I have a penryn blackbook. Lately, my DVD drive won't calibrate the laser to burn DVD's and the drive consistently checks for new media even after the computer has been turned on. I have repaired permissions, yet the problem still exists. Are there any steps I can take to try to fix this on my own? If not, what are peoples' experiences with servicing their computer? My computer is perfect besides that and am nervous that repairing it will only causes more problems. Let me know what you think! Thanks!
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should i get my macbook serviced?
- Thread starter ahaley1986
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You can try a reinstall of the OS to see if that helps but it looks like a hardware failure. If you're worried, the only option would to get an external optical drive.
Are you still in warranty? If so, most definitely get it fixed. If not, buy a replacement drive from somewhere like ifixit.com or another reputable Mac parts supplier, and swap it out yourself/with a friend's help.
www.ifixit.com provides step-by-step disassembly guides for most tasks, give them a look to see about the difficulty of the swap/replacement.
thanks for the quick responses. yes i am still on warranty, so i will schedule an appointment at the genius bar. what is the typical wait time on a fix?
If they have the part in-store, they may be able to do it that day, so a couple/few hours turn-around time. If not, they'll send it out to an Apple Repair Center, and if that's the case it will be 2-4 days minimum.
Actually with my experience, they would order the parts from the center,and let you keep the computer until the parts arrive, when they do arrive, they call you in to drop off the computer, and you should walk out that same day with a working computer.
You should definitely get it replaced under warranty. Those drives sell for about $200 brand new off iFixit.com, and you can get them for about $100 on eBay. It's a pretty simple replacement, but it does involve lots of screws and it's really not worth even THINKING about attempting if you are still under warranty.