Macbook Superdrive not working

[comictimes]

so a couple weeks ago my macbook's superdrive started to not work... for about 75% of cds and dvds it will be very tough to get them into the superdrive as if they were too thick. If they do go in, it will try to suck them into the macbook, but only get a couple millimeters in, then it will shove it back out and try again, but it never quite works. Finally it seems to give up and just shove the dvd out as far as it can get it.

Is there any way for me to fix this, or will I have to send the macbook in to apple, which I'd really rather not do...

 

[mad jew]

You could try a PMU reset but I doubt it'll work. It sounds like a job for the crew at AppleCare.

Good luck.

 

[comictimes]

yea I know I'm bringing my own thread back from the death, but just thought I'd give a little update...

I still haven't sent my 'book in, mostly cause I'm a lazy bastard and I'm used to not using the CD drive after having the one on my old, out of warranty computer not working for almost a year.

However, I have figured out what the problem is, and it seems to have gotten worse. The top portion of the slot that the cd goes into- as in part of the actual case of the computer- has become slightly deformed and bends down so the the cd gets pressed down as the drive (which is perfectly fine as far as I can tell) tries to suck it in, and so the drive doesn't have the "sucking power" to get it in.

Has anyone else had this problem? and are there any easy fixes, or will I have to send the thing in to Apple to have the entire case of the computer replaced?

 

[splott]

However, I have figured out what the problem is, and it seems to have gotten worse. The top portion of the slot that the cd goes into- as in part of the actual case of the computer- has become slightly deformed and bends down so the the cd gets pressed down as the drive (which is perfectly fine as far as I can tell) tries to suck it in, and so the drive doesn't have the "sucking power" to get it in.

Has anyone else had this problem? and are there any easy fixes, or will I have to send the thing in to Apple to have the entire case of the computer replaced?

Not the same but similar. I have a MBP 17" which is now 7 months old. Just today I noticed that the narrow strip of casing between the lid latch/sleep light and the plastic edge trim surrounding the keyboard/trackpad surface of the computer has buckled outward. No idea when this happened but it must have been relatively recently or I'd have noticed it before. The machine has not been banged or knocked at all and doesn't run hot since I installed smcFanControl (and in any case never got hot there).

Anyone else experienced this and/or taken it up with Apple?

 

[wildaddy]

The Answer

I had this problem with my first unit the second I bought it. I took it into the mac store where I bought it and they replaced it. So, when it happened to the second one I couldn't believe it. After some searching online I found the solution, but now that there is so much hype on MacBook Pro's a Google Search is turning up fruitless. This is what I did to fix it, per the post on a user's website, how he figured it out beats the living crap out of me.

Go to System Preferences
Go to International
Move a Language Above English on the list
Move English back Above it
Make English the selected language on both drop downs
Restart!

Worked for me!

 

[Re-Macced]

I had this problem

I bought a 1 year old white macbook from Craigslist. Everything worked fine, until I got it home. Three hours later I found out that I couldn't insert DVDs or CDs. I finally took it to Apple.

The tech looked at it and determined that the bezel had warped and was preventing the insertion of dvds and cds. The tech kindly took readjusted the bezel and 10 minutes later I got my macbook back. My computer was not under warranty, but the tech didn't charge me for this adjustment.

Its been over a month now and no problems. I realize that I should probably replace the bezel to prevent this from happening again, but that's for another day. (It seems that this is the reason the previous owner might have sold it; it wasn't under warranty anymore and the bezel had warped.) I still put media into the slot very carefully, but it is working and I'm enjoying my new mac.

 

[lanceh]

Macbook Pro Super Drive faulty not writing disks

I have macbook pro with the following spec:

Model Name: MacBook Pro
Model Identifier: MacBookPro3,1
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 4 MB
Memory: 4 GB
Bus Speed: 800 MHz
Boot ROM Version: MBP31.0070.B07
SMC Version (system): 1.16f10
Serial Number (system): W874816BX92
Sudden Motion Sensor:
State: Enabled

About 2 months ago the super drive stopped writing disks. Reads fine.

I've been using a windows laptop or my firewire external DVD writer to get around the problem. A bit of bumper since I'm mobile and like to have everything with me without having to lug separate units around.

Anyway after considerable research on the net and also considering purchasing the airbook external drive which would have to be modified to work with a macbook I decided to buy a can of compressed air to blow out any dust that may have settled inside the super drive.

I aimed the air into the center of the drive and moved the blast of air slowly around the enclosure. I did this for about 5 mins.

I then took a blank CD and write some files with fingers and toes crossed.

After a nerve racking 3 mins the CD was burned and verified!!!!

So if anyone is having the same problems go out and buy a can of compressed air.

I brought mine from maplins here in the south of England.

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=25351

Enjoy

Twitter me and tell me know how you go on.

www.twitter.com/lanceharvie

 

[johnnyribcage]

Unbelievably - this still works as a fix on Yosemite

I had this problem with my first unit the second I bought it. I took it into the mac store where I bought it and they replaced it. So, when it happened to the second one I couldn't believe it. After some searching online I found the solution, but now that there is so much hype on MacBook Pro's a Google Search is turning up fruitless. This is what I did to fix it, per the post on a user's website, how he figured it out beats the living crap out of me.

Go to System Preferences
Go to International
Move a Language Above English on the list
Move English back Above it
Make English the selected language on both drop downs
Restart!

Worked for me!

Well my mind is blown. I have a 2008 unibody macbook pro, and had a lot of trouble with the superdrive starting in probably 2011. I eventually replaced it about a year ago. But today, same old deal as the original post here. It would spin for a few seconds, then spit it out.

I found this thread and tried this language solution. Unbelievably, as wild as it sounds - this worked like a charm. A few things have changed through the years but it's still the same.

System Preferences
Language & Region
Add a language with the "+" (I used French)
Move it above English
Move English above it

For good measure (and because I was skeptical), I also clicked "advanced" and changed the "Format Language" to French and back to English.

That was it - no reboot, no nothing. Just popped the CD back in and I'm off and running. Awesome!