Sony DRX840U 20x External Dual-Layer DVD Burner Reviews

• Sony DRX840U 20x just simply works

  
  By A3H11ZNNQDA8T1 on 2007-10-17
  I have had an external burner for quite some time. With recent changes to my environment, I no longer had a Firewire port so I decided to switch to a USB 2.0 external burner. I had gone to Fry's, purchased another well known brand that was an 18x burner, brought it home, set it up, Windows XP Pro did its thing and all seemed right with the world. That was until I actually tried to use it. No matter what I did, Nero V7 and V8 saw it but refused to use either DVD+R or DVD-R media. I did the normal searching for solutions but none presented itself. After months of trying to get it to work, I finally gave up and decided to try another vendor.
  
  In my searching on Amazon, I ran across this Sony drive and noticed it was one of the first to offer 20x burn speeds. The 20x burn speed, while certainly nice, was not what attracted me to this. Rather, it was the fact that, at 20x, this meant it was a relatively new design which meant it should work better. In my searching to resolve my previous external drive's problems, the Sony drives were always lauded by those that had used them. A combination of those two things gave me at least some confidence that this was a good drive.
  
  When it arrived, I did the normal thing and Windows was happy with it. So the acid test: what would Nero think about it? As it turns out, Nero V8 was quite happy with it and worked flawlessly with the drive. I have burned DVD+R, DVD-R, DVD-R DL and CD audio all at the rated speed, all without any problems, all with perfect burns.
  
  Pros:
  - It just works without any problems
  - Nice case design
  - It is happy both vertically and horizontally
  
  Cons:
  - Somewhat noisy when the CD/DVD is burning at full speed
  - Slower burn speed on inside tracks but speeds up as it moves out
  
  Bottom line: if I had to do it all over again, I would. The drive got me what I was looking for: something that works reliably and dependably. It certainly gets my recommendation.
  
  

• A Great DVD/CD Burner Replacement For Your iMac!

  
  By A2JY7U9UZ6AE4G on 2008-02-21
  After having ripped AND burned over 1000 discs, the SuperDrive on my two-year old iMac decided to die on me (thanks Apple for the longevity :). This Sony DVD Writer is a wonderful alternative to the pricey $250 replacement SuperDrive--and it works right out of the box with no software tinkering (just choose drive option when needed). Fully compatible with both Tiger and Leopard, this Sony Writer gets a HUGE thumbs up for all Apple Users in need of an extra burner or those with konked-out ones!
  
  

• Works great with DVDShrink and Nero

  
  By A2WM1KL9DQSQ18 on 2008-01-28
  I bought this drive to use with a laptop that could not take an internal DVD-burner. I was a little afraid to buy an external burner, thinking that it could not keep up, resulting in many burn errors. The drive so far has worked flawlessly. The software includes a copy of nero essentials, which will accomplish most DVD tasks needed. It also works fine with DVDShrink.
  
  The drive is somewhat large. This is really the only negative that I can think of.
  
  

• Best "add on" technology

  
  By A1JQPNGAIKELFB on 2007-12-28
  Of all the external devices I've added to my computer, the Sony DRX840U 20x External Dual-Layer DVD Burner is the best. Some people say the unit is noisy. All I can say is, with any external unit you can expect it to emit sound. This unit produces a gentle hum which I find comforting, knowing that it is actually working. The installation is simple. The Nero software that comes with it is lame, and takes up a lot of disk space. It would not work at first, and an e-mail to their Tech. Support people went unanswered for a week, and then gave vague instructions. It also only gives you a short "trial period" for use, and then requires that you purchase it. I purchased "Record Now!" instead, which is a great, easy to use product to burn/copy CD's and DVD's...and it uses a small footprint. I then deleted Nero. The Sony works very well, and burns at a reasonable speed. As for the accompanying Nero software...."forget about it!"
  
  If you want an excellent external CD/DVD burner, that looks decent also, this is the unit you want. Highly reccommended.
  
  

• Great DVD burner

  
  By A2V6CAWJQCHTGO on 2007-11-13
  I've burned about a dozen dual-layer DVDs now without a problem. And it burns faster than I expected. The included Nero software has an intuitive user interface and offers all the flexibility I need.
  
  
• Best External DVD Drive I have owned
  By AR5PEVEEGSJ37 on 2008-01-25
  I was in the market for a next external DVD drive when another one I got died after about 4 months. It did not really work out of the box. I had Past up the Sony DRX840U for A HP one. Big Mistake. The Sony DRX840U worked out of he box. I have used it to burn dvd's and read all my old DVD. I have watched movies on it and now I'm doing backups of old cd's to dvd's with out a problem. If anyone is in the market for a new External DVD drive this is the one to get.
  
