Compatible External DVD-Rewriter Drives

Im been interested in getting an external DVD-Reweriter drive for a while now and were wondering if anyone could list me some compatible ones and where i could get them from in the UK. Iv seen a few around but wasnt sure if they would be compatible, desperately need one for data back-up considering i only have a combo drive on my MacBook!
Cheers in advance, Scott

This isn't an exhaustive list, but I have a Sony DRU-120A in a generic external Firewire enclosure made by ADS. There are newer faster burners out there, but this drive worked fine with my Macbook running OSX 10.4.10. I downloaded the Ubuntu Linux 7.10 live DVD ISO and used OSX's Disk Utility to burn the ISO to a DVD-R disc.
OSX did not support non-Apple drives for burning until 10.4. For the older OSX releases, a program like Roxio's Toast is needed to support non-Apple drives.
I like the idea of using an external burner. Discussion threads have posts with users having problems with superdrives not burning correctly after only a few months of operation.
Bill

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Compatible External DVD/CD Drives for use with MacBook Air

Hello all,
I'm after buying an external drive and was hoping we could put together a list of compatible drives as I've read on other forums that not all are compatible.
Please no links as they tend to expire but rather just list the make and model of the drives.
Thanks,
Jompet

Kappy wrote:
Apple sells an external USB optical drive specifically for use with the MBAs. That would be your best option. MBA SuperDrive.
Sorry, but that's not correct. I got the white version:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007595%2050001623 &IsNodeId=1&name=LG%20ELECTRONICS
Works perfect.

My imac is not recognizing any external dvd writer drive. I have imac with Core i7 and Mac OS 10.6.8. I have tried external dvd writers from Samsung and Amazon Essentials but the computer does not recognize any of them. Which Dvd writer is compatible?

My imac is not recognizing any external dvd writer drive. I have imac with Core i7 and Mac OS 10.6.8. I have tried external dvd writers from Samsung and Amazon Essentials but the computer does not recognize any of them. Which Dvd writer is compatible?

I have an external firewire burner; it never shows on the desktop unless I insert a CD or DVD - that icon will then show (if I have my preferences set to show those on the desktop). Hae you checked in Disk Utility (Applications > Utilities) to see if it is listed under drives?

Using and External DVD/CD Drive

I have only used the SuperDrive in my eMac.
I think it has died and I am wondering about just buying an external drive to work with my 1 GB 800mhz eMac.
Here are my questions:
How is this to set up?
How much as an external DVD/CD drive?
Will it also play regular DVDs in addition to burning them?
Best,
Evan Jacobs
www.anhedeniafilms.com

Sir,
I did this firmware thing but I sadly don't recall what it is right now.
That didn't work.
Then I turned over my eMac opened up the back and pressed the PNU or PMI button.
That didn't work.
Then I cleaned the drive using my DVD/CD cleaner.
That worked.
The firmware thing and PNU/PMI thing are on thread in this section.
I would say start clicking around for topics similar to yours. I apologize that I don't have more of an exact offering of information.
Let me know if anything works...
-Evan Jacobs

DVDs in my external DVD/CD drive (mounted on the front of my Mac) won't mount on my Mac while they did about 2 weeks ago. HELP

DVDs in my external DVD/CD drive (mounted on the front of my Mac) won't mount on my Mac while they did about 2 weeks ago. HELP

Hi Judy,
I find Optical Drives short lived, especially on Macs, but have you tried a CD Cleaner Disc?
One other fix in 10.4.x...
First, Safe Boot , (holding Shift key down at bootup), use Disk Utility from there to Repair Permissions, test if things work OK in Safe Mode.
Then move these files to the Desktop...
/Users/YourUserName/Library/Preferences/com.apple.finder.plist
/Users/YourUserName/Library/Preferences/com.apple.systempreferences.plist
/Users/YourUserName/Library/Preferences/com.apple.desktop.plist
/Users/YourUserName/Library/Preferences/com.apple.recentitems.plist
Reboot & test.
PS. Safe boot may stay on the gray radian for a long time, let it go, it's trying to repair the Hard Drive.

