15-Minute Reviews :: Oront Burning Kit Basic v2.1.7

Hello everyone and welcome to another 15-Minute Review! Today’s application is Oront Burning Kit version 2.1.7 by Oront Software – A CD- and DVD-burning software application.

Software Description

As Giveaway of the Day states:

“Oront Burning Kit 2 is a compact, fast, affordable, easy-to-use application for burning, managing and erasing major types of CD and DVD discs with just a few mouse clicks. The program encompasses the best aspects of the most popular disc burning software titles on the market and places them all into a single attractive package.

Oront Burning Kit 2 is an ideal solution for those who are looking for well-rounded, easy-to-use and reliable software that will perform basic disc-burning operations with little to no input from the user. An intuitive interface and simplicity of use are the major elements that allow for hassle-free audio, video and data recording.”

Quick Pros

• Fairly easy to use – Initial ‘task choosing’ window descriptive
• Most settings on tabs as opposed to wading through menus
• HD-DVD and Blu-ray support built-in
• Has most common functionality that may be needed for common users
• Burning process went smoothly – No coaster

Quick Cons

• Only supports ISO format for image burning
• Lacks advanced burning functionality such as disc format
• Lacks small features throughout application
• Don’t understand why MP3 burning tool separate from data burning tool
• Disc Managing Tool only available on Premium

Expansion

The necessity for CD-burning functionality is growing with time. Backups to mashups and more, they are ever-increasing in popularity. While most CD and DVD drives come with some form of burning software, sometimes it is a matter of preference for wanting a different application – Other times it is a sheer matter of having lost the software or no longer usable.

This application has a great interface to start with; 6 buttons for the most common burning tasks each button such as data burning, audio burning and more. When you get into the application, it is laid out fairly logically. On data, audio and MP3 tools, they have the file explorer on top, and the CD compilation on the bottom. A nice benefit it many of the options you may need are tucked away on tabs in the CD compilation portion of the window, making getting things set up the way you like easier without wading through extensive menus. There is even HD-DVD and Blu-Ray support in this application for data burning (Does not appear to support video for these formats though.)

While I listed it as a con, it could be a pro for new-comers to burning; There are advanced burning options missing on all of the tools – From disc format; to date/time stamp setting; to better control over multi-session (Including the lack of ability to disable completely multisession support.) Some of these features are apparently in the Premium version including the disc managing tool – A damaged-disc recovery tool.

While the creator of this title says features of all the best burning applications have been integrated, there is some functionality I’d prefer to see. A built-in MP3 encoder for backing up your CDs; Further support for other disc image formats; ISO manipulation and other features that could make this a true alternative for me compared to what came with my drive (Usually Nero/Nero Express.) I am not sure why there was a separate button and interface for MP3 burning since it is essentially the same thing as data burning tool – Maybe the feeling of confusion arose trying to understand how to burn an MP3 disc.

I did a test burn, and went smoothly – Screen is descriptive enough and burns quick. No major issues at this point – It is something that this day and age isn’t so much an issue anymore though.

Final Verdict

Burning software appears to be leaning towards how usable it is for some as opposed to functionality. While Nero is the king of burning, there are many alternatives to Nero’s overwhelming interface (Nero Express can even be a lot to chew off.) That said, this application does offer enough functionality and does not appear to have any major show-stopping bugs. While free, it may be good to give it a whirl and see how it ranks up against other titles out there. As for paying $25 for this title; I’d likely steer people around this one to Premium ($35) just for the matter that they likely could use the more advanced disc settings in the future and the disc managing tool for disc recovery is likely a good bargain for $10 more. However, I do recommend before purchasing this title that you weigh this application against the freeware alternatives and how they work for you. The two I have recommended in the past has been DeepBurner and CDBurnerXP Pro – Both are decently powerful and are free.

Posted by BladedThoth on Monday, June 18, 2007