Freecom FX-50 DVD+/-RW - Page 13

Conclusion

The retail version is very well packaged while the installation of the drive was very easy under WinXP, being easily recognized after we plugged the firewire connector.

The Freecom FX-50 external writer is the first dual DVD writer we have had the chance to test, that supports 8x writing. Despite the fact that the writer supports only the +R for 8x maximum writing, most of the tested +R media were written at 8x, which means very good media compatibility. On the DVD-R part the drive needs improvement, since almost all the discs we burned gave back high PI/PO values. Maybe a firmware upgrade improve the DVD-R writing quality.

With CDs, the external Freecom drive seemed to have problems with quality with many media we burned especially towards the end of the writing process. We expect to see some improvement on this part when the new firmware will be released. Despite this, all discs we tested were written at the maximum available speed and each process finished at about the same time.

The CD error correction capabilities of the drive are very good, while the DVD error correction tests showed that the drive had average performance mainly with ABEX TDV-541 and 545 test discs, where in both cases the drive slows down in order to read the defective areas.

With DVD media, the Freecom drive was restricted to about 6x with DVD±RW media while it proved to be fast on the DVD-ROM reading/ripping tests.

The backup process of the protected games we tested reveal a strange behavior. Although the FX-50 is capable of SafeDisc v2.9 backup, the latest versions of 2.8 and 2.9 were not playable in the same drive. The previous didn't had any problem.

Summing up, the Freecom drive is an average performer and could be a good choice for users who need to use an external drive either on a Mac or on a PC and prefer the +R instead of -R format for DVD writing tasks. Freecom FX-50 is available online for €180-200.