In the last years, every time somebody asked my advice regarding a DVD writer, I leaned towards recommending Samsung or LG drives. Why? Unfortunately, Yamaha doesn't manufacture optical drives anymore, Plextors are usually too expensive, and they use parts that can be found in much cheaper drives, in most cases, Teac also seems to have disappeared from the market, while some other producers don't really live up to the expectation(I won't give any names). To help you in your quest for the best DVD writer you can get for a decent price, today we'll talk about the Samsung SH-S182D , Samsung's first 18X DVD writer, released almost 2 years ago.

Why such an old model? Well, the answer is simple - because it has been tested already by thousands of users, and the later models inherit most of its strong points. Now, since everyone seems to be looking at the features these days, although less than half are really useful to you during the daily use, here's what Samsung SH-S182D was gifted with, as described by its producer:

- Speed Adjustment Technology
Intelligent detection of media type. Error-free reading of all media types, increases life of drive.

- Double O.P.C. Technology
Provides reliable, zero-error recording.

- Tilt Actuator Compensation Technology
Improves recording capability on deformed media.

- Magic Speed
Enables flexibility of drive operation, low noise mode, high-speed mode.

- Buffer Under Run Free Technology
Prevents Buffer Under Run error, enabling high-speed writing of media.

- Weight Balance System Technology
Mechanically designed for minimal vibration and noise.

- Eco-Product
Minimal Usage of drive operation, low noise mode, high-speed mode.

- Firmware Live Update
Automatically upgrades the latest firmware version through Internet by continued support of newer media.

Maximum write speed for DVD+R and DVD-R media is 18X, but that depends on the discs you are using, of course. The (long!) list of supported disc types is this: DVD+R, DVD+R DL, DVD+RW, DVD-R, DVD-R DL, DVD-RW, DVD-Video, DVD-RAM, DVD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, CD-ROM, CD-ROM/XA, CD-Audio, Video-CD, Photo CD, CD-I(FMV), CD-Extra, CD-TEXT . Nothing out of ordinary, I guess, but it's good to know...

A little problem for those with new computers could be the fact that the Samsung SH-S182D is a IDE drive, so you will have to use those wide cables...or grab a special (and more expensive) rounded IDE cable, of course!

At last, another drawback for some users could be the lack of Lightscribe support. If you ask me, I labeled about 4-5 discs using Lightscribe in the last 2-3 years so, if you don't really need this feature, the Samsung SH-S182D could be a very good choice, especially since the prices are now extremely low, and if your older computer still misses a DVD writer...you know what to do!

No matter what brand we are talking about, I must say I am disappointed with most optical drives available on the market today. Of course, I wasn't able to try them all, but it seems the lifespan of these devices is much shorter than before(one of my friends still has a Teac 8X CD writer, and after more than 8 years and burning probably more than 5000 discs, it still works like a charm), according to my own experiences, and those of my friends. Anyway, today I have to tell you a few things about the LG GGC-H20L, a Blu-ray/HD DVD Combo Drive that can be a useful upgrade from that DVD writer most of us have at this time. Unfortunately, I can't tell you how well is going to work this drive in 2012, but probably most of its current and soon-to-be users will change it in the meantime. Ooook, so let's see what do we have here...



We all know the HD DVD format lost the war, but there are still plenty of HD DVD discs around, so why not be able to use the best of both high end formats - the Blu-ray and HD DVD? That's exactly what the LG GGC-H20L allows you to do, apart from using the good old CDs and DVDs, of course. Its main drawback may be the fact that it can't burn Blu-ray and HD DVD, but you can't have them all, after all...can you?

Using the SATA interface, the LG GGC-H20L has a 4MB buffer and the following performance specifications:

Read Speed
DVD-ROM Read: 16x, Max
DVD-RAM Read: 5x, Max
CD-ROM Read: 40x, Max
BD-ROM/R (SL) Read: 6x, Max
BD-ROM/R (DL) Read: 4.8x, Max
BD-RE (SL/DL) Read: 2x, Max
HD DVD-ROM (SL) Read: 3x
HD DVD-ROM (DL) Read: 3x

Write Speed
DVD+R Write: 16x
DVD+RW Write: 8x
DVD+R DL Write: 4x
DVD-R Write: 16x
DVD-RW Write: 6x
DVD-R DL Write: 4x
DVD-RAM Write: 5x
CD-R Write: 40x
CD-RW Write: 24x

Access Time:
BD-ROM: 180ms
HD DVD-ROM: 210ms
DVD: 160ms
CD: 150ms

The writing modes supported for DVD discs include Disc-At-Once, Incremental Recording, Restricted Overwriting, Sequential Recording and Random Recording, while CDs can be burned using Track-at-Once, Disc-at-Once, Session-at-Once or
Packet Recording (fixed & variable).

