Jeff;
I have an external usb Acer CD-RW that I use on housecalls.
It works okay, but a little slow.
You might want to consider one of the newer Usb 2.0 drives
or one with a firewire interface. I believe the usb 1.1 cdrws are limited
to 4x write speed. Usb 2.0 drives are selling now at 24x write speed
Here is an example of a usb 2.0 drive:
http://www.compgeeks.com/details.asp?invtid=crx1750v-a2
The link above indicates that This Sony drive is backward compatible and
will work on usb1.1
I would assume this would be true of all usb 2.0 drives.
Unless you have a very new computer, it probably doesn't have
usb 2.0 but you can get a usb 2.0 pci card for around $25
 Firewire pci cards are also available.
I've also seen firewire adapter enclosures to use a regular
internal cd-rw via firewire. Might be a good option if you intend to use it
only on one computer, considering internal drives can be had for
 as low as $39.95 after rebates. Looks like firewire is good at least up to
32x.
 I've seen some Iomega Predator 4x4x6x CD-RWs showing up on computer
surplus sites for cheap. www.pricewatch.com shows one for 52.40 shipped.
Don't know much about them or how reliable they are.
Or type "usb cdrw" into an Ebay search and you will find a slug of drives
and enclosures.

 <>< Larry Fisk
         Fisk Computers
           Fruitvale, Idaho

----- Original Message -----
From: "Jeff Calvert" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Friday, September 20, 2002 2:56 PM
Subject: [PCBUILD] External CD-RW purchase


> Any suggestions for a quality/reliable external CD-RW drive that I can use
> for backups?
> I would like to stay around $150(USD).

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