Samsung SE-W164

The Samsung SE-W164 burner is a portable drive equipped with a USB2.0 connection, with maximum speeds comparable to those exhibited by the best models currently on the market: capable of writing at 16x on single-layer DVDs of both DVD + R and DVD-R, achieves 8x speed on DVD + R Double Layer media, while DVD-R Dual Layer will still be written at 4X speed. Also noteworthy is the writing potential on rewritable media, equal to 8X for DVD + RW and 6X for DVD-RW.

The box is black, equipped with a central aluminum strip that runs along the front and side section of the drive. The drive has only the USB2.0 / 1.1 connection; in the rear section there is also the connector for the power supply and a button for switching off.

Included in the box are some Ahead software, including Nero Express 6, InCD4 and Nero Showtime. On the official website the drive is certified as “lead free”, it is also equipped with some proprietary Samsung technologies that can improve reliability when writing (Speed ​​Adjustment Technology, Double OPC Technology, Tilt Actuator Compensation Technology, Buffer Under Run Free Technology) or to write on damaged or slightly distorted media (Tilt Actuator Compensation Technology, Automatic Ball Balancing System) . It is also possible to use a LiveUpdate utility to update the firmware on the burner.

Tests and conclusions
CDRInfo has tested the drive in question through a rather consistent suite of benchmarks. In reading tests the drive defends itself quite well, demonstrating a slightly higher ripping speed than competing models, and an above-average error correction capacity.

Write times go down to 5 minutes and 49 seconds, achieved with BenQ and Mitsubishi Chemical DVD-R media, and 5 minutes and 33 seconds on Ricoh and Optodisk DVD + R media. The double-layer discs were not able to reach the maximum speed of 8x even on certified media (problem attributable to a too young firmware): the Mitsubishi Chemical 8x DVD + R Double Layer disc was closed in about 22 minutes , while 27 are required for the DVD-R Dual Layer equivalent. It should be noted that the Overburning tests on DVD media gave negative results.

The site recommended the product, based on the excellent results obtained in the speed tests in reading and writing, but also thanks to the competitive price at which it is sold: $ 89.90 according to the official Samsung price list, but it is also possible to find it online at less.

Giovanni Fedele