Panasonic LF-D311 IDE DVD-RAM/R - Page 8

Conclusion

Panasonic's goal was to combine two approved formats of the DVD forum in one drive. That is why the LF-D311 is called "DVD Burner". The drive supports writing at both DVD-R and DVD-RAM formats among with reading compatibility of all CD/DVD formats, except from DVD+RW. The writing with both DVD-R/RAM is done at 1X which means you will need almost one hour to write a full 4.7GB disc.

The DVD-RAM format has many advantages over DVD-RW/+RW and of course disadvantages. The possibility of writing at 2Kb segments among with the build-in defect management makes the format ideal for AV/Backup use. Already there are DV cameras that support DVD-RAM format. The main disadvantage is the low recording speed (1X) and the limited compatibility with DVD players and DVD-ROMs.

Let's now compare the drive with both Pioneer DVR-A03 and Ricoh MP5120A. The Pioneer has the advantage of both 1x/2x DVD-R writing speeds among with the CD-R/RW writing feature. The Panasonic drive supports only 1x DVD-R writing and doesn't support CD-R/RW writing. The Pioneer supports DVD-RW, which has higher compatibility than DVD-RAM but doesn't support any kind of defect management. Both DVD-RW/DVD-RAM writing is done at 1X. Both drives come with an one year warranty.

The Ricoh MP5120A supports 2.4X DVD+RW writing speed, which is the faster DVD re-writing speed anyone can find nowadays. The Ricoh drive supports CD-R/RW writing but doesn't include any kind of defect management, despite the fact that DVD+RW supports it. The DVD+RW has proven higher compatibility than DVD-RAM format and the MP5120A includes 2 years of warranty.

The choice between the 3 DVD burners is very easy if you consider your needs. All drives have different features/capabilities that will cover almost all your needs. If your needs include important backup of data, the DVD-RAM is the only format to go, due to build-in defect management. If you need to write as fast as possible DVD-R discs, the Pioneer DVR-A03 is a better choice. If you just want to re-write as fast as possible, the Ricoh MP5120A will save you valuable time.

In the near future hybrid drives that support all DVD-Forum approved formats (DVD-R/RW/RAM) will appear. That announcement should make you think if the timing of buying a DVD-R/RAM Recorder now is the right one...