Montan Lion "kick out" My usb memory sticks, external Hard drive, external DVD /cd drive and give me an error message "PowerPC applications are no longer supported."

Montan Lion "kick out" My usb memory sticks, external Hard drives, external DVD /cd drive and give me an error message "PowerPC applications are no longer supported."

It does not matter what I plug in to the USB post, the results is the same ...
U use external hard drives, memory sticks (new and my old memory sticks), I also use an external cd / dvd writer LG Portable Super Multy Drive
They all run for ± 1 min then it loose contact and I get error messages like, error code -8062 or PowerPC applications are no longer supported..... etc

Satellite Pro M10: compatible internal DVD-RW drive?

Hello,
I've been unable to find any compatible internal DVD-RW drives on the website for my model. Is this possible? Could I get one for say a Tecra and squeeze it in to my machine, or cannibalise my current drive casing to make it fit?
thanks,
Michael

Hi
Fact is that no all drives are supported and compatible with every notebook.
Fact is also that there is no official information on the website which drives are compatible.
If you want to upgrade the drive or to buy a new one so you should ask the Toshiba Asp for the compatible one. The guys should have the detailed informations about the supported devices.
I have also found this posting about similar question:
http://forums.computers.toshiba-europe.com/forums/thread.jspa?threadID=13083&messageID=47885

External dvd/cd drive for my imac

hey,
hopefully someone will be able to help me out with this little problem. after like 2.5-3 years my imac's dvd/cd drive has stopped reading disks. i'll insert the disc and it'll act like it's trying to read it and then after about 30 seconds to a minute it'll spit the disc back out. i'm definitely out of warranty and wanted to know if anyone could recommend a new external dvd/cd drive(?) or burner(?) or whatever it is i actually need to be able to play, upload, and burn dvds and cds. i'd rather not have a new internal drive installed and i'd prefer to just buy an external.
sorry if i sound computer illiterate with this post but for the most part i really am. thanks again for anyone that can help me out.

Hello and welcome to discussions,
These drives seem to be well regarded by many here...
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/firewire/optical-drives/
Should do what you want it to do and a wide choice of budgets to aim at!
Regards.
Ian.

Looking for compatible external dvd-r writer

have a late 2009 27" imac, running osx 10.6.8; internal optic drive is not working (have been trying to burn dvd-r of photos/music for siblings), altho can still burn CD's. have gotten "medium write error." have repaired permissions on HD. have tried memorex, staples brand dvd's. actually purchased a samsung model thru amazon; it crashed my computer. then i bought a GE lens cleaning disc which screwed up my itunes because it was an "audio" disc. my most recent decision to buy a "superdrive" was also nixed because my imac (having originally come w/optical reader) is not supported w/superdrive. i'm resigned to buying an external dvd-r writer/reader but am overwhelmed with all the info out there; i just need one that is compatible w/my imac. if someone could just tell me which model to buy, i would greatly appreciate it; if you need further info, other than what i've supplied, would be happy to provide. thanks to all ...

have tried memorex, staples brand dvd's.
Macs are notoriously finicky about the media you use. I only use Verbatim, never an off brand or store brand. So, that may be one problem. The other problem is that the Superdrives are super slim drives installed vertically where the media can shift 1/100th of an inch and cause a problem - in other words, they are not very reliable. I've had two replaced under warranty even though I have used an external DVD burner most of the time for years. I had a LaCie for about 14 years before it malfunctioned and just bought a new one from OWC. It is doing great - I've burned about 10 DVDs so far.

Help with buying an External DVD (DL) Drive

Hello,
I was wondering whether you all could point me in the right direction (via links or whatnot) to a good store that sells mac compatiable, external DVD drives? I am going to start backing up information to DVDs and having DVD Dual Layers (DL) compatiablity would help bring down the clutter and any home movies I decide to back-up.
Anyway, I don't mind buying an internal drive and putting it in an enclosure but I would like for it to have firewire support and mac compatiable(all the information about my computer is below, so I am not entirely sure whether or not that I need a "newer version" of Firewire - 1394?) and so far that has been a challenge to find.
Do you guys know where I can find stuff like this for less than $100 ? The cheaper, while being reliable, the better ($40-100 would be fine). Thanks for the help.

