I have to be honest that my favorite CD burning software is Nero 6. I got to know about it when I bought my first CD burner and it come with an OEM version of Nero. Then at every major update, Nero kept on adding new features and eventually it got so bloated that the size of the installer for Nero 9 is nearly a whooping 400MB! Well I am currently using Nero 9 because I have an original license and didn’t want it to go to waste. Of course I didn’t go ahead with the full installation as I selected Custom install and only install the necessary components that I need.
Download Nero 9 free
Nero has always been a shareware meaning it cost money if you want to use it (leave the keygen and crack out of this). For those that cannot afford Nero and not into piracy, there are several free disc burning software such as ImgBurn, BurnAware, CDBurnerXP and DeepBurner which works well too. Good news is if you want to use Nero to burn your disc and you don’t have the money, you can still use Nero because they’ve started to offer Nero 9 free version.

The free version of Nero 9 is called Nero StartSmart Essentials. It was originally bundled with hardware such as a PC or burner and cannot be purchased separately. The features included are specifically chosen by the hardware manufacturer to assist the user in better experiencing and enjoying their hardware product. Now Nero has put it for everyone to download. The size of the installer for Nero 9 free version is only 55MB compared to the full version which is nearly 400MB. Obviously a big part of Nero 9 full version has been stripped off.

Download Free Nero 9

From the Nero 9 free version description, it says that it contains simply data burning and disc copying features for CDs and DVDs. Additional features and functionality are available with an upgrade to Nero 9 full version. I’ve downloaded and tested it, you can only burn data, copy disc, erase and analyze disc from Nero 9 Free. That’s it! I cannot rip audios to MP3, cannot burn MP3 to audio CD and etc.

Honestly I can’t see why is there any reason to use the new free Nero 9 StartSmart Essentials because it really lacks of basic features which can be found in other disc burning software that are free. Unless like I said earlier, you’re a big fan of Nero and that’s the only burning software you’d use. During Nero 9 Free installation process, you’ll be prompted to install Ask Toolbar so make sure you are aware of it and don’t blindly click Next.

[ Download Nero 9 Free ]

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