External Power Adapter.
Yes - I use it with Disk Utility and Toast Titanium 10 with no issues.
There is more to speeds than just “hey, this number is bigger than that number”. External drives need some sort of chipset to convert USB signals to IDE signals (because these drives are just normal internal burners pre-mounted by the companies in external enclosures).
Most USB optical drives struggle to keep up with 16X, so I can only imagine at 20X you’ll possibly be seeing some issues, especially if you have a lot of other USB devices.
See this thread for example to see someone having issues at 16X with this burner:
http://club.cdfreaks.com/f44/sony-drx840u-241971/
KEEP IN MIND-- faster does NOT mean better! The speed difference between 12X and 16X and 20X is getting pretty tiny. Usually faster burning is LOWER QUALITY. There is a “Sweet spot” for most discs around 8x-12x anyway, so I would highly suggest NOT even trying this drive-- or ANY DVD burner-- at 20x. (I am not saying all 20X burns are worthless, or no 20x burner can create a useful disc-- just that there is such a thing as burning too fast)
And any DVD burner will do anything a player would, so yes, you can watch DVDs or play CDs. Not sure if it comes with all the software you need, but the hardware is physically capable of it. (pretty much any computer has CD playing software)
As for region switching-- you COULD set each drive to a different region, but there are programs like AnyDVD that do it all in software invisibly.. you might want to look into that as opposed to lugging an extra drive around.
it could be how your computer handles the different types of connections - the general rule for optical drives is that there should be no difference between a usb 2.0 optical drive and a firewire drive. I would think that Plextor is suspect or the pc you are using mishandles USB data rates.
I have this exact model. I purchased it a long time ago (years) and I still use it today to burn games and such. I have never used the Dual Layer function but it has outperformed to my expectations. I am also able to change the booktype on this drive. I’ve burned hundreds and hundreds of DVD’s and CD’s on this drive and it still performs.
On a down side; this drive can get pretty loud when burning at full speeds. Also, burning may become erroneous when burning at high speeds. There were reports I found of an exceptionally high error rate on disks compared to other external drives.
Yep. This thing kicks max booty.
Have been using one awhile with the desktop.
Just gaffed two more for my laptop and a gift.
40 bucks shipped is a solid woot.
*PS… It works with Mac. It plays (CD’s, DVD’s, etc) as well as records. Has external power cord. Kinda big but mine has been banged around a bit and has never failed. You can buy DVD media reasonably cheap nowadays.
So is there a usable IDE or SATA drive inside?
I totally just bought one for my netboook. 
Ps. - I’ m drunk!! 
[QUOTE=gosh7001, post:24, topic:214683]
it could be how your computer handles the different types of connections - the general rule for optical drives is that there should be no difference between a usb 2.0 optical drive and a firewire drive. I would think that Plextor is suspect or the pc you are using mishandles USB data rates.
[/quote]
you are probably right…to quote plextor:
The external PX-750UF features a dual interface with Hi-Speed USB and IEEE 1394 (Firewire), enabling users to share a single external high-performance DVD/CD burner among multiple Apple® Macintosh® and Microsoft Windows-based PCs. Burst data transfer rates of 480 Mbps (USB) or 400 Mbps (Firewire) allow a user to burn a 4.7 GB DVD+R disc in approximately six minutes. The PX-750 drives feature a 2 MB buffer and Buffer Underrun Proof Technology to prevent buffer underrun errors and allow multi-tasking.
so, according to that, the usb should be faster than the firewire…i think the plextor product is the best quality.. i have an LG external that is very reliable for double layer writing… i have not had good luck with the sony brand.. the plextor firmware can be upgraded and the website offers plextools for download.
this sony is probably good for the price, but it is considered a discontinued model.
for MAC, no. For a mac on the other hand, yes this will work.
I have one of these and it has worked well for me for a fairly long time, i would buy it again for this price
[QUOTE=bpr2, post:31, topic:214683]
for MAC, no. For a mac on the other hand, yes this will work.
[/quote]
yeah. that made no sense whatsoever! this would be perfect for the macbook air. they’re pretty much useless without an external DVD burner anyway! it’s like “hey guys! i got a laptop that can fit in an envelope but now i gotta get an external DVD drive thats bigger than the laptop itself in order to play my own movies! brilliant huh?!”
I own it…
I would recommend it to someone that has a fried internal, a laptop… to anyone that can find a use for it.
It’s a really nice drive…
Period.
[QUOTE=craighansen, post:28, topic:214683]
So is there a usable IDE or SATA drive inside?
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if you are looking for one to put inside of your rig. this one is cheaper, but not external like this one on woot is.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106282
and it is 22x with lightscribe. this is still a good deal though.
[QUOTE=nicodemus4802, post:33, topic:214683]
yeah. that made no sense whatsoever! this would be perfect for the macbook air. they’re pretty much useless without an external DVD burner anyway! it’s like “hey guys! i got a laptop that can fit in an envelope but now i gotta get an external DVD drive thats bigger than the laptop itself in order to play my own movies! brilliant huh?!”
[/quote]
MAC: http://www.birds-eye.net/definition/m/mac-mandatory_access_control.shtml
Make sense now??
Remember Apple’s slogan: If we don’t sell it to you and overcharge you double, you’ll never know if it works!
Why would you buy a computer and not know what peripherals work with it? I thought macs were supposed to be easy to use.
As P.T. Barnum used to say, “There’s an Apple customer born every second!”
Anyone know if this will ship by Smartpost or another service? I need to know so I can use the correct address.
[QUOTE=jessiebyrd004, post:3, topic:214683]
There are some pretty good reviews on Buzzillions.
http://www.buzzillions.com/dz_1970909_sony_drx_840u_external_20x_dvd_rw_multi_reviews
Now you just need the newest Nero (I think it’s Nero 9 now) and your’e all set.
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I have one of these at work. Great drive - never had an issue with any disk or burning app I threw at it.
And if you want Nero - check out Gizmodo’s way of getting it free…
http://i.gizmodo.com/5152222/gadget-deals-of-the-day-hobomodo-edition-freebies-only
I have one of these also, bought in 2005 or so. It’s okay although I have burned movies using it that wouldn’t play on my DVD player without freezing. To be fair, I guess it could be the fault of the DVD player or the media used. After 6 months of trying different media and even testing with a different DVD player and still having intermittent problems, I got a Plextor internal and now just have this hooked up for easy copying as the source drive.