LaCie add external DVD-RW drive to their lineup

LaCie today announced they will unveil the first external combination DVD drive with FireWire connectivity at Apple Expo, Paris, between September 26 - 30. The new DVDRW combines the functionalities of DVD-R, DVD-RW and CD-RW drives.

The LaCie DVDRW drive records 4.7Gb DVD-R General Use discs at 2x speed (2.6Mb/sec) and to 4.7Gb rewritable DVD discs (-RW) at 1x speed. It provides 6x (7.8Mb/sec) read performance for DVD-R and DVD-ROM discs, which is approximately twice the speed of the fastest current CD writers. Smaller files can also be stored on lower-cost 700Mb CD-Rs at 8x speed or on CD-RW discs at 4x speed, while CD playback is at 24x.

Application area
DVD-R General Use discs can be played back on most DVD-ROM drives and home DVD players. Once the DVD-R disc is written it becomes either a DVD-ROM or a DVD-Video disc.
Because it cannot be erased or altered, the high-capacity, write-once DVD General Use media offers secure, removable storage. DVD-R offers around 7 times the storage capacity of conventional CD-R media.

LaCie say a DVD-RW disc is also the perfect tool for video projects, software development or backup of hard disk drives as recorded data can constantly be updated.  In addition, being fitted with a FireWire interface, the drive can be transferred between computers without having to switch them off.

The drive is also a universal reader and can read: CD-ROM, CD-Audio, CD-R, CD-RW and Video-CD discs, as well as DVD-R and DVD-ROM discs.

Availability and pricing
The drive will be available in October for 763. Including all cables, manuals, the software suite (PrimoDVD and the LaCie Recording Utilities), a 4.7Gb DVD-R disc, and a 4.7Gb DVD-RW disc.