Sony DRU 500A DVD±RW Burner

Pros: 4x DVD R and DVD-R with newest firmware. Compatible with both competing standards.
Cons: Included software stinks. VERY picky about media.

UPDATE: Now that I've had more time to test this drive on a wider array of media, any bold items below are new as of 2/19/03.

It's finally arrived.

Shortly before Christmas, this drive arrived at my local Best...

Pros: Reliable, easy to use
Cons: Does not work well with Win98SE, Sony support is a joke

SUMMARY

The Sony DRU500A is an excellent drive for backing up your DVD collection, or burning large amounts of data (such as the entire contents of your C drive). I use the Sony DRU500A at least once a day. Sony has done a great job with the...

Pros: Compatible to all DVD formats of interest at a very good price.
Cons: Pricey compared to a CD burner.

Updated on DLA software problems, media compatibility, and copying 2 layer discs

Why you want this Sony DVD burner and why you want any DVD burner?

This is the first burner that is compatible to all the format of...

Pros: The all in one burning drive ! DVD+-R/RW, CD-R, CD-RW at a reasonable price
Cons: Slow DVD Video ripping speed, poor included software

I picked up a Sony DRU-500a without any planning which is very unlike me. I had some store credit (they wouldn't give me cash even with an unopened product and a recent store receipt) and figured this would be a great way to spend it. I actually got...

Pros: Constant updates, fastest & most compatible.
Cons: No mac support.

First of all, bear in mind I am using the newest 1.0F firmware. Its only been out a couple of months and the firmware has been updated like 6 times, thats what I call perfect support. With this new firmware you can burn DVD R at 4x. Previously it was...

Pros: Seamless operation, easy setup
Cons: Price, included software, manuals (?!)

I built a new computer last fall and have been looking at the DVD burners as a key upgrade. The "animal soup" of formats had me a little worried and when I saw this particular model, I couldn't resist. I have just started to record TV shows and camcorder...

Pros: Writes to Cheap Media Fast Writer Easy Install
Cons: Software bundle is below par

Pros: Supports both popular formats, Good CD burning speed
Cons: Software's second-rate

I've recently grown fond of authoring DVD's and Video CD's. I intially purchased a DVD+RW writer which was adequate, overall.
But the cost of the +RW format was killing me, even though I liked the high compatiblity those discs gave me.
Seeing...

Pros: Most compatible, well known brand, easy use, 4x DVD burning.
Cons: Uses sony software (not nero or adaptec), more expensive than the average.

I purchased this DVD burner approximately 6 months ago and it has worked well ever since. As you ...

Pros: compatability
Cons: sony support sucks, software is cheezy

If you're lucky and this drive installs OK the first time then I'm sure you'll be pleased as many are. But I went through support hell for 2 months. I spent hours on the phone with people who refused to believe my problems, who lost my email address,...

Pros: Great Marketing
Cons: Very Bad Product and software

It is not ready for market. In order to get the included software to work I had to uninstall perfectly good software that I use everyday. Tech support stated that I should NOT expect to record 4.7 gb of data. They said not to try to record more than 2...

Pros: Dual-format capability, wide compatibility, reliability, regular firmware updates
Cons: The provided software is limited. From those I use only Sonic MyDVD.

Compatibility: All DVDs that I've tried to burn on it have worked. Also, I have not had any problems with playing discs recorded on the drive on several DVD players (Toshiba SD3755, JVC XV-N44SL, JVC XV-N55SL).

What I like about the drive:
1) Compatibility with most formats (all except DVD-RAM) and DVD players.
2) Reliability - I have burned over 300 DVDs since May 2003 and it is chugging away reliably.
3) Regular updates from the Sony web-site that allows this drive to upgrade its speed and reliability.

I use the drive primarily to make backup copies of my DVDs (use DVDXCopy Platinum). I also author DVDs from my Camcorder miniDV tapes (use Pinnacle Studio v7 & Sonic MyDVD 5.0) and from VHS tapes. Third use is as to backup files (use Nero).

On my Pentium4 2.4GHz PC, this drive cooks - it takes just over ten minutes to write a DVD. The latest firmware update (2.0h) now supports 4X RW speeds.

Firmware updates: http://sony.storagesupport.com/dvdrw/dru500adwn.htm
Here is an extensive list of media compatibility provided by actual users:
http://www.dvdrhelp.com/dvdwriters.php?DVDnameid=51&Search=Search&list=