Best Internal DVD Drives
The ASUS DRW-24B1ST is capable of reading and writing data on DVD±R/±RW, DVDRAM formats. Write:DVD+R/-R: 24X DVD+RW/-RW: 8X/6X DVD+R/-R DL: 12X. DVD-R & DVD-R(DL): DAO/Incremental Recording.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Pros: -not much to say, works perfectly no complaints. Cons: -can get REALLY loud sometimes, but isn't a big deal. This product is pretty straight foreward."
"Solid drive that I use without a case with an Anker USB 3.0 adapter."
"Decent drive for a new computer build, but it is very noisy when both reading and writing discs - probably the noisiest drive I have ever used to be honest."
"There are almost no 24X speed disks available for recording so thats a bit of nonsense."
"No installation documentation for those that might want it, there was just a driver disk which wasn't even necessary since I was replacing it with the same unit and ASUS hasn't had a driver update in a few years."
"Haven't written any files to DVD, can't comment on how fast it writes."
"This is a solid drive, and if you want a basic DVD burner, you can't go wrong."
"Back in the day (over a decade ago), these DVD burners used to cost real money."
USB 3.0 CD drive provide faster data transfer speed, up to 5Gbps. Compatible with windows 2000/XP/2003/Vista/7/8.1/10, Linux and all version Mac OS systems, supports any PC, Ultrabook and Netbook. 2 Please make sure the laptop is with sufficient power supply, a low capacity may cause the device can't be recognized. 3 The new released Windows system have discontinued the internal DVD media player software, customer using Windows 10 and above are advised to Install VLC Media player to Play DVD and CD. USB 3.0 DVD dirver is a perfect companion for computers without the internal drive. This external dvd drive equipped with brand new chip with strong error-correction ability, plays music and movies with no lag or distortion. With a lightweight body with brushed surface and an embedded USB cable mean the CD drive can be slipped in your travel bag, and hooked up at any time.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I bought this for my son for Christmas."
"More and more laptops are built without the internal drives, they also no longer included its device recognition software to run external DVD drives, so you will need to download a driver to get it to work. I really like my DVD Drive it works great and very simple to use."
"Seriously so easy to set up, just opened the box and it was an easily accessible usb cord."
"Works well as it mentioned."
"Excellent!"
"This product was very welcome when given to me associate especially because of the price."
"Easy to use and not much needed instruction, even easy for the kids to use.Worked as advertised.Efficient!"
"Does skip now and then when playing CDs.Excellent product."
Size Name: Bare Drive. Enter your model number to make sure this fits.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I highly recommend Lite-On for new computers and replacement drives."
"I tried to find a SATA data cable that had a split to support 2 drives, but apparently it does not exist."
"I particularly like the plastic case that eliminates some moisture concerns and replaces some weight with more environmentally friendly materials. The drive mounts well in a full sized case without doing any modifications."
"no software with this but i didn't need it."
"Pro..Great drive and burner."
"Okay."
"Good dependable drive."
"Installation was a breeze and it worked great."
Best External Optical Drives
Color: Black. Max 8x DVDR Write Speed.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"[Update 12/1/16] I can verify this works with the Surface Pro 4, and Windows 10 with no problems."
"I opened the box, plugged it into a USB 3.0 port (and no, this drive is USB 2.0, but DVD/CD drives just aren't fast enough to ever need USB 3.0) on my MacBook Pro, and I was good to go."
"I am not very computer savvy and I needed an external DVD because the new laptop did not come with one - my fault - I thought all laptops came with a DVD player."
"VLC media player works great and it's free open source software that plays DVD movies from the external player. I was tempted to rate player 4 stars because LG's customer service isn't conducive to folks on the West Coast and the Quick Set-up Guide doesn't seem to acknowledge that the user may need to install more software than the writer software that's included."
"It fits in nicely beside the drive in the carry case that I purchased to protect the drive when not in use."
"As many new PCs do not come with a DVD writer, but yet still need backup and rescue disks made, this is good insurance."
"This is a great working product, at first I had trouble and blamed it on the DDVR and was going to return but after talking to a friend it was my Video Player program."
"still working 8 months later with regular use - added to a desktop that the disc reader died - the case could be sturdier - use caution handling."
Best External Optical Drives
Color: Black. Max 8x DVDR Write Speed.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"[Update 12/1/16] I can verify this works with the Surface Pro 4, and Windows 10 with no problems."
"I opened the box, plugged it into a USB 3.0 port (and no, this drive is USB 2.0, but DVD/CD drives just aren't fast enough to ever need USB 3.0) on my MacBook Pro, and I was good to go."
"I am not very computer savvy and I needed an external DVD because the new laptop did not come with one - my fault - I thought all laptops came with a DVD player."
