That's a question that can easily start a flame war. I personally prefer the +RW/+R standard. I have HP 200i and I know from exeprience that this burner works together with DVD-A. Burners that supports both formats have hit the market but I have no experience with any of these. I know for sure that Sony has a +/- model and I guess that a burner that supports both formats would be the best solution and I would go for a combo if I had to replace the current burner.
Yeah buy the sony. There are a few unexplained failures with pioneer and DVDA right now plus both formats is safer. I have the pioneer and it works fine but some have had problems with DVDA only.
Just bought my Sony the other day. Am very happy with it so far. It was a little pricey for my budget, but I think it will be worth it in the long run, with multiple formating. Good Luck!
The Sony drive ships with some bundled softare from Veritas call "Drive Letter Access". I have heard that this software can be buggy and screw things up. If you have problems with the drive, uninstall the software and re-try again. Also, I though that I heard news reports of MANY problems with the Sony 500 drives. (But I can't find the articles right now).