Posted on 02/11/2004 3:04:05 PM PST by gdyniawitawa
If you have an old but faithful laptop or computer that does not have an integral DVD drive but you need to back up large amounts of data, then storage solutions company Iomega could have the answer.
They are selling an external DVD/CD machine that can read and write all DVD and CD formats, called the USB 2.0 Super DVD Drive. The package also contains all the software you need to carry out DVD/CD mastering, video editing, video playback, music and photo management, as well as automatic backup of computer files.
Connecting the drive to the computer is easy as it simply plugs into the USB socket. The only other connection required is the mains power adapter. Information can be written to a DVD at 5.4MB per second and for CDs the top speed it can manage is 3.6MB per second, which is pretty fast.
If you are looking for a drive with loads of switches, dials and lights then this is not the one for you as the front panel has only a single button for ejecting the disk. You can also copy information from old video tapes on to a DVD disk but you will need to purchase a video capture card to do this.
To use the drive, you will need a computer with at least a 550MHz Pentium III-compatible processor, 128MB RAM, Microsoft Windows 98/98SE/2000/Me/XP or higher operating system. One warning: although you may want to increase the length of the USB cable so that the drive can be placed further away from your computer, do not be tempted as it could result in data loss.
The drive comes with two years' warranty and costs about £150, including VAT.
I got a Western Digital 180 GB External 2.0 USB hard drive for about $200 and it is great. I haven't even put a dent in the storage space.
I figure that between my external hard drive, my DVD burner, and my CD burner, I have plenty of storage.
I use pricewatch.com a lot for computer stuff. They have tons of distributors that have very good prices.
Iomega has always made trash: peripherals which fail in many interesting ways.
I went through four (4) Jaz drives before I gave up. I will spare you the details. I had to look up the name and address of the president of the company to get 'satisfaction'.
I'll never buy another Iomega product again; hell, I wouldn't even accept one as a gift.
--Boris
P.S. Try typing 'click of death' into Google.
A cheap Mexican knock-off of an Iomega? LOL.
For a while, they were selling watches named "Ornega", with the "r" and "n" run together to look like an "m"...
--Boris
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