EmailBest Reviewed
DVD Burners
- Best DVD burner Samsung SH-S223Q *Est. $30
- Best Blu-ray and DVD burner Pioneer BDR-203 *Est. $210
- Best DVD burner with Blu-ray playback Pioneer BDC-2202B5PK *Est. $135
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Best Blu-ray and DVD burner
- Burns Blu-ray Discs
- Good value for a Blu-ray burner
- DVD-RW and CD-R burning disappointing
- No LightScribe support
Pioneer's BDR-203BK is hailed as perhaps the fastest Blu-ray burner on the market. Testers say that it can burn BD-R and BD-R DL discs at up to 8x speed, even on discs not rated to burn that fast. Rewritable Blu-rays can be burned as well, but at a more modest speed of 2x. DVD and CD burning speeds (16x and 32x, respectively) are also somewhat slower than on drives that lack Blu-ray support, but experts say that's common. If you are more interested in a drive for watching movies rather than recording to Blu-ray blank discs, the Pioneer BDC-2202B5PK (*Est. $135) is worth considering. It's a good -- though not great -- performer with standard DVDs and CDs and can play back but not record to Blu-ray Discs.
The Pioneer BDR-203 BK gets favorable and thorough professional reviews from testers at CDRInfo.com and CDFreaks.com. About.com also recommends the Pioneer drive, though the review is general and very short.
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Our Sources
1. CDRInfo.com
The Pioneer BDR-203BK gets an Editor's Choice award at CDRInfo.com. The site's reviewers say it is the fastest Blu-ray burner yet, and can burn BD-R media as fast as 8x. DVD and CD speeds and quality are not as spectacular, but even there CDRInfo.com finds little cause for concern.
Review: Pioneer BDR-203BK, Editors of CDRInfo.com, June 4, 2009
2. About.com
About.com's guide to computer hardware Mark Kyrnin lists his top current Blu-ray drives, and the Pioneer BDR-203 is named as the best Blu-ray burner. His brief description says the drive is the fastest Blu-ray option, and that it is a "solid" performer when dealing with DVD and CD media as well. (Note: ConsumerSearch is owned by About.com, but the two don't share an editorial affiliation.)
Review: Best Desktop Blu-ray Drives, Mark Kyrnin, Feb. 19, 2009
3. CDFreaks.com
Wendy Collins at CDFreaks.com points out that the Pioneer BDR-203BK is, first and foremost, a Blu-ray burner -- write quality and speed in that format are cited as excellent. Blu-ray and DVD movie playback is also praised as "near-silent." However, Collins notes that the drive is slow in reading from or writing to CD media, and that writing to DVD-RW discs could be better.
Review: Pioneer BDR-203BK, Wendy Collins, May 4, 2009
DVD Burners Runners Up:
2 picks by top review sites.
LG Electronics GGC-H20L LightScribe Blu-Ray/HD DVD Combo Drive (Black)
 from Amazon.com New: $145.00
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