This process is not as complex as you are trying to make it seem. I appreciate the help but I am not willing to pay over $100 for an external dvd burner I know I could, as you put it, "hodgepodge together". All it takes is finding a compatible drive, which is most likely Panasonic (or even an incompatible drive, like Sony, because of the "patchs" available). Please tell me of brands that have compatible dvd drives (like Panasonic) or model numbers (with or without DL support because I will more than likely be able to find a drive among the "compatible vendors" that does support DL).
I will then find a retailer online by myself, or search on ebay for a good drive. Then I will find an inexpensive caddy (case) and it should cost less than $80.
I was hoping to find an inexpensive external dvd drive that was clunky and such but would still burn DLs and cost less than $50-70.
By the way, I have two drives, Hitachi 100 GB Travelstar and a Panasonic (Matshita) Superdrive with DL capabilities currently in my iBook G4 right now from doing this very method (although learning the "basics" to know what you are doing does take some medium effort). I then put my internal hard drive into an Oxford 911 Chipset caddy case and it works fine.
To sum it all up, I know it can be done. I only would like to know where to find a compatible vendor to give me the drive (external preferably, but internal if cheap) that will work with my iBook G4 with Mac 10.4.6 on it.
Please let me know if there is any other compatible drive that you know will work and are inexpensive (I could also put an internal dvd drive in an external caddy case).
Thanks
Later
iBook PowerPC G4 1.07 GHz Mac OS X (10.4.6) 100 GB HD, 768 MB DDR SDRAM, 32 MB VRAM, Superdrive, AirPort Extreme

Mac Compatible External DVD Burner Not Compatible?

I just recently bought the New Samsung Slim External DVD Writer SE-S084. It does not respond at all. It gives me no desktop icon when I plug it in via USB(which is it's only power source).
It claims on the box that it is MAC Compatible, OS requirement for MAC is version 10.4.6 Tiger. I'm updated to 10.4.11 so shouldn't be a problem there. In my search I came across somebody who had the same issue with the same Samsung product, and with a firmware update recommended by another poster, their problem was resolved. Everything worked fine.
Both of my EFI and SMC firmware is updated. Could it be I have to reinstall the firmware?
I also tried to use PatchBurn with no avail. Do I need PatchBurn?
I am so lost. Can anyone help me with this? It seems like a simple solution has to be out there, I just can't find it on my own.
Thanks!

I am a little bit miffed at the fact that you have a newer Macbook and you have a problem with the Optical drive. Did you restart the computer and select OSX instead of Windows, then open Safari and then go to Samsung's web site, and support then find your model of external and download the drivers for it. They should open and run automaticlly, if not they will give you the instructions on how to download them. When you do this make sure you have the external plugged in. I would also make sure that you are plugged into the USB-2 port, and not the USB-1 port.
If all that fails Google for your model Samsung and type in SAMSUNG EXTERNAL SLIMLINE DRIVERS FOR MAC. then hit enter. many times you can find opensource drivers there that are better than factory drivers.
Check as well and make sure there isn't a recall or a fix from Apples Site for your Internal Optical drive. It simply doesn't make since that you have a failure on this newer optical drive.
Did you Run Macjanitor, or Cache OutX, or Onyx, and did you repair permissions. Any one of these or a combination could fix your problem if the optical drive isn' fried.
Any of the software mentioned is FREE and you can Google for them.

Installing External DVD Rewriter on NB200

Hi,
This is a first time post following the purchase of a NB200 using the standard installed WinXP OS. Along with the NB200 I also bought a LG GP08LU10 'External Super Multi DVD Rewriter'. When I plug the DVD drive into the NB200 it powers up and the NB200 recognises the hardware as a CD-ROM Drive; however, it is disabled. Running the WinXP Add Harware Wizard results in the message 'This device is disabled (Code 22)'.
A check of the CD that came with the DVD Drive reveals that there are no drivers on the CD only the DVD burning and playing software.
I have plugged the DVD Drive into my Lenovo laptop that is also running WinXP and the unit 'plugged and played' as you would expect.
A web search based on the LG GP08 product ID creates very few hits with one or two seeming to describe similar symptoms but no solutions. Most talk about installing a driver but I have not been able to locate a driver on the LG site (or as I said, on the product CD).
The DVD Drive comes with a 'standard' USB cable and a USB power cable. Each cable alone and both cables together with the NB200 plugged into mains power supply and it still does not plug and play.
Does anyone have any suggestions??
Regards,
Tesa

