MSI XA52P SATA DVD/CD-RW Combo Review

Today we turn our attention to the innovation at hand: we’re talking about the first DVD drive with SATA interface. The surprising fact is that it doesn’t come from a traditional drive producer like Toshiba, Sony or Pioneer. Nope, the trailblazer this time is MSI with the XA52P. We took a first look at it for you.

…We view the market launch of the XA 52P as a DVD/CD-RW combo solution as a reasonable compromise. A simple DVD-ROM seems rather banal by now, since it costs only a little more to add the option of burning CDs. To top it off, the DVD drive proved to be quite a wizard at reading, often leaving the burners that we previously tested in the dust.

The drive’s compact size makes it suitable for practically any use and the three interchangeable covers add a bit of eye candy for modding enthusiasts, too. All in all, a product that we can recommend - as long as you use a motherboard with an Intel 865/875/848 chipset - the XA52P doesn’t yet work with other SATA controllers, and so we have to sit tight for SATA II with ATAPI support.

MSI’s DVD Drive Gets The SATA Connection @ Tom’s Hardware Guide