It's a snap to install and use, is the speediest CD-RW drive we tested, and comes with a raft of software besides the usual CD creation utilities.

CNN: IDG.net - Recordable and rewritable CD drives: Permanent, portable storage

We test CD-ROM read performance with Testa Labs' CD-Tach 98 2.0 software, and we gauge CD-R performance by writing 430MB of data to CD-R twice: once from an image file and once on the fly.

CNN: Top 5 CD-rewritable drives

The base unit includes a CD player and 40GB hard drive, along with embedded Gracenote software, so that CDs can be ripped PC-free with song data included.

ENGADGET: Philips Streamium WACS700/05 wireless music system reviewed

One thing that separates the MyDitto from the competition, though, is what it doesn't come with, namely, a CD-ROM for loading any software.

ENGADGET: Switched On: MyDitto NAS has some key issues

Corel Linux is also pretty thin on software (at least with respect to the CD-ROM image you can download, which is all I've been able to test so far).

CNN: Corel Linux 1.0 is praiseworthy but flawed

And both ship with software geared to managing a collection of songs taken from your personal CD collection.

FORBES: Rio, Redesigned