DVD drive won't open

So, here’s the deal—the title says the DVD drive won't open, but there's a catch: it only refuses to budge when the tray is empty! If there's actually a disc inside, everything works flawlessly. It’s just... well, it's incredibly annoying! I constantly find myself having to keep something sharp nearby just to poke the tray open—can you believe that? Despite this little quirk, it plays and burns discs perfectly fine without a single hiccup. This has been going on for over six months now, but I figured, why not ask the experts on this forum if there’s a fix that doesn't involve just buying a brand-new DVD drive? Honestly, if I take it to a repair shop just to get a diagnosis, they'll probably charge me half the price of a new unit anyway! If there isn't a simple cure, I guess I'll just keep poking at it until it finally gives up the ghost entirely.

Look, I know this isn't exactly expert technical advice, but if I were in your shoes, I’d just go out and buy a new optical drive. Honestly, they aren't even that expensive these days... And please, don't bother taking it to a repair shop if it's not like a specific component actually died—it's just not worth the hassle. You'll save yourself so much time by just heading down to a local Best Buy or Micro Center and picking one up yourself. Just make sure you double-check whether you need a SATA or a PATA connection first (take a look at this photo)

Larry Ortiz5 said:Look, I know this isn't exactly expert technical advice, but if I were in your shoes, I’d just go out and buy a new optical drive. Honestly, they aren't even that expensive these days... And please, don't bother taking it to a repair shop if it's not like a specific component actually died—it's just not worth the hassle. You'll save yourself so much time by just heading down to a local Best Buy or Micro Center and picking one up yourself. Just make sure you double-check whether you need a SATA or a PATA connection first (take a look at this photo)

I didn't say it wasn't useful! It still does exactly what I need it to do—it can burn discs and play them back just fine—but, well, without the laser acting up, I can't get the DVD drive to pop open when it's empty. When there's actually a disc inside, it opens and closes perfectly well. Is it just a rubber belt that needs replacing? Who knows! Maybe I could fix it that way...
Anyway, thanks for the suggestion, really! But I think I'll hold off on buying a whole new unit for now. As long as this ASUS keeps doing its primary job—which is burning and playing media—I'm happy enough to let it ride!

I was thinking—maybe I could just pull the drive out of the case entirely and see if that changes anything? If that actually fixes the issue, then I can just try plugging the optical drive into a different slot in the case...

You might want to try running a firmware update first, or it could just be that the rubber seal has lost its tension and weakened over time!!

analogwalker2 said:So, here’s the deal—the title says the DVD drive won't open, but there's a catch: it only refuses to budge when the tray is empty! If there's actually a disc inside, everything works flawlessly. It’s just... well, it's incredibly annoying! I constantly find myself having to keep something sharp nearby just to poke the tray open—can you believe that? Despite this little quirk, it plays and burns discs perfectly fine without a single hiccup. This has been going on for over six months now, but I figured, why not ask the experts on this forum if there’s a fix that doesn't involve just buying a brand-new DVD drive? Honestly, if I take it to a repair shop just to get a diagnosis, they'll probably charge me half the price of a new unit anyway! If there isn't a simple cure, I guess I'll just keep poking at it until it finally gives up the ghost entirely.

I mean, seriously, is it really such a huge deal to just keep a paperclip on your desk? 😁
I remember dealing with an LG unit once that used to screw with me—it wouldn't open if it was empty—and now I've got this Samsung one that's doing the exact same thing after only a year or two of use. I guess the opening mechanism just gets weak over time or something. Right now, my workaround for the Samsung is basically mashing the "Open" button five or six times before it finally gives in. Maybe you could try triggering the software command via Eject from Ner / Ashampoo? For me, hitting Eject usually pops it right open on the first try.

Charles Stewart69 said:I mean, seriously, is it really such a huge deal to just keep a paperclip on your desk? 😁
I remember dealing with an LG unit once that used to screw with me—it wouldn't open if it was empty—and now I've got this Samsung one that's doing the exact same thing after only a year or two of use. I guess the opening mechanism just gets weak over time or something. Right now, my workaround for the Samsung is basically mashing the "Open" button five or six times before it finally gives in. Maybe you could try triggering the software command via Eject from Ner / Ashampoo? For me, hitting Eject usually pops it right open on the first try.

Honestly, wouldn't it be just wonderful if I had some other kind of power strip sitting on my desk for plugging things in? Just one that actually works with my setup! 😉

Charles Stewart69 said:I mean, seriously, is it really such a huge deal to just keep a paperclip on your desk? 😁
I remember dealing with an LG unit once that used to screw with me—it wouldn't open if it was empty—and now I've got this Samsung one that's doing the exact same thing after only a year or two of use. I guess the opening mechanism just gets weak over time or something. Right now, my workaround for the Samsung is basically mashing the "Open" button five or six times before it finally gives in. Maybe you could try triggering the software command via Eject from Ner / Ashampoo? For me, hitting Eject usually pops it right open on the first try.

Nothing seems to work! I’ve tried absolutely every single option available—I’ve right-clicked the DVD drive and hit Eject, I’ve even attempted to trigger it through Nero, but it’s all just a total wash. All I get is that repetitive, useless sound of the drive attempting to open... only to fail every single time. It’s truly baffling! When there isn't anything inside the tray, it pops open without a hitch—perfectly fine, actually! But the second there's a disc in there? Nothing. If it were just a sticky rubber belt causing some friction, I could understand the struggle, but when the tray is empty, it works like a charm. Why does it only act up when there's actually something to read? It makes no sense!

A buddy of mine is dealing with the exact same thing, and we haven't been able to get it sorted out yet. If you happen to find a fix, please let me know.

I don't want to start a whole new thread, but I'm having that same issue with an LG drive. Back when I got it, it was a top-tier model—it even has Lightscribe—but now, when I press the button, all I hear is this humming sound, like it's struggling to open. Even if I try to hit Eject through my computer, it’s the same story: you hear a little thud inside, the light blinks, but nothing happens. If I poke the tray with a needle a few times to force it open and shut, it works for a bit, but then it just stops again after a while if I don't use it frequently.

It’s pretty frustrating because my Pioneer DVD drive, which is actually two or three years older than this LG one, still works perfectly fine. Plus, I've burned way more discs on that one.

Has anyone ever taken these apart? I'm wondering if it's just a worn-out rubber belt.

I mean, nobody’s really going to bother with all that trouble when you can pick up an extra hour of flight time for less than $33 😁
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Look, I was just asking if there was some easy fix, but it's not really a big deal since I still have two working 🙂

Honestly, this isn't even about how long the device has been around: I had this happen to an old desktop that barely saw five or six discs in its entire life...
It’s just that I stopped relying on it since I moved over to a different PC. One time I mentioned the issue at a repair shop, and we decided to try and push through with it one last time. Even the old paperclip trick didn't work. We tried jamming some thicker wire deep in there to force it open, but nope—same result...
It’s pretty obvious this tech is basically dead. Hardly any new computers even come with a disc drive anymore. It’s such a minor thing, too; once it jams, it stays jammed. Besides, everyone just uses thumb drives or SD cards with way more storage anyway.

what is wrong with my Meizu

If you’re feeling adventurous, just pop the thing open and take a look at the opening mechanism—see how it actually works... maybe there's something you can tighten up or tweak manually. If it's totally shot? Well, just buy a new one.