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Published: September 1, 2009 | Source: Asus | Author: Matthew Kemp

Asus SBC-04DIS-U Slim External Blu Ray Reader

Introductionblu ray
 
High Def and Blu Ray are words we are hearing more and more often these days. With Blu Ray winning the format war and Blu Ray disc sales going through the roof, Blu Ray is becoming the ‘must have’ product in movie entertainment.
 
Frankly, I have to agree. Blu Ray is a superb format with excellent picture quality and top notch sound. Blu Ray hasn’t been catered for a huge amount on the PC, but manufacturers like Asus are really starting to provide for the High Definition market and this is where they come in with the over-named Asus SBC-04DIS-U Slim External Blu Ray Reader.
 
It’s great to see Asus start producing products that support the High Def format and their slim Blu Ray drive isn’t only for PC use. With it’s diminutive size and gloss black/blue LED design, it’s perfect for a portable laptop Blu Ray drive for those who want high def on the go.
 
 
Specifications
 
Let’s see how the drive stacks up when we check out the specs from Asus’s website.
 
Write Speed
DVD-R: 8X,- (CAV)
DVD-RW: 6X,- (Z-CLV)
DVD+R: 8X,- (CAV)
DVD+RW: 8X,- (Z-CLV)
DVD+R(DL): 4X,- (Z-CLV)
DVD-R (DL): 4X,- (Z-CLV)
CD-R: 24X,- ( Z-CLV )
CD-RW: 16X,- ( Z-CLV )
DVD-RAM: 5X

Read Speed
BD-ROM/R/RE: 4.8 X max.
DVD-R(Single): 8 X max.
DVD-RW(single): 8 X max.
DVD+R(Single): 8 X max.
DVD+RW(single): 8 X max.
DVD-R(DL): 6 X max.
DVD+R(DL): 6 X max.
DVD-ROM (Single): 8 X max.
DVD-ROM (Dual): 8 X max.
DVD-RAM: 5 X max.
CD-ROM: 24 X max.
CD-RW: 24 X max.
CD-R: 24 X max.

Access time
BD: 240 MS
DVD: 200 MS
CD: 200 MS

Writing Mode
DVD-R & DVD-R(DL): DAO(Disc-At-Once)/Incremental Recording (Multi-Border Recording)
DVD-RW & DVD-RW (DL): DAO(Disc-At-Once)/Restricted Overwriting/Incremental Recording (Multi-Border Recording)
DVD+R & DVD+R (DL): Sequential Recording (Multi-Session Recording)
DVD+RW & DVD+RW (DL): Random Recording
CD-R/RW: DAO(Disc-At-Once)/TAO(Track-At-Once)/SAO(Session-At-Once)/Packet Recording (Multi-Session Recording)

O/S Compatibility
XP compatible
Vista compatible

Interface
USB2.0

Data Buffer
2 MB

Bundle Software
Cyberlink

Disc Formats
Write: DVD+/-RW,DVD+/-R,CD-R,CD-RW,DVD-RAM
Read: BD-ROM,BD-R,BD-RE,DVD-ROM,DVD+/-RW,DVD+/-R,Photo CD,CD-DA,CD-Extra,CD-Text,CD-R,CD-RW,DVD-RAM

Dimension (WxHxD)
157x142x21 mm

Weight
412 g

 
Whilst the write specifications aren’t amazingly impressive, Asus have still supplied a drive that is capable of burning CD’s and DVD’s at a reasonable speed. I do not think that these will be massively important to those paying the premium for this portable Blu Ray drive as I would expect they are getting it to watch Blu Rays on! Â