DVD burners: Features explained
A DVD burner is a device that allows you to write data to blank recordable DVDs. This could be handy for backing up your data, or sharing files, eg digital photos.
There are two main types of external DVD drive: desktop and portable
Many computers will already include one of these when purchased, but some will only let you read, and not write, DVDs. Or some ultra-lightweight laptops might not have a DVD drive at all. However, it’s easy to add an external one if you want
Types of DVD burner
There are two main types of external DVD drive: desktop and portable.
Desktop DVD burners
The desktop drives are bulkier, and require their own power supplies, but they tend to be faster.
Portable DVD burners
The portable drives can draw power directly from the computer, and are smaller and lighter, but they tend to be slower. Pick one of these if you want to be mobile – they’re ideal for use with a laptop.
Speed
The faster a drive is, the less time it will take to write your data to disc.
DVD drive speed is expressed in terms of multiples of a standard drive speed. So a drive that claims to be an 8x speed drive should be quicker than a 4x speed drive, though it’s not quite as straightforward as simply being twice as fast.
The exact length of time it takes to create a disc will vary depending on both the drive speed and the amount of data you’re writing, but a full disc may take around half an hour to finish.
Power
Desktop drives have a separate power supply and will need to be plugged into the mains. Portable drives will be able to draw their power directly from the computer to which they're attached.
Connection type
The most common type of connection for external drives is USB. Most modern computers will provide this connection. Some computers will offer a similar connection type called Firewire – if you want to use this, make sure you pick a drive that offers this connection.
Disc types
You’ll find different types of blank DVD in the shops – DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD-R, and DVD-RW. Discs with RW in the name can be re-written to multiple times; discs with just R can only be written to once.
The + and - signs refer to slightly different standards: from the point of view of the user they’re very similar, but make sure you purchase a type that’s supported by your DVD drive.
Blu-ray discs offer more storage than normal DVDs
Single and dual layer discs
You can also choose between single- and dual-layer discs. Dual layer discs can store almost twice as much as single layer ones, but make sure your drive is compatible with this type if you plan on buying them.
Blu-ray
This is a newer disc format. Blu-ray discs store much more data than traditional DVDs (around five times the amount on a standard writable DVD), though the discs are the same size. Blu-ray players are able to read standard DVDs too.