Page 1 of Freecom External DVD+/-RW Drive for £169

Useful for anybody who, like me, only has a laptop. Price includes VAT but not delivery.

http://www.dabs.com/uk/productView.htm?quicklinx=2RV9

I`m no expert on these things, but when I needed a dvd-writer for my Shuttle PC I bought a 5 1/4 encloser from PC Next Day For example.

Then you can buy any writer that you like, stick it in the encloser and probably save around £40 on the freecom one. Then when you want to upgrade, you buy just the writer again.

Like I said, I`m no expert, but mine works perfectly and looks good too!!

Does this work with USB version 1?
Or would I need a different enclosure?

Thanks

As far as I`m aware Usb 2 is backward compatible. So it will work fine but just a have a slower transfer rate than USB 2.0 would have.

Hope that helps. :)

Thanks a lot for that link. I have been looking at caddies but had not found one this cheap.

As for backward compatibility, I do not think it is backward compatible if it says 2.0 and says nothing about USB 1.0 / 1.1.

I bought this Tsunami 2.5 inch HDD caddy for GBP 23.49 (so that I could use the hard disk drive from my old, non-functioning laptop as an external drive with my new laptop) and it would not work with my USB 1.1 socket. It was previously advertised as being USB 1.1 backward compatible but they have now changed the advertisement as this is not the case.

Some products are backward compatible, for example the Phillips Jackrabbit (which is a small DVD-ROM / CD-RW drive that also works with TVs and hi-fi`s). The manual for the Phillips Jackrabbit (which I downloaded off their website when I was considering buying this product) states that it will work with both USB 1.1 and 2.0, although the manual clearly states that you will not be able to play DVDs with the 1.1 connection as it is far too slow.

So, if I were you, I would only buy products that clearly state they are USB 1.1 compliant (or e-mail the company to check to first before buying if it is not stated).

Hope that helps.

This item was edited on Thursday, 20th November 2003, 12:37

Sorry, accidentally posted the same message twice.

This item was edited on Thursday, 20th November 2003, 12:30