Over time, LaCie has come up with a very large number of accessories for computing systems, especially NAS units, external HDDs and other various peripherals, most of which combine advanced functions with an exquisite external design. And that's exactly the case with the company's latest announcement, namely the d2 USB / FireWire writer, whose main selling point is not represented by its design, but rather by its amazing disc-writing capabilities.

Hence, the d2 is able to write information on Blu-ray recordable (BD-R) discs at speeds of up to 8x, but these very high data transfer rates are only achieved when the peripheral is connected to the host computer via a FireWire interface. Otherwise, in the case of USB 2.0, the speed is restricted to 6x, while in the case of re-writable discs (BD-RE format), the speed goes down to 2x.

The read speeds for BD discs complement the writing speeds, since we're talking about 4x to 8x (limited to 6x with USB2.0) for BD-ROM discs and 2x for AACS BD-ROM (content protected).

Of course, the d2 also works quite well with older disc formats, attaining write speeds of up to 16x (DVD±R), 8x (DVD±R DL), 6x (DVD±RW), 48x (CD-R) and 24x (CD-RW). Reading speeds are also very high, as follows: 16x (DVD±R), 8x (DVD±RW and DVD±R DL), 48x (CD-R and CD-ROM) and 32x (CD-RW).

The device from LaCie will be quite easy to carry around, since it measures 172.8 x 44.8 x 251.1 mm, at a weight of around 1400 grams. Indeed, it's quite expensive (450 US dollars), but given the speeds mentioned above, plus the very generous sales package - d2 Blu-ray Drive; FireWire cable; USB 2.0 cable; external power supply; LaCie DVD-ROM (Windows)/CD-ROM (Mac) with User Manual and software; Quick Install Guide - it's quite worth it.


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