"VLC media player works great and it's free open source software that plays DVD movies from the external player. I was tempted to rate player 4 stars because LG's customer service isn't conducive to folks on the West Coast and the Quick Set-up Guide doesn't seem to acknowledge that the user may need to install more software than the writer software that's included."
"It fits in nicely beside the drive in the carry case that I purchased to protect the drive when not in use."
"As many new PCs do not come with a DVD writer, but yet still need backup and rescue disks made, this is good insurance."
"This is a great working product, at first I had trouble and blamed it on the DDVR and was going to return but after talking to a friend it was my Video Player program."
"still working 8 months later with regular use - added to a desktop that the disc reader died - the case could be sturdier - use caution handling."
Best External Components
Color: Black. Max 8x DVDR Write Speed.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"[Update 12/1/16] I can verify this works with the Surface Pro 4, and Windows 10 with no problems."
"I opened the box, plugged it into a USB 3.0 port (and no, this drive is USB 2.0, but DVD/CD drives just aren't fast enough to ever need USB 3.0) on my MacBook Pro, and I was good to go."
"I am not very computer savvy and I needed an external DVD because the new laptop did not come with one - my fault - I thought all laptops came with a DVD player."
"VLC media player works great and it's free open source software that plays DVD movies from the external player. I was tempted to rate player 4 stars because LG's customer service isn't conducive to folks on the West Coast and the Quick Set-up Guide doesn't seem to acknowledge that the user may need to install more software than the writer software that's included."
"It fits in nicely beside the drive in the carry case that I purchased to protect the drive when not in use."
"As many new PCs do not come with a DVD writer, but yet still need backup and rescue disks made, this is good insurance."
"This is a great working product, at first I had trouble and blamed it on the DDVR and was going to return but after talking to a friend it was my Video Player program."
"still working 8 months later with regular use - added to a desktop that the disc reader died - the case could be sturdier - use caution handling."
Best Internal CD Drives
If you have been looking for a top notch external dvd and cd burner, your quest stops here.With USB3.0 CD/DVD drive burner, you can watch DVD movies, burn files, movies to a CD/DVD, install software and create backup discs etc. * Buffery Memory: 2MB. * Interface: USB3.0 (2.0 Compatible). * Product Dimensions:5.77*5.65*0.63in. * Certification: RoHS and CE certification. * No extra drive, support plug and play, no need to install the driver program, support plug and play. * Supports GHOST.XP. 1*External CD/DVD Drive. 1*User Manual. ◆ USB3.0 HIGH SPEED INTERFACE: Our CD drive and the USB cable are combined in one.Embedded USB cable design, easy for storage.Ultrl Slim portable size is equipped with USB 3.0 high speed interface, bringing you faster data transfer speed and stable performance, compatible with USB 2.0 and USB 1.0. (If your computer are surface pro, you can try updating all surface pro drivers and firmware AND if you want to use USB HUB, please use a powered one.Please buy a USB 3.0 Y-cable to supply additional power for DVD drive.).
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"It leaves a space for store the USB cable at the back."
"The drive also work very well. So, it is very nice knowing that my drive will always work as long as I have my computer!"
"This external DVD reader/writer is ideal for modern computers with a slim design since these days most computers do not have the disc drives built in."
"I plugged this into my computer, grabbed some music I wanted to do a burn test and inserted the blank disc ( not included ). It took about 2 and a half minutes to burn the disc and my internal drive took 2 minutes, which isn't that bad considering its an external drive via USB."
"The viewing and sound quality was excellent; the video played perfectly with no lag."
"I plugged it into my Windows 10 laptop, and it worked immediately with no issues, both to play and burn audio CDs I have not tried DVDs yet."
"Purchased to rip cds to iTunes and burn cds from iTunes from my MacBook Pro without a dvd drive. Lightweight and seems to be fairly durable (I haven't put it through too much torture but have traveled with it to job sites many times)."
"An excellent portable DVD reader and burner.With just a simple USB 2.0 interface, no additional power source needed."
Best Internal Blu-ray Drives
LG Electronics WH16NS40 16X SATA Blu-ray Internal Rewriter, Face panel of actual product received may be slightly different from the image above. Enter your model number to make sure this fits.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"One thing I did not know about PC Blu Ray players is that the computer will need a third party software to play the media."
"The drive is quick and quiet as well, both in operation and when the tray opens and closes."
"it doesn't rip blurays any faster than my old 4x unit."
"Works perfectly."
"This is a UHD "Friendly" drive."
"Replacement drive for my old dvd burner LightScribe drive."
"Blue ray movies, read and write, this is a great machine, rounds off my custom rig perfectly."
"It's nice and quiet, but contrary to what another reviewer stated, the version I received definitely had riplock features."