i like to keep my reviews simple.
this dvd burner is simply perfect.
it's smaller than the previous model from Samsung. the touch open feature is quite nifty. very light and quiet when i burned a few dvd's. i've connected it to my PC & MacBook Air 11" with no problems on either one. this is a much better option over the Apple SuperDrive. the SuperDrive can ONLY be used on the MB Air's. it's more expensive than most external dvd burners. why would you want to get it?
Edited: i forgot to mention that i use this DVD burner for both my desktop and laptop. unfortunately on my laptop there are only 2 USB ports. one on each side. the MacBook Air is sort of limited in that area. in any case, the DVD burner WILL WORK with only one USB cable slot plugged in. i think it may run a bit slower if you are burning something though, which will probably be due to the power outage limit that USB ports have.
do yourself a favor and get this if you need an external burner. you won't regret it. Samsung USB 2.0 8x DVD Writer External Optical Drive for Mac and PC SE-S084D/TSBS (Gloss Black)
I bought this for use with my new MacBook Air and my home server
Things I like:
1. Very compact. About a size of a double cd case
2. Very quiet for such a compact drive. Just a bit noisier than my internal dvd drive.
3. Requires only one usb port. Some drives need 2 usb ports, but this one runs fine on just one.
4. Plug and play. No drivers needed. Works great on Mac and PC.
5. A steal at $40 shipped
Things I don't like so much:
1. The small form factor is cool, but the black version looks and feels plastic. I'm not saying that it's flimsy, because it's not. However, next to my new Mac Air, it looks and feels kinda cheap
2. The soft touch eject doesn't work on Mac. You have to drag the icon to eject.
3. The Nero 9 software works with PC only.
Highly recommended for anyone looking for a tiny, simple dvd drive that works with both Mac and PC.
I've used this drive with a windows 7 desktop, Windows XP desktop, iMac running Snow Leopard 10.6.5, and MacBook pro running Snow leopard 10.6.6. The drive works great, good speed, reliable use. I would say the most frustrating part of this product is that it has no power-cord and requires two USB ports to operate. occasionally it will (randomly it seems) work with only one USB port, but I have only seen that on occasion. I am very disappointed with this part of the drive, however aside from that it has worked flawlessly. I've burned DVD at full speed in both Windows 7 and Mac OS X. It is compact, and requires very little to setup, simply just plugin and use. When I installed this product using the discs that came with it in Windows 7 it brought me into this very confusing application that claimed I needed a firmware update, however when I checked on the website it said I did not.
conclusion
It's a solid product that works well under most operating systems. Be prepared to surrender TWO USB ports to it though.
Just received this latest version of Samsung external DVD ROM. 100% described as product spec, slim and super light weight.
This DVD ROM is very compatible with my Toshiba Netbook NB205, only use one USB port instead of 2 ports for power. No driver needed base on Windows 7 Starter, just plug then you go. To play DVD movies with proper software is working great, I played one movie already. Reading sounds are acceptable for me.
Even we can find more cheaper one in the market, but you will get what you pay for. Products always have its cost and quality, so this device is worth the money for my Toshiba NB205.
I have 64bit Windows 7. This device plugged in and worked immediately. Besides being compact, completely powered by over USB, and fairly attractive overall; what is awesomely excellent about this product is the fact that you can just connect ONE USB plug for proper operation. You can also connect two USB plugs if you wish for maximum speed (one USB plug renders about half speed operation), but it is not required.
I bought this product after my internal DVD drive burnt out. I was worried about having to lug around an external drive, but this Samsung drive is just perfect! It is very portable, but remarkably sturdy. On my Mac (OS X), all I had to do was plug it in and it worked without any need for installation or driver(s). I have read/played both CDs and DVDs with no problem -- even with autoplay! For it's speed, it is also amazingly quiet. Initially, I had to check the indicator light to see if it was working, because I couldn't even hear it running! I am thoroughly impressed... ESPECIALLY for the price!! I'd gladly pay twice as much for the same machine.
I have been using this portable drive now for a few weeks now. You can just plug and play or install the Nero 9 software provided on the disk provided with the drive. Works fine, reads and writes with no issue.
I'm amazed at it's thin size. Using verbatim DVD-R disks for copying with no issues.
The drive has also been working with just one USB connection. Works on my desktop (running XP) as well as my netbook (Win 7 Starter).
For those of us who are buying multiple external drives for, er, migrating our video DVDs collections to our computers, these are fantastic! I am using two on an external (powered) usb hub and plan to get a couple more. It's well worth the cost to speed up the process from one-disc-at-a-time slowness. One caveat, each drive does require a full-power usb port, so a powered usb hub is a necessity.
I bought the Samsung external DVD burner/player a week ago (at about $40) for my ASUS netbook. I admitted (after a year of working around it) that I really wanted to watch DVD movies from Netflix on my netbook since I don't have a TV & I can't always borrow someone else's laptop.
Overall: Extremely easy-to-use and reliable DVD movie player for a netbook user
Pros:
+ Solid design; doesn't feel flimsy or easily breakable but is very light & very transportable/packable
+ Plug-and-play with no additional installation software required on Windows 7 Starter Edition
+ Uses 2 USB cords to ensure it's always fully powered
+ Works perfectly even with limited netbook processor (I use VLC Media Player for playing DVD movies)
Cons:
- Requires 2 USB sockets side-by-side or an extension cord for one of the cords
- Needs to be set on a flat surface and is much less forgiving about tilting than the old portable CD walkmans used to be
- Only burns DVD+ not DVD-
Limits of my use:
* I did not use the included software, which appeared to be for burning or playing DVDs/CDs
* I did not burn any DVDs or CDs
* Purchased 1 week ago'
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