burner for the spec they drop.

The 8X drives are dropping in price right now, but the 4X seem to have stabilized. At this moment you can get 4X Media at a good price, but 8X media is very hard to find and it is at a premium. (Something to think about since the cost of all the media you will buy during the live of the drive will make the cost of the drive itself look like peanuts.)

Another option for you is a DVD/CD-RW Combo Drive. They burn CDs and play DVDs. They are within a few $$$ of a CD-RW drive and lets you read DVD Data Disks and watch movies.

Take Care,

Richard

[Jet II]

Unless youve got a lot of time on your hands I wouldn't reccommend video editing on your system.

Whilst you may think that going for a DVD burner rather than a CD burner may be 'future proof' - I would advise you to think what you are going to use it for. If you are not going to get much use out of it until you upgrade your system, and are not planning to do that for a year or so I would advise to just go the CD route. DVD burners are coming down in price every day and are getting faster/better - when you finally decide that you really need a DVD burner you will then be able to get exactly the right machine for the job.

You can always put video onto CD's (VCD option) - you just don't get much on each one.

[Rupert S]

your system sounds a bit too slow to make video editing possible. However, I find DVD media very useful for burning backups, etc. If you were planning on getting an internal DVD writer drive then the difference in price isn't quite as great and I would definitely advise you to spend that bit extra.

[Mac the Knife]

Aiglon - I don't think your system will handle writing DVDs very well - and they make very expensive coasters...

Suggest go for the LG DVD/CD-RW Combo Drive [GCC-4520B] - I've got several LG drives and they're well made, well designed and reliable.

[aiglon]

Thanks, all. In the end, I went for a CD R/RW drive - bought and installed it this afternoon. I figure the chance of me using a DVD writer to anything like its potential at the moment is pretty slim. Anyway, I am likely to be buying a second PC soon as there are too many people around here trying to use this one all at the same time. That one will be much higher speced and I will most likely get a DVD writer on that.

Thanks again.

Aiglon

[Naples Air Center, Inc.]

Mac the Knife,

They might be expensive, but gold coasters do look cool!

Take Care,

Richard

P.S. Both the Lite-On and LG Combo Drives work great and will run without issue on a 600Mhz comp.