Plextor PX-S2410TU

Review Pages

1. Introduction
2. Data CD Tests
3. Error Correction Tests
4. CloneCD Reading Tests
5. DAE Tests
6. CDR Tests
7. Writing Quality Tests
8. HS-RW Writing Tests
9. Conclusion

Plextor PX-S2410T portable CD-RW drive - Page 9

Conclusion

Positive (+)	Negative (-)
- 24/10/24 portable drive - Attractive and stylish design - USB2.0 supported interface - Buffer Underun protection/ PoweRec - Complete retail package - Fast CD-R reader - Low seek times - Supports 99min audio ripping - Supports overburning up to 98min - Supports CD-Text (reading/writing) - Low jitter on audio CDs - Supports reading of SubChannel data - 2 Years warranty	- HS-RW reading speed lower than 24X - Low DAE speed (8X) - Error correction needs improvement - Slow CloneCD reader - Partially supports SD2.x versions - Does not fully support audio protected discs - Bad DAE quality with dusted/scratched CDR media

The Plextor PX-S2410TU offers nothing less than its specifications state. Besides the very stylish and robust metal design, the drive comes in a complete retail package with all the essentials for easy usage and fast connection through USB1.0/2.0 interface.

The Plextor PX-S2410TU supports the 24X Z-CLV maximum recording speed for the CD-R format. The PoweRec feature and the Buffer underun protection are available to assure the success of your recordings. Our tests showed that the current implementation of the Z-CLV technology does not offer the drive the lowest writing times for the 24X category, but the writing quality seems to be high. The drive writes accurately to the inserted media and produces low jitter values on audio CDs.

In the reading part, the drive is fast and the reading speed reached the supported 24X with pressed and CD-R media. The seek times are also low, but the reading accuracy could be definitely higher, as well as the ability to correct possible faulty bits on defected and scratched media. (Almedio Abex). However, it seems that our aged physically defected audio disc was very hard for the drive to read, since it gave a read error by the end of the ripping process. The drive also supports the 16X CAV reading speed for the HS-RW format, although we expected a higher performance.

The supported DAE speed is locked to 8X but it could be higher. The drive can also handle Cactus Data Shield 200 protected audio discs with the appropriate software but does not recognize the tracks of a Key2Audio disc. The reading /writing of CD-Text on audio discs is also supported.

The CloneCD users will be partially satisfied from the drive's abilities to create working backups of SafeDisc v.2 protected titles, but the reading speed is generally low.

The PlexWriter PX-S2410TU left us a with positive overall impression. It could be safely considered as an alternative solution for your daily burning and reading needs, connected to your notebook or desktop PC. The drive is priced at $175-185, and remember that Plextor offers users 2 year warranty for the drive. For more information you can visit www.plextor.com.