Hewlett Packard dvd1040i DVD-RAM Burner

Pros: Seems to read and write every kind of disk I could imagine.
Cons: None that I can see.

My external CD burner failed and I wanted to get a dual layer burner to store more on a DVD. I'd also heard about LightScribe and thought it would be cool to have that feature. But I was having trouble finding a drive that could actually write all the ...

Pros: Easy installation
Cons: Failed to make useful Video DVD's or CD's. Nero software only good for 30 days.

Installed on a Windows XP PC. No problems during installation, but 3 of the first 4 DVDs I tried to create failed to burn for unspecified reasons, and the 4th was not readable on a DVD player. I reinstalled the Nero software after the first failure, but it made no difference.

Pros: Software works pretty good, Fast burn speed.
Cons: does not last that long with moderate use. 120 or so movie backups.

I bought this mainly for storage and backups. Have had the unit about a year, and it died after about 120 DVD Backups.
Lightscribe is pretty cool but it is very slow and it makes you wonder if it causes wear and tear on the write led.

Pros: I have not come up with any pros.
Cons: Poor install instructions. Missing software disk. Poor customer support.

The installation instructions referred to an installation CD. The only CD found in the box was Nero 7. I did install that.

Could you specify the precise file name and date of the Microsoft driver required?

I could not read a commercial DVD on the new DVD drive. Its error message stated the the proper CODEC could not be found.

The Web site was of no help.

I sent 40 minutes calling customer support, mostly on hold while they twice transferred me to wrong departments. I found no one who could even understand my problem.