The LG GGC-H20L supports both 80 and 120 mm discs, and the list of supported disc formats for writing is pretty long, including DVD+R DL 8.5GB, DVD+R 4.7GB, DVD+RW 4.7GB, DVD-R DL: 8.5GB, DVD-R 4.7GB, DVD-RAM, DVD-Video, as well as CD-DA, CD-R, CD-RW, CD-Extra or CD-Text.

Having 146 x 41.3 x 185 mm without bezel, and a weight of 870g, the LG GGC-H20L offers good all-around performance, and apart from not being able to burn Blu-ray and HD DVDs, as I mentioned above, has only another (minor, for most of us) drawback - the fact that it does not allow Bitsetting of DVD+RW media.

At last, I should add a very strong argument for considering the LG GGC-H20L is its price - for under $200, you get a drive capable of reading both Blu-ray and HD DVD media, as well as burning CD and DVD discs. What else can you ask, for its price?

For most people, the DVD optical media is enough. We had the floppy drives, then the CD, now we have the DVD, as well as the Blu-Ray or HD DVD, and while the latest was officially declared "dead," THX stepped ahead and started to dig Blu-Ray's hole before this data storage medium/technology reached its maturity. Why? Let's see...


First, let's point out this is only the personal opinion of a chief scientis at THX, and not an official position, but I can't find anything wrong with its way of thinking. Here's what Laurie Fincham said in an interview with Home Cinema Choice Magazine, when asked about HD DVD's death..."Personally, I think it’s too late for Blu-ray. I think consumers will only become interested in replacing DVD when HD movies becomes available on flash memory. Do we really need another spinning format?"

Indeed, flash memory is getting cheaper with each day, so if you can carry some memory cards in wallet with your favorite movies, instead of some large discs...why not? Even more, your huge movie collection may not have to fill an entire room in the future, which is also a good thing, in my opinion.

"By the time Blu-ray really finds a mass market, we will have 128GB cards. I would guess that getting studios to supply movies on media cards, or offer downloads, will be a lot easier than getting them to sign up to support a disc format," concluded Fincham.

To be honest, I have no plans to move on to Blu-Ray in the next 2 years, and if everything continues to move as it does now, we'll probably replace optical media with flash storage. That's good for me, in fact it's simply great. What about you?

After hearing that Apple's Macs may get Blu-Ray drives, I just heard another interesting rumor, this time about Microsoft's Xbox 360 game console...


Since there's not much else to say, let's get straight to the point - according to Financial Times, Microsoft is currently talking with Sony about the chance to add Blu-Ray drives to their Xbox, since now, the Xbox 360 comes by default with a DVD drive, and also allows you to get an optional HD DVD drive.

Because the HD DVD format lost the HD optical format war, Microsoft needs to have this option replaced by something that users would really need, like the Blu-Ray. Obviously, adding a Blu-Ray would also increase the price of Microsoft's console, but as more and more producers will start using it, I am sure the Blu-Ray drive will start to become more and more accessible.

Lately, most trials in the IT world I heard about were related to patents and their use, sometimes to names that were too close to notorious ones, but this time, things look different. Samsung hasn/t been sued for using someone else's technology or name, but for selling a product that won't be able to play some movies, despite any possible software update Samsung may release for it. Pretty nasty, don't you think?


This time, we're not talking about a company that filed the suit, because it's a buyer of Samsung's BD-01200 player, Bob MacGovern, and its reason is the fact that some Blu-ray titles simply won't work on his player, because of a "defective design and/or manufacture".

Launched back in June 2006, the BD-01200 is a Blu-ray player whose hardware is simply incapable of running various titles appeared since then, including "The Day After Tomorrow". To make things worse for Samsung, it seems the 01200 is the only model that faces this problem, and they refused to offer a firmware upgrade to solve this problem (or maybe this firmware upgrade is impossible to have, given the hardware setup?).

Samsung didn't comment on the lawsuit yet, but if you have this defective model, you should know the lawsuit is open to any consumer which purchased the BD-01200 player...