Samsung DVD RW Black (for Dell?) £23.50 + del (merged)

chunter

Ebuyer have sent me through a promo email advertising a 16x Samsung DVD RW with Black fascia for £23.50 + delivery.
Quickfind code : 83669
Link: http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?product_uid=83669

Ideal for Dell's I would have thought.

Going by the offer for the current Dimension 3000, (305-d09306a), Dell want £70.50 for an installed 16 speed DVD writer.

blinky

Yep, Dell rip you off for DVD writers. Normally I would expect to pay £30-35 these days. At least Dell have dropped the prices slightly recently was £80-85.

src

Or for a few pounds more there is LG GSA-4163BA for £31.66 if you do Collect @ Store option at PC World if you live near a PC World, The LG GSA-4163BA has good spec:-
- DVD-RAM 2X
- DVD+R 16x, DVD-R 16X
- DVD+R9 4X, DVD+RW 4X
- DVD-RW 4X
- Read 16X, CD-RW 24X, Read 48X
The PC World one comes with both Beige (Fitted) and Silver Bezels.

http://www.pcworld.co.uk/martprd/product/seo/450370

getofmeland

As a computer engineer, I am afraid that the problem with Dell's are that they require special brackets to fit the equipment on some of their pc's.... And this is why they are able to sell them for a bit more... The other problem, is that if you install it in your machine any warrenty that you have will become void... As many of my clients have found in the past....

blinky

getofmeland wrote:

As a computer engineer, I am afraid that the problem with Dell's are that they require special brackets to fit the equipment on some of their pc's.... And this is why they are able to sell them for a bit more... The other problem, is that if you install it in your machine any warrenty that you have will become void... As many of my clients have found in the past....

If you read the terms of the warranty with Dell it doesn't actually void the warranty. However, they won't cover faults due to the added / changed equipment. (which is reasonable).

Most Dell's do use drive rails but these only cost Dell a small amount of money not the £40-£50 they charge. Sometimes you'll find a spare set of drive rails inside the machines.

mrak

Yeah, sadly Dell's proprietary standard for their equpiment is enough to drive many a techie potty...

Motherboards and graphics cards from other retailers wont fit in a Dell case, and the same is true vice versa. Wait until you need your first replacement power supply!

Searcher2

getofmeland wrote:

As a computer engineer, I am afraid that the problem with Dell's are that they require special brackets to fit the equipment on some of their pc's.... And this is why they are able to sell them for a bit more... The other problem, is that if you install it in your machine any warrenty that you have will become void... As many of my clients have found in the past....

Dell Users..... Do not be put off by this post!!!! I bought an NEC 3540 DVD RW drive after checking out various reviews (about £30) to fit into my Dimension 5100. I was amazed how easy it was to fit. A release catch and the side panel pops out. The screws for it DVD_RW are also provided by Dell on the fascia blank (which you need to clip out before you fit the DVD). Just put 2 screws in the LHS of the drive, pop the DVD-RW into place, put one screw in the RHS of the drive to fix it to the machine. (I think I moved the green jumper over one place on the existing DVD). Connect the power lead which is relatively obvious as it comes off the leads from the one connected to the existsing DVD unit.

As for adding an additional HD drive - it seems even easier - yes you need a
caddy but it is already in the machine. You just need to buy a hard drisk drive and a Serial ATA lead. No need for screws even for this install!

And the warranty is not void by adding your own stuff. I checked this out with Dell 4 years ago when I bought my first Dell. Obviously if you cause damage by installing stuff incorrectly or smash a screwdriver throught he motherboard by mistake Dell will not cover it!

Searcher2

mrak wrote:

Yeah, sadly Dell's proprietary standard for their equpiment is enough to drive many a techie potty...

Motherboards and graphics cards from other retailers wont fit in a Dell case, and the same is true vice versa. Wait until you need your first replacement power supply!

True the motherboards will probably be unique to Dell.... but I just fitted a graphics card bought from any old retailer.... just about to fit an additional hard drive.... I would say it has been a breeze. Maybe I am not techie enough for it to worry me.

welshblob

Well as I have a Dimension 3000 I think this advice is a bit more acurate than some of the postings on this thread. I've replaced the standard CD-RW with an NEC DVD+-RW in my Dimension 3000 no problem and its got standard fittings. The only things which need special brackets are the floppy drive (don't have one and haven't had a need for one) and if you want to add a second hard drive. I'm sure if you look on ebay from time to time these items will pop up at a lower cost than Dell will want you to pay.
Cheers
Rob

deanos

Samsung TS-H552UB 16x16x DVD R/RW IDE Internal OEM Black £23.49 + post

Seems a good price




http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?action=c2hvd19wcm9kdWN0X292ZXJ2aWV3&product_uid=83669

redfox

already posted. It would be helpful if you could search before posting a new offer (although it was only two lines below your post so not much searching was required!)

Will merge with existing thread.