  
• SOOOO EASY PLUG AND PLAY
  By A1KPALLWZ73M27 on 2008-04-10
  I have windows XP, media center edition. I have hated my DVD burner since I got it with my tower, I have an HP pavilion media center edition. The samsung Tsstcorp TS-H652L CD/DVD drive that came installed has been nothing but a headache to me. It not only required updates on the driver, I had to search out patches on the internet, JUST to make it work the first time. Then, it never agreed with all my programs, and it hated sonic programs in particular. Which is weird, since sonic came as free software with my computer! And it was picky, it would eat most disks but preferred to eat the expensive verbatim and TDK. It liked to turn those to coasters.
  I brought this home, plugged and played. AWESOME. I was up half the night burning home movies using my sonic programs (free programs) onto dual layer DVD's.
  To another comment on a review of this product, yes, it plays and burns :)
  I'm so happy. I'd give it a hundred stars if possible, burns fast, burns great, I have already plowed through many projects, and it hasn't let me down NOT ONE COASTER :)
  
  
• Not completely Mac compatible
  By A1JZF5OBRMKZTX on 2008-07-13
  This CD/DVD drive/burner from SONY works great, and the drive looks good on my desk. Unfortunately it is not totally compatible with Mac OS 10.4 (Tiger). (It does ship with PC software.) At first I could not figure out how to open the Sony drawer on my Mac G5 Tower. The eject button on the keyboard opens only the internal CD/DVD drive. Eventually I found that iTunes has a preference setting to select the drive, and the eject button in iTunes will open the Sony drive. But this is inconvenient. I contacted Sony, and here is the reply:
  
  "Sony bundles Nero Recording software for Windows with this unit. If you would like to use this drive on a MAC you will need to purchase MAC recording software. Please visit this website for 3rd party software information. [...]
  
  Thus there may be a hidden expense if you are buying this drive for the Mac.
  
  By the way, I did find another solution for opening the Sony drawer without having to buy new software for the Mac. With Automator, I used the "Run Shell Script" command to issue the command "drutil -drive usb tray open". Then I saved the workflow as an application. It works fine. With this solution, or the iTunes workaround, I am able to use the Sony CD/DVD burner with no trouble.
  
  
  
• Very Happy user
  By AGFGX4N2H0K5L on 2007-12-27
  I burned 10 DL-DVDs (data mode) in quick succession and the unit did not lose any disks. Takes approximately 1 hour to burn and verify job integrity (2.4x speed). After burning, disks were normally read in other computer DVD drives. I haven't tried burning movies. Granted, I have had the unit for only a month, but I haven't experienced any of the door problems reported by others. My unit remains in the horizontal, rather than vertical (if this makes any difference, at all). I did not give 5 stars because I thought the unit to be somewhat bulky, although it does not appear to be any different from other external burners I have seen. Nero software installed without any glitch and is being used in all burning jobs; it appeared very intuitive to me.
  Bottom line: so far an excellent job, no regrets, I hope it lasts many more years.
  
  
• Worth every penny
  By ASRSV7OSCMX63 on 2008-04-15
  My only complaint about this product was that if you want to burn onto a DVD-R DL only one brand of disks were compatible i.e. Verbatim. This brand has proven to be high-quality so the inconvenience was a minor one.
  
  I have burned nearly 100 projects so far and not one glitch. This burner is also fairly quiet.
  
  Sony has produced a quality product with this burner.
  
  
• Good replacement dvd burner
  By ASESVN67BKH2J on 2008-05-04
  My four year old Dell's two drives went out simultaneously (NEC DVD+RW ND-1100A and SAMSUNG DVD-ROM SD-616T). Tried Dell support to fix them, but that did not work. I didn't have the type of Dell service agreement that replaced failed hardware. I would have had to buy both drives from Dell, approximately $200. Saw this Sony at Amazon. I was unsure if this new DVD burner would work on my old Dell; specifically was the Sony's USB2 workable on my old USB1-only system. Yes it is. The other consideration was that both drives on my Dell were inoperable, so how do I load the new Sony's installation disk? No problem, the Sony burner is hooked up via the USB first, then the Sony installation disc is inserted into the new burner. The new Sony hardware burner plays the new installation disk. No need to use the existing internal players (impossible in my case). All the new DVD media will play on this Sony attached to the old Dell; no compatibility problems because the Sony DRX840U 20x External Dual-Layer DVD Burner plays the new media, not your old computer. I also did not install the Sony burning software. I had Sonic and this Sony works perfectly with the existing Sonic software. Very satisfied with the purchase. Cheaper than Dell replacements, and much cheaper than a new computer.
  
  
• Sony Burner
  By AW0WNX2VH05NI on 2007-11-26
  The price is right no tax no shipping great.The Nero sofware gave me troulble so I had to delete and find other software which is working. Not sure if its me or the sofware. All in all good product.
  
