Here it is Saturday and we are lucky, because JanS just finished up the BenQ 1640 preview for us. BenQ is working hard making a name for themselves in the optical drive world with some nice writers and some handy tools to go along with them for the enthusiasts out there.
This is an exclusive first look at this latest drive from BenQ. Jan was able to obtain one earlier than normal as they were available in Germany prior to the official release! Way to go Jan! The BenQ DW1640 supports 16x DVD±R, 8x DVD+RW, 6x DVD-RW and 8x DVD+R9 DL writing, so dual layer discs of 8.5Gb can be written. In addition, or at least to the best of our knowledge, this is the worlds first DVD-burner to support the DVD+R9 DL format at 8x. Jan was able to prove this was possible a couple days ago as we reported in this news story.
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Taken from - www.BenQ.com | Performance | [DVD+R DL]
Data Transfer Rate /double layer write: 88.64 Mbit/sec (8X)
[DVD+R/+RW]
Data Transfer Rate /write: 177.28 Mbit/sec (16X)
Data Transfer Rate /rewrite: 88.64 Mbit/sec (8X)
[DVD-R/-RW]
Data Transfer Rate /write: 177.28 Mbit/sec (16X)
Data Transfer Rate /rewrite: 66.48 Mbit/sec (6X)
[DVDROM]
Data Transfer Rate /read: 177.28 Mbit/sec (16X, Max.)Access time: 120 ms
[CD]
Data Transfer Rate /write: 7200 KByte/sec (48X)
Data Transfer Rate /rewrite: 4800 KByte/sec (32X)
Data Transfer Rate /read: 7200 KByte/sec (48X, Max.)
Access time: 120 ms | | Interface | E-IDE/ATAPI | | Supported IDE mode | PIO mode 0/1/2/3/4
DMA mode 0/1/2
UDMA mode 0/1/2 | | Buffer Size | 2 Mbytes | | Writing Mode | [DVD+R/+RW]
DVD Data and Video
[CD-R/-RW]
Track-at-Once, Disc-at-Once, Multisession, Packet Writing (fixed & variable packet), CD Digital Audio, Direct-Over-Write on CD-RW, Test Write | | Disc Size | [DVD] 120 mm disc
[CD] 80 and 120 mm discs | | Disc Formats | [DVD]
DVD+R DL 8.5GB, DVD+R 4.7GB, DVD+RW 4.7GB, DVD-R 4.7GB (closed session), DVD-RW 4.7GB (closed session), DVD-Video, DVD-5, DVD-9, DVD-10, DVD-18
[CD]
CD-DA, CD-ROM XA (m1, m2f1/m2f2), CD-R, CD-RW, Bootable CD, Photo CD (single & multi-session), Video CD, Super Video CD, CD-Extra, Mixed-mode CD, CD-Text | | Audio Performance | Signal-to-Noise ratio: 76 dB min.
Number of stereo channels: 2
Analog audio line output: 0.75 VRMS at 470 Ohm
Analog headphone output: 0.6 VRMS at 34 Ohm
CD sampling frequency: 44.1 KHz | | Power Requirement | +5V± 5%, ripple: 100mVpp
+12V ± 10%, ripple: 200mVpp | | Environment Conditions | Operating temperature:
5 0C~50 0C (410F~1220F) at humidity of 8-80% RH
Non-operating temperature:
-40 0C~60 0C (-40 0F~140 0F) at humidity: 5%~95% RH | | Reliability Characteristics | MTBF: 125,000 POH (20%)
Non-recoverable read error < 1 block in 1012 bits (CD and DVD) | | Physical Characteristics | Dimension: 146 X 42 X 178 mm (W x H x D)
Weight: 820 g | | Firmware Update | Flash memory upgradeable | | Panel Design | Front side:
open/close button and read/write status indicator LED
Rear side:
40-pin ATA-2 dual row flat-cable connector, 4-pin DC power connector, 3-position device jumpers, digital audio output and analog audio output | | OS Compatibility | Windows XP, 2000, ME, 98SE | | Minimum System Requirements | IBM PC compatible
Pentium III 550MHz CPU
128MB DRAM
100MB free HDD space for CD/DVD recording related software installation
1GB free HDD space for CD Image recording (10GB for DVD authoring) is recommended. | | |
This drive is interesting also in that it features the new ventilation and cooling system that is designed to keep the drive cool during it's high speed tasks. The feature is called the Air Flow Cooling System or AFCS and Jan has some nice photos of the venting and also goes into a lot more detail about it in the article. This is going to be a great preview to read and you can find it on this page.
Please make sure to say hello to Jan and thanks for the timely review. Also, don't be afraid to give him your questions or comments on this or any of the articles we provide here at the site. We want to make sure that your satisfied with them! The best place to do that is The Club CDFreaks Forum and Jan has already started a thread here for the BenQ 1640 preview.
Source: CD Freaks
