07-04-2009, 11:28 AM

I was wondering if anyone had had the same problem I am having: Everytime I put a CD/ DVD into my disk drive (13" MacBook), my comp. trys to read the disk for 10-15 seconds and then the disk is ejected. I am assuming that my optical drive is shot and I need a new one, but I was wondering if anyone else has had this problem/ has any insight into what might be wrong?

Also, any thoughts on what might be the most cost effective replacement if my drive is in fact done. My MacBook is no longer under warranty so I was thinking that instead of spending the $$ to get a new drive installed, buying a cheap external drive for $80 might be the cheaper temp. option if I'll be upgrading to a new Mac w/in the next year or so. Thoughts??

07-04-2009, 12:24 PM

I would reckon the drive is shot, yes. Have you tried a cleaning disc? I know the same will probably happen,but may be worth a shot.
If you are going to replace the Mac soon, then an external drive is the way to go for sure, as it will give you an emergency back up in the future too. I would try and get a firewire one personally, then you can use it for installs as well, should the need arise.

07-04-2009, 05:36 PM

I have to agree with Kevriano, while the optical drive may be shot, the CD/DVD just may need cleaning. If the drive is shot, I'd go with a external one until you get your next Mac.

07-06-2009, 08:22 PM

thanks for the info. i havnt tried cleaning the drive yet, but if this dosnt work i will most likely go w/ the external

09-28-2009, 01:50 AM

Arggh - I'm in the same boat - my drive won't load anything. I'll try cleaning, but can anyone point me to the proper replacement part specs and maybe a source w/ a good price point? I understand that per online instructions, that it's not too horrible to swap out yourself.

Any thoughts on any of that? Thanks.

10-03-2009, 11:09 PM

me too my optical drive is dead won't accept anything

i'm thinking of buying an external one, but i think there is a way to use a pc's optical drive on the macbook like what the macbook air. does anyone has any idea about how to make this work?

10-08-2009, 12:47 AM

Me too! Exactly the same problem. I'm currently salivating over a new MacBook Pro but I won't be able to afford that for another nine months or so, so I'm thinking of this as a stop-gap solution. I was wondering if anyone could recommend any models/brands in particular? Also, I was wondering where region locking comes in - is it tied to the laptop or to the drive?

Cheers

05-13-2010, 12:36 AM

I'm experiencing the same issue that most people seem to be having--the optical drive is dead after only owning it for 1.5yrs. After trying several different options I gave up and took it to a local Apple store to be fixed. The cleaning only seems to be a bandaid on a larger issue at hand. If so many people are having the same problem, Apple needs to fix it! We pay way too much for this sort of thing to be occurring. These sort of issues are the reason I gave up on PC's--to get away from this sort of thing. This is my first Mac and I'm disappointed If I'd known that after shelling out over $2K dollars I would have to spend more money to get it fixed, I would have just bought another PC and saved my self $1500 dollars.