Question External DVD drive needed ?

[abletudu]

I need and external DVD drive for my desktop computer that is Windows 11 compatible. I purchased one on Ebay, but it constantly connects and disconnects. Luckily it was inexpensive so not much was lost.
Can someone recommend a dependable one that will not keep disconnecting ?

 

[TerryLaze]

Disconnecting is due to either low quality/broken connector/cable or the board having slightly moved during shipping and not being properly connected to the drive or the usb cable anymore, or your USB ports having some issue.
Any usb dvd drive should work fine if it's not broken.

 

[Misgar]

If you're connecting a USB3 drive to a USB2 port, it might be starved of power (USB3 900mA vs USB2 500mA).

You might get it to work if you set 'USB selective suspend setting' to Disabled in Power Options.

If you've been connecting it to the front panel of a desktop PC on a long cable, try it on the rear panel ports with a short cable.

Then again it could be a duff drive.

 

[dwd999]

I've been using LG drives for years, never had a problem:

https://www.amazon.com/LG-Electroni...=1748186583&s=pc&sr=1-3&ts_id=1292112011&th=1

 

[JeffreyP55]

I need and external DEVD drive for my desktop computer that is windows 11 compatible. I purchased one on Ebay, but it constantly connects and disconnects. Luckily it was inexpensive so not much was lost. Can someone recommend a dependable one that will not do that?

I have one internal drive

ASUS BW-16D1HT​

that reads but won't play 4k. Amazon had them for sale @$69.00. Today (Thanks Trump) $128.00.
There are a few new optical external drives for sale on Amazon. Ebay for mostly used which I wouldn't ever touch. Plays all formats except 4k blu-ray. Blu-ray, DVD, CD.

 

[dwd999]

I use these for Blu-ray:

https://www.amazon.com/LG-Electroni...1&s=electronics&sr=1-13&ts_id=1292121011&th=1

Note that they require 2 usb-A sockets for the extra power they require.

 

[davidacellphone]

I need and external DEVD drive for my desktop computer that is windows 11 compatible. I purchased one on Ebay, but it constantly connects and disconnects. Luckily it was inexpensive so not much was lost. Can someone recommend a dependable one that will not do that?

I have
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CLDNZF2P?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_2&th=1
works well

 

[Misgar]

Plays all formats except 4k blu-ray. Blu-ray, DVD, CD.

I wonder if it fails to play 4K Blu-ray due to the additional levels of DRM encryption in UHD discs. Makes me glad I've got a dedicated Panasonic 4K disc player in the living room.

If you want a list of drives that are capable of reading 4K, check this out.
https://forum.makemkv.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=19634&sid=11e40fc0b49e9de5b9ac548a922b798b

You could source a LibreDrive for full 4K compatibility, but please note ripping Blurays is illegal in many countries. Just playing them back on a LibreDrive should be OK.
https://forum.makemkv.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=18856

Note that they require 2 usb-A sockets for the extra power they require.

I'd hazard a guess you'd only need two USB-A sockets if they were both the old USB2 standard, with a nominal maximum current rating of only 500mA each. 2 x 500mA = 1,000mA (1A).

Using two USB-A sockets on a laptop to power portable DVD and hard disk drives was more common 10 to 15 years ago. I found some 2.5" USB hard disks would run quite happily off 500mA, although I didn't make a habit of risking it. Presumably their motor startup currents weren't excessive and 500mA was sufficient.

More recent USB3 type A ports provide up to 900mA on the 5V rail, which should be enough to power a portable optical drive that relies only on USB for its DC supply and it's supplied witth a type-A cable.

https://www.etechnophiles.com/usb-port-power-output/

Some USB-C laptop/desktop ports with PD might be able to supply currents higher than 900mA at 5V to external devices, but you can't take it for granted.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB_hardware#USB_Power_Delivery

https://superuser.com/questions/1787833/how-to-know-what-current-output-a-usb-c-port-can-provide

I haven't checked my laptop which has two USB-C ports. One USB-C port charges the laptop at 100W (20V @5A). The other USB-C port is for peripherals.

There are loads of USB-A and USB-C power meters available to measure the voltage and current.

https://www.amazon.com/YOJOCK-Multimeter-Capacity-Voltmeter-Connector/dp/B0C5CV2MF9

https://www.amazon.com/ChargerLAB-Power-Z-Portable-Supports-Chargers/dp/B0C9Q3RT7Z

 

[JeffreyP55]

No support for 4k Blu-ray (Internal drive) on down works fine. There was a BIOS update that eliminated the ability to read 4k disks. I didn't fall for the (cough) update. Once upon a time there was going to be 4k blu-ray support. MS stopped paying AC3 fees to Dolby. The optical disk was dead. To many!
I have a standalone Samsung player that plays all optical video formats including 4k.
My external PC Blu-ray player is USB 3.0.
With the external USB 3 drive I have burned multiple disks and a lot of CD's. Years later I am converting my CD collection to FLAC for PC storage.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FLAC

I wonder if it fails to play 4K Blu-ray due to the additional levels of DRM encryption in UHD discs. Makes me glad I've got a dedicated Panasonic 4K disc player in the living room.

If you want a list of drives that are capable of reading 4K, check this out.
https://forum.makemkv.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=19634&sid=11e40fc0b49e9de5b9ac548a922b798b

You could source a LibreDrive for full 4K compatibility, but please note ripping Blurays is illegal in many countries. Just playing them back on a LibreDrive should be OK.
https://forum.makemkv.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=18856


I'd hazard a guess you'd only need two USB-A sockets if they were both the old USB2 standard, with a nominal maximum current rating of only 500mA each. 2 x 500mA = 1,000mA (1A).

Using two USB-A sockets on a laptop to power portable DVD and hard disk drives was more common 10 to 15 years ago. I found some 2.5" USB hard disks would run quite happily off 500mA, although I didn't make a habit of risking it. Presumably their motor startup currents weren't excessive and 500mA was sufficient.

More recent USB3 type A ports provide up to 900mA on the 5V rail, which should be enough to power a portable optical drive that relies only on USB for its DC supply and it's supplied witth a type-A cable.

https://www.etechnophiles.com/usb-port-power-output/

Some USB-C laptop/desktop ports with PD might be able to supply currents higher than 900mA at 5V to external devices, but you can't take it for granted.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB_hardware#USB_Power_Delivery

https://superuser.com/questions/1787833/how-to-know-what-current-output-a-usb-c-port-can-provide

I haven't checked my laptop which has two USB-C ports. One USB-C port charges the laptop at 100W (20V @5A). The other USB-C port is for peripherals.

There are loads of USB-A and USB-C power meters available to measure the voltage and current.

https://www.amazon.com/YOJOCK-Multimeter-Capacity-Voltmeter-Connector/dp/B0C5CV2MF9

https://www.amazon.com/ChargerLAB-Power-Z-Portable-Supports-Chargers/dp/B0C9Q3RT7Z