With modern PCs rarely coming with disk readers anymore, old PC users like myself that liked to archive things on CD/DVD media still need a way to read our old disks, play CD music, and sometimes write to new blank disks. There are several portable disk readers and writers available to resolve this issue.
This particular unit is very small and light and supports a current USB 3 interface (both type A and type C connectors) so it’s a handy way to be able to give modern PCs a way to use that media. So far I’ve not had any issues; the player plugged in fine and was recognized by Windows 10 without any need to download drivers. I played music CDs, ripped a music CD, and read a photo disk. The drive isn’t the fastest device but it was sufficient for my needs.
Pros:
– Supports both Type A and Type C connections.
– The interface cable is integrated into the unit. This is convenient as you’re less likely to misplace a cable.
– Quiet
– Plays CD, DVD, and Blu-Ray disks
– Doesn’t need an external power source, just runs off your PC’s USB port
Cons:
– Integrated interface cable is very short, just a couple inches. You’ll have to keep the drive close to the device using it
– No included software, but you should be able to find free utilities if you want to burn disks, and Windows comes with the ability to rip music disks built-in
Tips:
– If you don’t need to use Blu-ray disks, step down to just a regular DVD reader/writer. It’ll save you a bunch as there are plenty of those external drives and they are about half the price of a Blu-ray version
– This doesn’t come with a carrying case. Some external drives do, so look around for other options if you plan to travel a lot with this and want something to help protect it
I haven’t tried the disk burning feature on this one yet, so I’ll report back later if it warrants mention. Also, I’ve had disk readers burn out on me after a year or two of use, will report back if this one does the same thing.
03-Apr-2023 update: a month after buying this, it stopped being recognized by my PC. I rebooted the system and also tried the DVD player on another PC and something seems to have broken on it. It was great for the first month. I have contacted the seller to see what can be done and will report back when either I resolve the issue or have to accept that I’ve lost my money.
UPDATE: the seller came through and replaced the faulty unit. I also kept trying the old unit and found that if I didn’t bend the cable out much, it could sometimes still work. This indicates a loose or poor connection between the USB cable and the unit. I don’t know if that’s a problem with all of the units or I just got lucky. So far the replacement is running fine but just as a precaution I’ve made sure not to stress the cable too much.
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