Plextor Corp. CD Drives

The Bottom Line: The reliable, fast-reading PlexWriter 48/24/48A is an excellent all-around drive and a real boon for backup-minded individuals--as long as price is not an issue.

Specs: CD-RW, 48x, 48x, 24x

The Bottom Line: If slow and steady wins the race, the Plextor gets the gold. But though it has redeeming virtues, the PlexWriter was outperformed by lower-rated CD-RW drives.

Specs: CD-RW, 40x, 40x, 12x

The Bottom Line: The PlexWriter 8/8/24U is slim, handsome, and reasonably priced for an external CD-RW travel drive, but its CD-RW write performance is disappointing due to a glitch in the included Roxio Easy CD Creator Basic.

Specs: CD-RW, 24x, 8x, 8x

The Bottom Line: With faster, lower-priced drives in abundance, the PlexWriter is only for those who need the simplest software and stout support.

Specs: CD-RW, 40x, 24x, 10x

The Bottom Line: The PlexWriter is a fast, reasonably priced drive with documentation that novices will appreciate.

Specs: CD-RW, 40x, 16x, 10x

The Bottom Line: The Plextor is fast and functional, and the BUrn-Proof technology is foolproof, even though it takes more time to burn the CD when you're performing other tasks.

Specs: CD-RW, 32x, 12x, 10x

Specs: CD-RW, 52x, 52x, 32x

Specs: CD-ROM, 40x

Specs: CD-ROM, 40x

Specs: CD-RW, 48x, 48x, 24x