The Artec Dual DVDR/RW Drive
A Quality DVDR/RW for Less

By, Jeff Bouton
March 17, 2004

CD/DVD Performance Tests - Artec Dual DVDR/RW Drive
It's NERO Time!

Ahead software, the makers of Nero Burning ROM 6, have an excellent selection of free utilities to test the functions of various types of optical drives.  Each of these small applications perform a number of specific tasks that show us what each drive is capable of.  In the next section we ran several of these tests on the Artec Dual DVDR/RW Drive and included the results the PLEXTOR PX-708UF drive for comparison where applicable.  Please note that in each test, the Green line represents Transfer Rates while the Yellow Line represents the drives Rotation Speed.


Nero CD-DVD Speed - CD Data Test:

In our first run of Nero CD-DVD Speed we'll focus our efforts on standard CD-ROM read performance.  With this benchmark, we loaded a 703MB data disk full of MP3s in the drive and let CD-DVD Speed run through its cycle of tests.

Artec DVDR/RW
PLEXTOR PX-708UF

The Artec drive offered comparable overall performance with slightly more CPU utilization than the Plextor model.  What was interesting, however, was how the graph was more erratic than the Plextor drive.

Nero CD-DVD Speed - Movie Playback Test:

In the next two tests we focused on the drive's DVD performance.  Each drive is configured to perform differently based on whether a DVD movie or DVD data disk is inserted.  Our first test will focus on performance with DVD movie media.  For this test we used a copy of Underworld.

Artec DVDR/RW
PLEXTOR PX-708UF

While the two graphs show a very different pattern, it is consistent with what we've seen with DVD drives in past reviews.  Generally, manufacturers tend to adopt one of two playback methods.  One method is to keep the drive running at a constant speed.  This is the case with the Artec drive where rotation remained steady at 3X while the transfer rates rise and fall as the movie progresses.  The other method, which Plextor employs, is to focus on a steady transfer rate while throttling the rotational speed of the drive during playback.  We feel this is the more efficient configuration, allowing the drive to run slower and quieter while sustaining adequate transfer rates for smooth video playback.

Nero CD-DVD Speed - DVD Data Test:

In the next test we swapped out the movie DVD for a DVD data disk containing 3.9GBs of AVI files.  This picture should be notably different compared to movie playback.
 

Artec DVDR/RW
PLEXTOR PX-708UF

With the DVD Data read test the two drives offered similar average speeds, with the Artec having slower overall seek times compared to the Plextor model.  With CPU utilization, the Artec Dual DVD was better overall, but this was expected since the external USB model would require more CPU utilization.
 

CD-R/DVD+R Write Tests & Conclusion