DVD-ROM Internal Laptop Drives for Movies and Storage
A convenient way to play media or share files is through the use of DVDs or digital versatile discs. These thin plastic discs feature a material that a laser can write data onto and have been developed to be superior to CDs in every way, including aspects like data capacity, durability, and read or write speeds.
What Is an Internal DVD-ROM Laptop Drive?
- DVD Reader and Writer: A Toshiba or other model DVD-ROM or drive is a device able to change the state of the dye underneath the protective polycarbonate surface of the DVD. It essentially shoots a laser at the material. The surface is then read by the optical drive and determines the layout of the data and interprets them into the files you are familiar with.
- Backwards Compatibility: A DVD drive is backwards compatible with a CD. This means that a DVD drive can play a CD out of the box, allowing you to enjoy your existing CD collection without the need for two dedicated devices. This led to the inevitable obsolescence of CD players in place of modern DVD players.
- Media Playback and Data Storage: Back then, the only purpose of the CD and DVD is for media playback only. This meant that you could only read from the disc and not write to it. The movie industry saw a way to distribute content inexpensively through DVDs without sacrificing much in the way of video quality. Not long after, rewritable versions of the discs were introduced and changed the way people shared their data.
How Do I Choose an Internal DVD-ROM Laptop Drive?
While a couple of types of internal optical DVD drives are available, you should handle each carefully due to the thinness of the aluminum material used in their construction. The metal is rigid enough and makes the entire component lightweight, but it also lends easily to bending inward, possibly causing bad reads and writes due to the inconsistent spinning of the disc on the spindle.
- Quick Swap: Check whether your laptop supports quick-swap compatible DVD drives by looking at the user manual and specification sheet. These types of devices allow for easy removal and reattachment via a mechanism that ejects and clips the assembly when pushed inward into the computer. You can also alternate between an optical drive and a hard disk or solid state drive when using the quick-swap port.
- Internal Replacement: These types of drives may only be replaced by opening the back panel of the laptop. Typical optical drive designs like those from Toshiba have three to four mounting points for screwing the assembly into the frame of the laptop.