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NEC ND2500ABLK
DVD±RW Writer
As low as  
In the overcast, grey, cold days of March, there’s nothing better than to curl up at home with your favorite DVD — or burn one of your own on your PC. So this week, it’s time for some DVD Madness. You’ll find out how to buy the best DVD burners for your PC at the best price, software for ripping and burning DVDs, how to buy a great DVD player, and see what’s new on DVD. How to do it all?

Get a Burner

It’s easier then ever — and cheaper than ever — to create your own DVDs on your PC. You’ll find high-quality, low-priced units hovering around the $100 range.

If you’re looking for high quality at a bargain rate, check out the most popular product on all of PriceGrabber, the NEC ND2500ABLK DVD±RW Writer for as low as . It writes to both DVD –R and +R media, which means that you’re covered no matter which way the technology may head. And it writes to both standards at 8X speed. Additionally, it features a DVD-ROM read speed of 12X, and a maximum 40X CD-ROM speed. It of course burns CD-Rs and CD-RWs as well, and burns them at 32X. The drive has an indistinguishable twin at a similar price and the same specs, the NEC ND-2500A DVD±RW Writer for as low as . You won’t go wrong if you buy either.

Both drives require that you roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty inside your computer’s case. But maybe you don’t want to go through the installation hassle. Or perhaps you like the convenience of being able to take the drive with you, from computer to computer. If so, get an external DVD burner. Make sure to get one that supports both FireWire and USB 2.0 connections for maximum flexibility (and speed). The Sony Dual DVDRW (+)8x4x12 (-)4x4x12 Combo CDRW 40X External Usb & Firewire for as low as fits the bill. It’s a solid, stylish unit, and installation is almost mind-boggingly simple: Plug in the power supply, attach it to your computer via the FireWire or USB cable, and you’re ready to go. It’s not as fast an internal drive, with DVD burning speeds of 4X for –R, and 8X for +R, but its convenience and portability make it worth the price.

Another solid bet is the QPS DVD Burner for as low as . It features 8X speeds for both –R and +R as well as 40X CD read speeds.

Burn Your Own DVDs

Once you’ve gotten a DVD burner, you’ll need burning software. Here’s where things get a little bit sticky. Previous versions and some existing versions of 321 Studios DVD XCopy included a DVD ripping engine that let you make copies of any DVD, copyright-protected or not, so that you could make backup copies of your DVDs. But a court recently ruled that the company had to remove portions of its ripping engine so that it can’t copy copyrighted DVDs. To make things more confusing, existing copies of the software with the complete ripping engine are legally allowed to be sold by retail and online outlets, so if you buy one of those, you’ll be able to rip any DVD. Software called DVD XCopy Xpress RF and DVD XCopy Platinum RF don’t include the complete ripping engine. Other copies might or might not include it. No matter which version you end up with, though, all versions can rip and make copies of non-copyright protected DVDs.

And for burning DVDs and CDs, you can’t do any better than the Ahead Software Nero 6 Ultra Edition CD/DVD Burning Suite for as low as . I’ve been using this software for years and turn to it time and again for burning — you won’t go wrong with it.

Get the Media

You’ll need blank media to record to — and the good news here is that blank, writable DVD prices have plummeted, and can now be routinely had at well under $2 per DVD. Get a pack of 50 Verbatim blank DVDs for as low as or a 20 pack of Verbatim blank DVDs for as low as .

Get a DVD Player

The whole point of burning DVDs, of course, is to watch DVDs. There’s no room in this column for a complete guide to buying a DVD player (you’ll get one in a future column, though), so for now, stick with the top sellers at PriceGrabber. If you want a combo DVD recorder and DVD player, get the Panasonic DMR-E80H DVD Recorder for as low as . It features an 80 gigabyte hard drive so you can store hours of programming, and offers VBR (variable bit rate) technology so that you can record up to six hours on a single-sided DVD-RAM disc. Its “Time Slip” technology lets you watch a program while you’re recording it, and it offers progressive-scan video output for film-quality images on high-definition and HD-ready TVs. It’ll also play pretty much any disc you put into it, including DVD-Video, DVD-R, DVD-RAM, music CDs, CD-Rs, CD-RWs, and MP3 CDs.

If you’re just looking for a player, not a recorder, go for the Sony DVPNS725P DVD Player for as low as . It has offers Dolby Digital, progressive- scan video output for film-quality images on high-definition and HD-ready TVs, and like the Panasonic DMR-E80H DVD Recorder will play pretty much any kind of disk you put into it. There are a whole lot of extras as well, including TV Virtual Surround, 4 Surround Modes, a Digital Video Enhancer, Digital Video EQ, and Custom Picture Mode.

Buy DVDs

Finally, buy some of the top-selling movies on DVD. Top-seller on PriceGrabber is the Governator, Arnold Schwarzenegger in T2 The Extreme DVD Edition for as low as $4.99. If your taste in entertainment runs to the opposite end of the spectrum, relive the first five seasons of Sex and the City. Families will instead want a copy of Oscar-winning Finding Nemo for as low as $7.49.