Select the optical drive yet for your computer?

Optical discs equipped with a standard computer have made great strides, from CD-ROM to CD-RW and DVD combo, and today, DVD-RW is considered indispensable for a regular computer. . What to consider when choosing to buy a DVD-RW drive?

Optical drive, the term used to refer to the types of drives read and write CDs and DVDs on computers. In the direction of technology development, this optical drive is getting cheaper, and the old optical drive has gradually become "extinct" in the market. Currently, the price of a DVD-RW drive is only 100,000 VND more than a DVD drive, while a DVD drive is about 100,000 VND more expensive than a CD drive. Therefore, buying a DVD-RW drive is the most valuable option when installing a new computer or replacing an optical drive.

Optical drive market

As you probably know, the CD drive can only read CDs (also known as CD-ROMs), cannot read DVDs. Therefore, if you are offered or purchased a DVD movie, you will not be able to open it. You also cannot install Windows Vista from a DVD. And if there is a need to burn data to a CD, there is nothing you can do with the existing burning program and CD drive.

Currently, CD drives have become scarce. A few small stores still display inventory, and offer for about 250,000 dong. Although still with a 1-year warranty period, but with a small amount remaining, it is difficult to exchange another drive or provide a good warranty when the drive fails. In addition to the type of genuine CD drive in stock, the market now appears a new type of CD drive in the box but offered for sale from 80,000 to 100,000 VND (equal to the price of the old CD drive from the imported machines). return home, of course quality only at temporary use!

Fate with the CD drive, the CD-RW drive used for reading and writing CDs is also about to be "extinct". Inventories are being sold for about VND 350,000, warranty and after-sales issues are no different from CD drives.

Although not yet into the phenomenon of two types of CD and CD-RW drives, the DVD-CDRW drive type (also known as DVD combo drive) used to read CDs, DVDs and CDs is no longer available in the market. school Currently there are only 2 brands Samsung and Sony but priced at more than 400,000 VND, just like the DVD-RW drive.

Not exhausting goods like all optical drives have come, but DVD drives are stalling with about 6 brands, priced between 300,000 and 400,000 VND.

Because the price of a DVD drive is relatively high compared to its features, most users accept an additional VND 100,000 to purchase the DVD-RW drive for viewing and recording purposes. Disks' types of CDs and DVDs. This is also the reason why DVD-RW drives become quite diverse on the market today, with all the brands: Asus, LG, Sony, Liteon, HP, Pioneer, Samsung, Philips, MSI . .

In addition to the built-in optical drive, the market also has an external optical drive via USB port. However, this type of optical drive is quite expensive; CD type is about 250,000 VND, DVD type is over 600,000 VND, DVD-RW type is over 1 million VND.

Problem between cost and features

So, with the current price and market share of all optical drives, you shouldn't regret about 100,000 more to buy a DVD-RW drive, even if you don't need to burn CDs, DVDs or sometimes. new need. In fact, if you have a DVD-RW drive ready, you will immediately need to burn a ghost file to restore the system to one or several DVDs, or burn large files that are rarely used to DVD. to free up disk space. In addition, you can create disc shows for photos, music, movies to CD, DVD for viewing on CD players, civil DVDs or loved ones.

Currently, when buying a DVD you do not need to pay attention to the speed parameters of reading and writing CDs and DVDs, because most have the same reading speed (or only slightly more than 2 levels), and the writing speed is also so. Moreover, most users use inexpensive CDs and DVDs, so they cannot burn discs with the highest write speed, usually choosing to record only half the maximum speed of the drive. Therefore, what you need can be the communication of the optical drive with the mainboard.

At the old optical drive type, mainly using IDE communication; This interface can be used for all old or new mainboards, but in return its data transfer rate is low and data cables take up a lot of space in the chassis. In addition, the new mainboard usually has only 1 IDE port to plug the optical drive, so if you have missed the hard disk using IDE interface, installing the optical drive using IDE communication becomes difficult and arises. compatibility between hard disks and optical drives.

If your computer uses a new mainboard, buy an optical drive that uses SATA interface for ease of installation and also reduce waiting time for accessing data on CDs and DVDs. If you want to use it for many computers without removing the case, choose an external type using a USB interface, which means you have to spend 2 or 3 times more than an optical drive. built in.