CD/DVD Burning

Despite the technology world’s efforts to eliminate moving parts in computers, optical mediums such as CDs and DVDs are still widely used and most average users still need to burn optical discs. Whether backing up data, preparing an audio mix CD, or creating a bootable Linux disc, finding the right burning software is essential. However, no software can be everything to everybody, so try a few different options before you decide on the right one for your needs.

Ashampoo Burning Studio Free is a full featured CD/DVD/Blu-Ray burning suite that enables you to create data, music, video and audio discs. You can also create backups that span across multiple discs, rip music tracks from Audio CDs and create or burn disc images in ISO or BIN/CUE format. The task oriented interface makes it easy get started and spares you most of the technical details. Other features include automatic audio conversion from WAV, MP3, FLAC, WMA and Ogg files, disc copying, compressed file backup and restore, disk erasing, VCD/SVCD support, project burning and more.

ImgBurn is the most powerful burning application, for no other software comes close to its advanced features and options. Unfortunately ImgBurn’s advanced features do come at the cost of a badly organized interface that may confuse users who just want to do a basic burn. The welcome menu provides quick access to some common tasks, but other basic features such as erasing a rewriteable disc are not immediately visible.

The application that is most suited for average users who want a full feature set without the complications that advanced options bring, is BurnAware Free. It has the best interface in a burning application, and all of its features are neatly organized in a logical setup that makes any task a painless effort. Despite its simplicity, it does most of what you could want from a burning application. Unlike ImgBurn, BurnAware Free does not include advanced options for adjusting every aspect of the burn, and it lacks a few features that advanced users may find necessary.

On the positive side, BurnAware Free supports CDs, DVDs, and Blu-Ray discs. It even allows you to create audio CDs and video DVDs, and you can burn ISO images as well as erase rewriteable media. BurnAware Free is my personal favorite disc burning application, and I will use it for the majority of my burning needs. I highly recommend it for the average user who doesn’t need advanced features, but wants an easy way to burn a disc quickly.

CDBurnerXP is an admirable burning application that combines functionality with simplicity. It supports all types of optical media including Blu-Ray and HD-DVD. CDBurnerXP matches the majority of ImgBurn’s main features and even includes some extras of its own. It is the only free burning application that includes some support for LightScribe disc labeling. The program also includes full support for command line operation for those who prefer a terminal over a graphical interface.

Although CDBurnerXP is not as advanced as ImgBurn or as simple as BurnAware Free, it has a respectable interface that makes most burning tasks straightforward and fast. The biggest drawback for some users is the program’s dependency on the .NET framework, which means that running the portable version from a flash drive will only work if the host computer has Microsoft’s .NET Framework installed.

InfraRecorder is a stable project that has been popular for quite a long time. It supports all of the common features that a good burning application should have, and it works with all types of CDs and DVDs including dual layer discs. It even includes full command line support like CDBurnerXP. With InfraRecorder, you can burn and create images with support for bootable discs, author rewriteable discs, and create audio CDs and video DVDs. The interface is clean and simple without a lot of extras to make things confusing.

InfraRecorder is a respectable burning program, but it has a few disadvantages as well. It does not support Blu-Ray discs or HD-DVDs. It also does not include many advanced options for tweaking the burn process to perfection like ImgBurn. Its interface isn’t as nice as that of BurnAware Free, and it doesn’t have any extra features like CDBurnerXP. Aside from these possible downsides, it feels like a solid program that definitely deserves a chance at becoming a part of your favored software collection.

Ashampoo Burning Studio Free is a simple suite that aims to get back to the disc burning basics.

BurnAware Free is a free software for backup, creating data and burning disc images.

FinalBurner FREE is a great freeware alternative to expensive CD and DVD burners.

Free Studio is a single package which bundles all software to work with DVD, video and audio.

ImgBurn creates disc images, burns them on disc CD/DVD and compares it with original data.

InfraRecorder is a free graphical CD and DVD burning program for Microsoft Windows.

Auto Gordian Knot (AutoGK) — very simple and powerfull tool for making dvd rips, to create quality backups of your DVDs.

CDBurnerXP Pro is a free application for Windows to burn CDs and DVDs, including Blu-Ray and HD-DVDs.

Small CD-Writer is a small program, to rapid burnig of disks CD / DVD with diffrent format.

Nero Free contains simply data burning and disc copying features for CDs and DVDs.

DeepBurner Free is a free CD and DVD burning program which supports CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+RW and DVD-RAM.