TDK’s TB150U is a slim USB 2.0 Blu-ray writer that, like Asus’ offering, is incredibly portable. A two-pronged USB cable is used for power, meaning you don’t need to lug about an external brick.
The TB150U lacks the visual niceties of the Asus, taking the form of a slim, matte black plastic box. An activity LED flashes at the front. It’s noticeably louder than that drive, too.
Maximum writes are limited to six-speed, which looks very slow in the face of the external models in our round-up. And unlike those drives, while its performance is sufficient for today’s standards, the TDK won’t be able to offer faster performance as higher-rated media becomes available.
Perhaps not surprisingly, this TDK drive put in third-slowest performance with its own-brand four-speed media, at 29 mins
58 secs. Using Verbatim six-speed media, the TDK drive recorded our 21GB test file to disc in 21 mins 45 secs.
Verdict: Louder than the Asus SBW-06C1S-U slim and without the lower price tag and pleasing design to make up for it, we’re unable to recommend this TDK as the better drive. Its more than up to the job and, indeed, faster than its rival, but you can do better for your money.
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