Freecom FX-50 DVD+/-RW 4x external drive

Review:
Freecom sent us a lot of cool stuff this year, and this product is no exception. The FX-50 DVD-RW drive is a great external drive that you can attach via USB 2.0 or FireWire interface. This either gives you an extra optical drive for burning CDs or DVDs, or a first drive if you have one of those ultraportable notebooks that doesn't come with a CD or DVD drive.

The external drive is somewhat heavier than we prefer (Freecom also makes a slimmer, more portable version), so we'd recommend this for in-home use instead of carrying it around all the time. Installation was easy, just connect the cable to your computer and you're ready to go. Software installation is only needed if you want to install the bundled software, such as CyberLink's PowerDVD player, or Roxio's EasyCD Creator.

The drive comes in a very sleek black plastic case, which complemented our notebook quite nicely. If you're looking to either add another external optical drive, or you need one for your tiny notebook, check out this model.

Reviewed by Keith Shaw