In the following tests, we examine the DVD reading capabilities of the LiteOn SHM-165P6S drive with scratched / defective DVD media. For the tests we used CDVD Benchmark and Nero CDSpeed. The reference test media comes from ALMEDIO.

ABEX TDR-821

This is a single sided, single layer DVD-ROM with 4.7GB capacity, and its surface has an artificial scratch of dimensions varying from 0.4 to 3.0 mm. The following transfer rate picture comes from the CDVD Benchmark v1.21 transfer rate test.

Reaching a max reading speed of 16X, the drive did not drop reading speed at any point and managed to achieve a flawless reading session.

ABEX TDR-825

This is also a single sided, single layer DVD-ROM of 4.7GB capacity. The data structure of the disc is exactly the same as that of the TDR-821, with the difference that there are no scratches on it but instead, defective areas of dimensions ranging from 0.5 to 1.1 mm. There are also fingerprints sized between 65 and 75 micrometers.

This graph shows that no changes have been made in the error correction mechanism of the drive. The drop in speed at the start of the second defective area is the same that we witnessed with the LiteOn SHW-16H5S. None the less, the drive maxed out at 16X, successfully completing the reading.

ABEX TDR-841

This is an 8.5GB dual layer, single sided DVD-ROM disc with artificial scratches of dimensions ranging from 0.4 to 3.0mm, on both layers.

The drive managed to read both layers without any problems, although we see a small difficulty at the end of the defects on the second layer (scattered yellow dots). The max reading speed achieved was 8X.

ABEX TDR-845

This test disc is a single sided, dual layer DVD-ROM disc with a capacity of 8.5GB. The only difference between the TDR-845 and the TDR-841 discs is that the first includes defective areas and fingerprints. The dimensions of the defective areas ranges from 0.5 to 1.1 mm and the fingerprints are sized from 65 to 75 micrometers.

The 845 artficially defective test disc is the last and hardest test disc for the error correction mechanism of a drive, containing two layers and four defective areas, two on each layer. The drive managed to read both layers, without any errors and only a slight drop in speed during the second layer. Max reading speed was 8X.

ABEX TDV-541

The TDV-541 is a single sided, dual layer DVD-VIDEO disc, with a capacity of 8.5GB. The disc is based on the TDV-540 series which is designed for inspection and adjustment of DVD-VIDEO players. The disc checks the layer switch operation from layer 0 to layer 1 and also includes test pictures and test signals for DVD sound files. The current TDV-541 also checks the error correcting capabilities of the drive and includes scratches from 0.4 to 3.0 mm.

Excellent performance with the 541 test media. The drive managed to read all the way to the end, producing smooth clean reading.

ABEX TDV-545

The TDV-545 disc is based on the TDV-540 series. It is a single sided, dual layer DVD-VIDEO disc with a capacity of 8.5GB. The TDV-545 includes artificial black dots on the data surface, sized from 0.4 to 1.0 mm. It also has 65 - 75 micrometer fingerprints.

Same performance here as well. Once again, smooth reading all the way to the end.

- Conclusion

Summing up, we can safely say that the LiteOn 165P6S drive has a very good error correction mechanism, reading over all defects on the test discs we threw at it. At worst, there was a short-duration drop in speed which however did not affect performance.