Inexpensive choice: LG Electronics 8X USB 2.0 Super Multi Ultra Slim Portable DVD Writer Drive. USB-C and USB 3.0: VersionTECh External CD/DVD Drive.
But macOS can’t play Blu-rays without extra software, Windows 10 can’t play Blu-rays or DVDs, and neither operating system includes software for burning video discs that you can play in DVD or Blu-ray players.
Noise: All optical drives make noise, but the drive shouldn’t drown out the movie or show you’re trying to watch.Price: A good DVD drive shouldn’t cost more than $40, and a good Blu-ray drive should cost around $100.But if you’re burning or ripping discs, the rate at which a drive can move data from your computer’s hard drive to the disc or vice versa becomes more important. Speed: If all you’ll use your drive for is playing discs, just about any drive you buy will perform similarly.We didn’t require Blu-ray drives to support reading and writing to Ultra HD (or UHD, or 4K) Blu-ray discs, but we considered it a nice bonus if you didn’t have to pay much more for that feature.
Read and write capability: DVD drives must read and write DVDs and CDs, and Blu-ray drives must read and write Blu-rays, DVDs, and CDs.
You can open, play, and burn CDs and DVDs from other systems just like you can from the computer with the physical drive. Then check the box next to "DVD or CD Sharing." This will allow other Macs connected to the same network to access the optical drive. In macOS, open System Preferences and choose the Sharing option. Finally, select the appropriate network or use the "Advanced Sharing" option to choose what users can access the drive. Then right-click the CD/DVD drive icon and select Give access to → Advanced sharing.". Simply open the "This PC" window in Windows Explorer. In Windows, you can use the Network File and Folder Sharing or feature to share an optical drive with other systems on the network. First, you need to connect both computers to the same network (wired or wireless).
Many external CD/DVD burners are available for under $50.Īlternatively, if you have another computer with an optical drive, you may be able to access the CD or DVD player from that system. That means you can simply connect the drive and use it the same you would use an internal CD/DVD player. Most optical drive peripheral devices connect via USB and are plug-and-play. The easiest way to play or burn CD/DVD discs is to buy an external optical drive. So is it possible to play or burn CDs and DVDs if your computer doesn't have a CD or DVD drive? Answer: Modern computers, especially laptops, rarely come with an optical drive, such as a CD or DVD player.