Optical Drive, DVD Drive and CD Drive
When you use the term Optical Drive, it really covers a whole series of different drives. Different for all of them is that it is what is called an optical media, which is why at Refurb you will find them gathered under the heading optical drives.
The most common need for optical drives is the DVD drive – there are a number of different drive types, and it is important to know these in order to find exactly what you need. DVD-R means DVD-Readable and is thus a DVD drive that can only read DVD, and thus cannot burn on them. This is one of the most normal types of DVD drives followed by DVD-RW. RW stands here for ReWritable and covers a drive that can both read and write on DVD discs.
CDs have almost completely been replaced by the DVD, but in case you still have some lying around, the vast majority of DVD drives can easily play CDs.
Blu-ray
Another optical drive that is very popular due to its higher storage capacity and thus the possibility of higher image quality is the Blu-Ray drive. These are either a BD-ROM drive that can only read Blu-ray discs, or a BD-RE drive that can both read and write to a Blu-Ray disc. Blu-Ray discs and players of a newer nature also support UHD BD-ROM, where the video quality on the disc goes all the way up to 4K quality instead of peaking out at Full HD.
If you don't need an optical drive
In recent times with more and more streaming options, the physical media like DVD and Blu-Ray have become less popular. This has resulted in more and more machines no longer being produced with an optical drive, or that they come with an empty optical drive filled only by a plastic holder. But what do you do if you need a DVD or Blu-Ray drive?
One option is to purchase an optical drive if you wish, but it can often be just as relevant to look at other options. Here you can, for example, get an extra battery that fits in the optical drive, called an ODD-Battery. Alternatively, you can choose an optical drive, which can receive an additional hard drive and thus give you more storage space. This is called an ODD HDD bay. These are some of the most common alternatives to a classic DVD or Blu-Ray drive, but are far from the only options. If you have a special wish or find it difficult to find exactly the solution you want for your optical drive, you can always contact our skilled sales department, who are ready to help with info@refurb.eu>.