I recently came across some DVD's that have data I wanted to extract. Back when I loaded the files onto said DVD's, CD/DVD drives were commonplace on PC's. Well, my five-month-old PC doesn't have a disc drive. While I'd gladly pop the cover off the tower and install a drive myself, the PC is still under warranty, and as I've had issues with this particular brand of PC, I want the warranty valid should I need to use it.
I bought one of the countless slim, single cable DVD drives here on Amazon and hated it. Since the drive's single cable managed both current draw and data signals, the drive would get starved for power and shut down for a split second, but it was long enough to interrupt all attempted data transfers. I'm relieved that none of my DVD's were damaged by this, but it did give me a good scare. I decided I needed a drive that had a separate PSU and hoped that this choice would free up the USB connection for dedicated signal transfer.
I'm just a casual electronics tinkerer, so I'm not going to authoritively state that my thought process is correct. But it seems to be the case; as I state in the review title, this drive has been so smooth. I'll confess that I balked at this drive's price tag, but unless someone pours funds to make discs bleeding edge tech again, computers are not going to be sold with disc drives again, so I reasoned this purchase may pay off in the long run.
I haven't had this drive for long, but I can say it's been great in the short term. The drive is shockingly quiet, given that I have it on a shelf that seems to amplify vibrations and harmonics. It doesn't matter if I pop in a CD to retrieve an old CAD file from my trade school days, or a DVD that's loaded to full memory. This drive quickly and easily reads any disc I've put into it, and it doesn't interfere with my PC's basic functions.
For example, when I would leave the single cable drive connected to my PC, my PC would take painfully long, literally minutes to index recent files when I opened File Explorer. And I don't have many files on this PC! In stark contrast, I've had this disc drive pulling data off a DVD, with a music player running, two Internet tabs up, and am able to open File Explorer and instantly see my recent files.
So, I have to say from my experience and examination, this drive is worth it's price. Not only have I been very pleased with its performance, but I find the hardware of good quality too. I haven't popped this drive open and don't intend to do so, but the main enclosure is cast and brushed aluminum, and the drive's face and disc tray are smoothed plastic. I'm very glad I have this drive now!
| Hard Drive | Portable |
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