Best Cheapest DVD+R (and DVD+RW)....NEC-ND1100A?

[NicolasW]

Hey all -
Looking for a DVD+R (and DVD+RW) which is compatible with DVD Lab and Nero.

I've narrowed it down to the following:

NEC-ND1100A which is going for approx. $170
Sony DRU-500AX or similar for approx. $310

Yes, I have read the reviews and get conflicting reports for both...the only advantage of the Sony is it also does DVD-R and DVD-RW, yet it has had many firmware upgrades.

Can anybody give subjective reviews of both, with experiences?
Thanks much,
Wes

[NickEvans44]

I've got the ND-1100A (NEC branded, not OEM) and it works really well with all software I've tried. I use Ulead DVD Workshop for authoring DVD's (+R usually), this has always worked well without any problems, generally taking 25-30 minutes to render and write a complete DVD with menus etc. For backup and other data archiving (mostly +RW), I use Nero and again no problems - I only use this drive for DVD writing, since I have a LiteOn 48125W for CD's so no experience of the latter on the NEC. I also did some tests of VIDEO_TS and ISO images burning via Nero, having created them in other software - worked fine but a more convoluted process, so I don't bother normally.

As part of testing which DVD software to buy, I also tried DVD Movie Factory 2, NeroVision Express, Sonic DVDit LE and DVD Lab - they all worked fine with the drive.
It has worked without any issues reading DVD-ROM and DVD-Video.

Hope this helps - I certainly recommend this drive, especially given the price.

[miwhel]

I have recently got myself a Sony DW U10a 1.1c and it works great with DVDLab and Nero. I upgraded the firmware to 1.1c and this gave me better compatability with the faster discs on the market.

[andkiich]

I have that recorder and it works just fine for me. I've used it with Nero, DVDIt, Ulead VideoStudio, DVDComplete and they all had no problems at all.

I think it is well worth the money.

[handyguy]

When you buy media you can tell them what recorder you have & they let you know what media to use. like at meritline.com, they give you a list by type of recorder. For the sony, I use Accu, these are 1x but the sony seems them as 2x. These also work on dvd recorders I have .

I think meritline has the Pioneer 105 for $185 too.

[Northstar]

The pioneer 105 is a - drive not a + m8, allthough im sure he knows that i just wanted to point it out

[NicolasW]

Yes, I'm very aware that the Pioneer 105 (A05) is a minus (-) drive. Actually, I just ordered one yesterday. I ordered it because it is (1) popular, and (2) the media for minus drives is a little cheaper than for plus drives. Plus, I have a Pioneer DV-444 DVD player so I figured I might as well keep things uniform.

Thanks all for your comments!
Wes

[chris_de_wet]

I have had the NEC 1100 for a couple of months.

It is fast and reliable.

No problems and I recommend it highly. I use Nero to burn DVDs with no issues.

Chris

[zanos]

I've seen this NEC drive at one place go for $158 with free shipping but I just don't know about the reliability of NEC. I used to have a NEC cdrw and it died after a few months. I want to save as much money as humanly possible but a pioneer is only like 20 bucks more so you might to just take the safer route.

[NicolasW]

Thanks all for your input.

Just wanted to give an update....I got my Pioneer A05 on Friday and have burned about 5 DVD's with no problem. Using the Pioneer DVD-RW which came with the drive and some Verbatim Datalife Plus 2x DVD-R which I bought seperately.

Using DVD Lab to Author and Nero to burn.

Wes