Samsung SE-S084F External USB 2.0 Slimline 8X DVD Writer - Black

I bought this for a Samsung NC10 netbook running windows XP. Connected it up without loading any software and it worked for reading and writing CD's but I could not read or write DVD's. I put the CD in which came with the product and saw it had Nero 9 and InCD 6.6 on it. Investigating it appeared that this version of Nero will play DVD's but without sound. You have to purchase an additional module to get sound. I had already read this on a review of an older version of the drive and loaded "VLC Media Player" which is freely available for playing DVDs. This worked fine with the drive without installing anything from the CD.

The only problem was I could not write DVD's. I then tried to install "InCD 6.6" as I understood this would give me what I wanted. Doing this directly from the drive took an hour to load from the drive when running it off the CD and it then failed the installation. I then decided to copy the files onto my hard disk and try running it from there. This worked a treat and in a matter of minutes I had installed it and backed up my pictures onto DVD, which can be read on my other PC's.

After this initial problem I am happy with the drive. It is light and only needs one cable, supplied. Please note that the cable splits at the end into 2 USB connectors to drive data and power and you have to have 2 USB points very close together on you pc to be able to connect it.

I have since attached the drive to my Toshiba laptop (running Vista) which already has a built in CD/DVD rewriter and I had no problems and did not need to load any additional software to get all the functionality of the drive to work.

Overall I am very pleased with the drive and would recommend it. Just be aware of Nero's capabilities and the problem I had loading "InCD".

Looked at all the reviews before purchase. Took note of the comments about not using the accompanying CD software, instead downloading (in advance of receipt) the free VLC software. So I ignored the c/w CD with Nero software - and it will go in the bin tomorrow!!

Straight out of the box on receipt; netbook instantly recognised the unit; inserted Microsoft Office CD for transfer to the netbook - worked immediately; put in DVD and instantly showed film with seamless running.

Small, neat item, very transportable, will definitely be coming abroad on holiday with us. What more can you ask for at under 30 quid?

Eventually decided to go for this vs some cheaper models as it would write DVD's - despite the fact that the main need is to use with a Toshiba netbook for loading in Norton etc from CD and playing music CD's occasionally. Other reviews prewarned me that this drive needs 2 adjacent USB ports so was not taken by surprise and the Tosh is OK for this set up. Runs sweet and quiet and connects/ejects with no bother. Just need to remember that it is front loading so keep some desk space clear in front when using it