Since those old Plextor IDE CD writers like the Plextor PX-W2410TA are really cheap at eBay, I’d like to ask if they are good burners for recent CD-R media (at low speeds of course).
Do they have any special features like being able to do quality scans?
If you look at the changelog of the latest firmware update to the 2410a at Plextor (http://www.plextor.com/english/support/downloads/firm_2410.html) you’ll find the entry:
“Added support for Taiyo Yuden 40X and Verbatim 40X media.”
So, yes, this drive should know how to handle modern high speed media, as long as it’s Yuden or Verbatim.
Note that “Verbatim” in this case probably means ONLY the Verbatim media formerly known as “Data Life Plus”, meaning Verbatims own AZO media (ATIP 97:34:23 ). These nowadays are labeled with the badges “AZO” and “Crystal” and are usually Made in India. Other Vebatim media, usually being labeled “AZO” only, may use Phthalocyanine dye and are not the same.
As for quality scans. Almost every Plextor CD drive can report C2 errors but full scanning is only provided by Models Premium and Premium 2.
I’d love to see some scans of 1x burns from a 2410a 
You might want to take a look at this PX-W4824TU:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=350106993773