I'm deciding b/w the NEC ND-3500A & BenQ DW1620A as my 1st DVD-RW drive. Since I ONLY own a laptop, I much rather get an internal drive w/ an external enclosure. The BenQ looks to be in close competition with the NEC and if the DW1620A Pro is soon to be released, I might even get that.

I'm just wondering how well will the BenQ perform in an external enclosure that has the Prolific Chipset. I know how well this enclosure does with NEC ND-3500A , but not sure about the BenQ. It is capable of writing close to 16X with very good read/write quality?

At the moment, I'm just researching which drive will be best for me...

Current DW1620 with some to be release B7P9 firmware = DW1620 Pro. No difference whatsoever. BenQs are picky about the enclosure you use them with.

i have NEC 3500 and Benq 1620, love them both but Benq is a little bit better
Have nad no problems with the NEC 3500 in usb external case but havent tried the benq yet.

I know I can update the DW1620 to "Pro" status, but not sure where to get the firmware flasher for BenQ drives. Since I've never flashed a drive before, I'm a little skeptical doing it by myself. Plus, I got time to wait for the DW1620Pro to come out since I'm buying the drive in a month or so.

Hef, what chipsets for ext. enclosures do BenQ drives do/not like (Prolific, Ali, Oxford 911)? Also pigpenz, do you know the chipset which is inside your usb ext. case? Here is the enclosure I like to get: http://dealsonic.com/plpmblcousb22.html. This drive seems to work well with the NEC ND-3500, but not sure abt the BenQ drive.

i also want to know this, because i have an enclosure but it doesnt work with benq.

DVDfreak, what brand/chipset is your enclosure? I'll make sure I don't get that one if I do buy a BenQ

Can anyone recommend an enclosure (preferrably in the UK) that doesn't have problems with the Benq DW1620?

From what i've seen on forums since i bought this drive, it seems to be one of the best so I'd really like to keep it and get another enclosure that will work with it.

If all else fails, will the Benq work perfectly if I install it internally?

Does anyone know if it can be fitted vertically?

Enclosures based on the PL-3507 chipset with latest firmware works fine for me with BenQ.

But due to firmware limitations of the BenQ it maxes out at 14x reading/writing. Flashing it with the firmware of the external BenQ version fixes this problem, but voids the warranty...

Thanks OC,

Apologies for my ignorance, could you explain how I flash the drive, I've tried downloading the external firmware but when i run it it says "Drive not supported". Do I need to use a different tool for flashing?

Yes, check on of the stickies to page for unofficial firmwares.

Download a CVT firmware file as well as the firmware flasher to flash it.