Hi
According to Microsoft page the error 22 means that the device is either disabled or has not started. Possibly it hasnt started in your case.
There are several solution proposals.
One of them said that you should remove it from the device manager and should reboot the notebook.
After new reboot the OS should recognize the attached DVD Drive again.
At the other hand you could try to remove all the USB hubs and USB controllers from the device list and should reboot the notebook again.
This help to refresh the USB drivers.
Im not quite sure if removing of upper and lower filters would change anything but maybe its a worth a try.
Start the registry and remove the Upperfilters and Lowerfilters values completely from the following registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Contro l\Class\{4D36E965-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}
After that reboot the notebook and check the USB DVD drives functionality.

Can anyone suggest a good external DVD-ROM drive?

My DVD/CD drive in my Mac Mini has given out, and i'd rather just get a good external drive than pay to have mine replaced. Can anyone suggest a good one that they know is compatible with Apple products?
Mac Mini Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Amazon has the following Memorex external burner with usb2 and firewire for a bit under $100:
Memorex 32023288 DVD Double-Layer Recorder 16x16 Dual Format External Drive
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007OWASE/
Reviewer: "yankee_doctor" on Amazon says --
I am very pleased with the performance of this machine. I bought it to add dual layer dvd's and 16x burning to my aging Powermac G5 from Apple. It has worked perfectly for me and makes DVD's in about 3 minutes. A very nice touch. As a side note, I am a world traveler and I am planning on moving to London at the start of next year. I was afraid that it would not be able to go with me. But I contacted Memorex and it already is wired to work in the U.S. and Europe. That was a nice surprise. Buy this product, you will not be disappointed.
I can't vouch for it myself, but it might be worth googling for reviews of it.

External DVD +DL drives and DVD Studio Pro

Just looking for some advice. I need to Burn a DVD+DL for a project I am working on. There will only be 5 copies so this is not for replication. I am running DVDSP 3 on the Powerbook G4 and DVDSP 4 on the G5 (neither equipped with a DL burner) and I want the boss to buy me an external firewire DVD burner. I hear Plextor is the best, so I just want to check it will be compatible with DVD SP. Plextor are unsure and I can find no mention from Apple... If it isnt compatible what external drive is? Help!!
G5, Powerbook G4 Mac OS X (10.3.9)

Many people use Pioneers also.
I am not sure how well Plextor does, but it seems to come up here as causing isssues a bit more, but could be wrong. Also Lacies cause a good deal of problems it seems.
I have been real lucky with my Pioneer burners over the years and have been solid for me. Have hooked it up to G4 Tower, G5 Tower and G4 Powerbook (have not tried on my MacBook Pro yet) and runs well. (Some others may not likee them as much though)
Take a look here for some other thoughts on DL burning
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=3016532&#3016532

External DVD/CD Drive?

Not sure if this is the right place to post... but, recently my Mac's DVD Drive has stopped working, and the repair people said it would cost about $200+ to fix it cause of the felt or something like that. Instead, I was thinking about getting an external CD/DVD Drive, one that can read and burn. My sister also got an XP Laptop that has no CD Drive, so I was wondering if anyone knew of any External CD/DVD Drives that are compatible for both Mac and PC? Thanks a bunch!

I am also looking to use an external DVD drive with my macbook. I recently upgraded my G4 tower to a faster dvd writer and have an exter drive now. I also have an old Sony Spressa USB cd writer from when I had an old imac. I tried putting the dvd drive in that case and tried to fire it up, but it would not see it. IS there any way to make this old case work? I had considered putting my ned faster drive into the case so I could use it with both computers, but just can't figure out how to make it work, if it even will.

Compatible External DVD-Rewriter Drives

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