For the SBC-04D1S-U's software bundle, ASUS has turned to CyberLink. The CD that comes with the drive contains a stripped down version of the CyberLink DVD Suite which includes Power2Go, PowerBackup, InstantBurn and PowerDVD.
CyberLink Power2Go 6 LE - Power2Go is the main disc burning program included with the SBC-04D1S-U. With this software, users can create their own CD's and DVD's, copy and erase discs and rip audio CD's to WMA or WAV files. Power2Go also offers enhanced security features, allowing you to password protect and encrypt the files on your discs.
CyberLink PowerBackup 2 - If you're looking for a quick and easy way to backup your data, PowerBackup is the answer. Depending on your needs, PowerBackup can do full, differential, and incremental backups as well as fast stream-to-disc archiving.
Backup jobs can be scheduled to run at regular intervals so the data is always protected. PowerBackup also offers more advanced features like file filtering, compression and password protection.
CyberLink InstantBurn 5 - InstantBurn is CyberLink's packet writing software. Like Roxio's Drag-to-Disc or Nero's InCD, it allows you to use your CD, DVD or BD writer as if it was another hard drive or a huge floppy disk. Once formatted, you can cut, copy, and paste or rename files and folders on a CD-RW, DVD±RW or BD-RE disc.
CyberLink PowerDVD 7.3 - CyberLink's PowerDVD is one of the more popular software DVD players on the market right now. Along with support for DVD's, it can be used to play back Blu-ray Discs and other high-def formats including H.264, HD MPEG-2, and WMV-HD. With its support for BD-Live, PowerDVD also gives you the ability to access additional content via the Internet.
Unfortunately, the version of PowerDVD bundled with the SBC-04D1S-U only supports 2 speaker output. If you want to take advantage of movies encoded with Dolby Digital or DTS, you'll need to buy the retail version of PowerDVD Ultra.
While small in size, ASUS's Blu-ray combo delivers a good number of features. Along with a great looking design, the SBC-04D1S-U offers some of the fastest reading and writing speeds available on a portable unit. The drive is capable of 8x DVD±R, 8x DVD+RW, 6x DVD-RW, 6x DVD±R DL and 5x DVD-RAM writing speeds and a maximum DVD read speed of 8x. More importantly, it can read Blu-ray Discs at speeds as high as 4.8x. The SBC-04D1S-U also includes features like a 4MB buffer, bus-powered USB 2.0 interface and a software bundled from CyberLink, but lacks bitsetting support for single layer DVD+R and DVD+RW media. Even then, the ASUS SBC-04D1S-U scores a solid 9 out of 10 for its features.