  
• Software NOT MAC Compatible - and thumbs down for misleading buyers.
  By A3FZANXJGZJ5YT on 2008-06-27
  Contrary to some other reviews and the tiny little "Mac Compatible" sticker on the front of the box, the NERO software that comes with the Sony Burner is NOT Mac compatible. The user guide clearly states that using software other than that supplied is not covered by warranty and not supported by Sony. Search the web and you'll fine more than a few unhappy purchasers who planned to use this with their Mac.
  
  The operating system requirements are as follows:
  
  Operating System Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition * Microsoft Windows XP Professional * Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional * Microsoft Windows Vista
  
  You will find Mac OS nowhere else on the box, the instructions, or in the user guide. Mac Users - you're on your own. Disc Utility or Finder and no warranty, and it still makes coasters.
  
  
• Missing Utility Software?
  By A3KUUGRW1L18N5 on 2007-12-30
  Will someone enlighten me as to why Nero InCD and Nero BackItUp are missing from the Nero Essentials software bundled with this drive? Without one or both of these utilities, backup tasks are extremely cumbersome. At first, I thought maybe I had just overlooked the two utilities. But no, they are not part of the installation and, in fact, the Sony documentation does not list them as being included. They WERE included with previous versions of this Sony drive (e.g., Sony DRX-830U). Why did they vanish for the DRX-840U?
  
  Follow-up: I've confirmed with Sony Tech Support that the two utilities were indeed deleted from the bundled software effective with release of the DRX-840U drive. One can only speculate as to the reasons for this. However, it's very hard to imagine that the DRX-840U firmware is somehow incompatible with Nero InCD and BackItUp. Whatever the reason, the deletion is made more annoying by the fact that Sony strongly suggests that only the bundled software be used with the drive, recommending that other "generic" products not be used (and warning that the warranty will not cover any problems that arise from such use). I've increased my rating to four stars because the drive itself works very well, but the lack of supported backup capability is still greatly disappointing.
  
  
• Very reliable DVD burner
  By AHSKJ866FHDC1 on 2008-01-14
  No issues with the "Nero Essentials" software. Error messages are generally eliminated by reducing the transfer rate from the default "maximum" to 8X or 12X. The unit doesn't seem to have an aversion to decryp and clone software. Having had frustrations with other dvd burners (largely stressing speed), this one seemingly stresses utility. In other words, it works. It isn't perfect (hasn't burned all cloned dvd's), but that may be dependent on the software (so far have experimented only with "Clone DVD"). A solid performer.
  
  
• dual level DVD-R
  By AYHTZNAELH03N on 2008-03-03
  It accomplished the job that I needed done and it tucks away when not in use. Will work with any of my computers.
  
  
• Performs well but loudly!
  By A2ROF5XNF2QIKS on 2008-06-05
  Based on many reviews and Sony's good reputation, I purchased this product to replace an HP external drive that occasionally gave "hiccups". True to reviews it was an easy setup, looks great and for the few times I used it performed as to specifications. But the noisy clatter of the drive while operating drove me to distraction. Since my future use of the drive would be often, I knew I couldn't endure this noise. I kept waiting for parts to come flying out! I returned the equipment for a refund, with regret. If not for the noise level, I would rate this product more highly.
  
  Some prior reviewers did mention the noise level, but I didn't give enough credence to that aspect I guess, not realizing just how irritating it could be. Sony could do better.
  
  
• excellent piece of equipment
  By A10EO79XPDYUMJ on 2008-02-25
  I've used this burner for almost a year now and have had no problems. It hooks straight up to my usb port and backsup easy!!!
  
  Bing
  
  
• excellent
  By A2MPS4S5LVH1XS on 2008-03-24
  So far I have burned about 30 dl discs and have not had a coaster yet.
  Blazing speed
  
  
• Burner works great. Nero software, not so good
  By A39EF7AQWTAD32 on 2008-04-06
  The burner works great but the software that comes with it is useless and takes up alot of computer space.
  
  
• Carl
  By A374Y7WEYXY94Y on 2008-03-25
  So far so good. The speed is excellent and there is no road block yet.
  
  I enjoy this burner!
  
  
• manual for DVD burner DRX-840U
  By A2KWLAPGA0KJ1Q on 2008-03-26
  This product seems to work fine, however, Sony provides the instruction manual as a HTML (CHM) file. MSN upgrades block this file. It is possible to unblock--if you have the savy. Sony offers to sell a manual for ten bucks plus shipping. Would seem a better policy if Sony would offer the manual as a PDF file as well, or (outrageous as it may seem) include a manual with the device.
  
