ImgBurn

Nowadays, there are so many CD and DVD burning tools that it is virtually impossible to choose. Of course, it is easy to pick one out of the crowd, but it is hard to specify which one is the best, so one can only test several ones and make an informed decision.
One such application is ImgBurn, which, as its name suggests, has been specifically developed to burn images onto discs. Granted, this action can typically be achieved with most burning software out there, but its freeware license and additional features recommend it for closed analysis.
Once installed, the user gets acquainted with an intuitive interface. ImgBurn was designed with simplicity in mind, offering numerous tips and tricks to guide the user towards the successful completion of a task.

Operations you can perform with ease

The main window offers users the possibility of choosing the action they need to perform from the several ones displayed: write image to disc, create image from disc, verify disc, write files/folders to disc, create image from file/folders or test a disc.
Depending on the selection made, the user is presented with numerous settings that can be either customized (dedicated to advanced users), or left default, without it affecting the quality of the output.

Configure many settings and view graphs

In addition to that, it is possible to create CUE, DVD and MDS files, search for SCSI/ATAPI with just a click of the button, customize the automatic write speed, show or hide logs, display graph data (provided you have DVDInfoPro installed on your PC) and export it to the hard drive using an IBG format.
The Settings window is the place that truly makes the difference between this utility and other freeware burning programs. Each of its operations can be modified and adjusted to meet any requirement, as specific as it may be. One can choose the warning messages that should be displayed, the file splitting pattern, the buffer size or many more.

A final assessment

CPU and memory usage varies from low to high, depending on the process under way, yet this is something to be expected from this type of product. The response time is good, the interface is user-friendly and every now and then some funny remarks are inserted.
As a conclusion, when looking for a simple way to burn image files, ImgBurn is probably the smartest choice. Still, if one needs to do a bit more than that, there are plenty of apps out there to help in this regard. If you are interested in skipping the installation process, you should know a portable counterpart is also available for download, called Portable ImgBurn.

ImgBurn Video Guide