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AOpen is part of the Acer group of companies and as such is pretty huge. In the world of computer components AOpen has made a strong name for itself, especially in the motherboard sector.

Like the Philips drive this unit from AOpen only supports DVD+R/RW and leaves the DVD-R/RW format out in the cold. This decision was understandable from Philips since it developed the DVD+RW format and obviously wants to stick by it, but it seems a little odd for AOpen to limit its drive to only one format.

Even though this drive only supports DVD+R/RW it doesn’t sport the best write speeds for it. For DVD+RW the AOpen can only manage 2.4-speed when both the Sony and the Plextor drives can write at four-speed. Also the Plextor even manages to write DVD+R discs at eight-speed and writes DVD-R/RW as well.

What is impressive though is the array of blank media that AOpen puts in the box. You get a DVD+R, a DVD+RW, a CD-R and a CD-RW disc bundled so you can get burning straight away. Of course the write once media isn’t a huge advantage, but the two pieces of re-writable media are a welcome addition.

The software bundle is pretty good too with a copy of Nero 5.5 taking care of media burning while InCD is included for packet writing duties. You also get Ulead Video Studio 7SE DVD and neoDVD 4.5 for creating your own DVD movies, along with Cybelink’s PowerDVD for playing them back.

Performance was pretty uninspiring with the exception of the DVD+RW tests. The AOpen didn’t do too well in the disc format test, but it toped the chart in both the 4.5GB mixed file write and the 4.3GB MPEG-2 file write. However, you have to remember that if four-speed media had been available the Sony and the Plextor would have been top.

AOpen has gone with good old PC beige with a prominent AOpen logo placed in the centre on the centre of the tray. There’s a single round eject button, an oblong indicator light and a paperclip hole for manually ejecting the tray.

The most impressive feature of this drive from AOpen is the price. At £103.04 including VAT this is the cheapest drive on test, so if you’re on a very tight budget it’s worth considering. But, the LG is still only £12 more expensive and offers significantly more functionality.

Verdict

AOpen has produced a very cheap DVD writer, but unless you’re really strapped for cash we’d advise spending a little bit more and going for the LG.

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