  
• GREAT product!
  By A5MB2LWEHJA17 on 2008-03-27
  I did not even use the provided install disk since i used my current dvd burning software. also this unit is plug and play with windows XP so if you have windows xp and allready own cd/dvd burning software you are ready to burn in a matter of minutes just plug it in.
  
  This drive is quiet. although the unit is not light it is meant to be an desktop unit but it looks well made and i think that the drive would travel well.
  
  
• Excellent DVD Burner
  By A1L7EYG98MRNLH on 2008-04-15
  Setup was very simple. Comes with Nero v7.0
  
  I've burned all varieties (DVD+R, DVD-R, CD audio) and all came out flawless at expected speed.
  
  This is a great burner without any noticeable flaws.
  
  
• Spend the extra money!
  By ASTR26E0GIHO9 on 2008-06-12
  I have an internal LG Supermulti DVD drive. I can't tell you what model it is because the manual doesn't even give me that information. I bought it last year and it worked well, but a few months ago it stopped reading commercial DVDs. It could read any other type of media, just not original copyrighted movies.
  
  My laptop has a DVD burner on it, but the quality of burned movies was horrible. It's a Sony drive so I was skeptical to buy this one, but after reading the reviews on Amazon I decided this external one would be better than an internal one. I can switch it between my desktop and laptop depending on where I am and what I need done.
  
  I received this two days ago and I am extremely impressed. Not only does it work fast, but it produces high-quality results. I've noticed in the past that in certain situations, burning projects at high speeds can lead to playback problems, but this is an exception.
  
  I already have software, so I didn't even bother to install any of the software it came with. I didn't even have to put a disc in the drive to install it, I just plugged it in and less than a minute later it was ready to go.
  
  A few people have complained about the noise, but it doesn't bother me. Besides, it only takes 5 minutes to complete 4.7GB of data. I have a fan in my room that's louder than this.
  
  A note of warning: Don't move the burner while it has a disc in it!
  
  
• Beware of PC Universe!!!!
  By A1ZDK1YEJGZX8V on 2008-08-12
  I bought this DVD writer from PC Universe recently thinking I get same kind of service from them as Amazon. Device works fine for CD and single layer DVDs but fails to write a double-layer DVD after about 20% write.
  
  I contacted PC Universe within 30-day period, but they simply refused to allow an exchange or return. I was told to contact directly Sony.
  I am never going to buy anything from PC Universe or any other seller on Amazon. Will buy only items directly sold by Amazon.
  
  
• Sony DVD burner
  By A12BQIW2Z30THN on 2008-01-27
  Using for single layer disks. It is fast and has worked well. It was easy to install
  
  
• Burner excellent. Nero software not useful.
  By A3AXZSKDT6JFOF on 2008-05-07
  I was interested in a External DVD burner as my computer came with just a CD burner and I have many photos which I wanted to store .After installing the Sony rewritable drive DRX-840U and the Nero software, I could not get the unit to record at first. I was able to test the unit itself and confirmed that it was working. I finally deleted the Nero software and have been using the software which came with my computer and the unit has been performing quite well. I would prefer that the manual and information regarding the Sony unit be on a separate DVD from the Nero software. The Nero software takes up a large amount of space on the hard drive and did not seem to function as advertised, at least on my computer. I have been very happy with the Sony unit itself.
  
  
• Terrific Product
  By A26WMOO278V35A on 2008-06-29
  I have 2 computers, one old from around 2001 and one much newer from 2006. The DVD burner in both of those computers has given me major headaches and failed to burn DVD's. I have spent countless hours trying to troubleshoot the problem with no success. The Sony external DVD/CD Rewritable Drive has worked perfectly for me from the very first. All I did was plug it in and turn it on and it was ready to go. My computer recognized it instantly. I have burned numerous discs flawlessly and I couldn't be more pleased. I didn't need to install any software as I already had Nero 8 and Ulead Videostudio on my computer. It's Sony quality at a great price.
  
  
• Excellent burner for OS X
  By AJKGTRPT58YIG on 2008-08-21
  I use this burner for my Macbook Air, as the Apple drive will not work through a hub. This drive works out of the box. As with most things with OS X, you just plug it in and go. It is also super fast, the fastest burner I have ever owned. And since it does dual/double layer DVD burning, it is a great product for the price.
  
  

• 3-Year Extended Service Plan - Covers Electronic Items $0-$200 - Repair

• Verbatim 2.4x Dual-Layer DVD+R DL - 10 Disc Spindle
• Memorex 8.5GB 8X Double Layer DVD+R (50pk Spindle)
• Verbatim DVD+R DL 8.5GB 2.4X 20pk Spindle
• TDK 16X DVD+R 100PK Spindle
• Cables To Go 7 Port USB 2.0 Hub