Along with smaller cable size, one of the biggest benefits of Serial ATA is its ease of installation. Because it uses a point to point connection, setting jumpers has become a thing of the past. In most cases, installation is as simple as plugging in the SATA and power cables and turning the computer on. Needless to say, it took only a couple of minutes to install the BC-1205PT in our test computer. After making sure that the drive was recognized by Windows, I was ready to start installing the software.
Software Installation:
As I mentioned earlier, the BC-1205PT comes with a CD full of software from CyberLink. If you have autorun enabled, the menu pictured below will automatically come up when you insert the disc.
You can view information on the different applications in the software bundle by clicking on the menu buttons. Otherwise, you can start the setup process by clicking the "Install Now" button. After picking your language of choice, you'll be presented with a number of installation options.
From here you can choose to install PowerDVD, Power2Go, PowerProducer, PowerBackup or InstantBurn. Simply select the components you want and click next a few times. Once the files are copied over, you can start burning your own discs.
The Documentation:
The BC-1205PT doesn't offer much in the way of documentation. The closest thing to a manual is the drive's "Quick Installation Guide". This small, fold out guide is broken up into 20 different languages with each language getting about a page worth of instructions. While these instructions take the user step by step through the installation process, the small size of the diagrams keeps them from being very useful. Also, if you're looking for things like the BC-1205PT's specs or system requirements, you'll have to check the back of the box or visit ASUS's website. You won't find that information in the guide.
Like the other ASUS drives we've reviewed, the BC-1205PT was very easy to install. Even though Blu-ray is a relatively new technology, there were no problems getting the drive or the software installed and working correctly. However, the less than stellar documentation might not be user friendly enough for those new to upgrading their computer. With this in mind, I give the installation a 7 out of a possible 10.
