CD-ROM issue.

[Armin]

Ever since I've rebooted earlier today, my CD-ROM has been acting funny. It shows up in Device Manager fine, but it doesn't recognize when I toss in discs. I've tried uninstalling and reinstalling the drive in device manager, different discs, and I've tried different operating system, but none has worked (Note this is a laptop, so I am unable to test the drive in another box). I assume this means it's a hardware issue and now a driver/software/CD issue.

Any suggestions on further diagnosing the problem? I'm gonna toy around in the BIOS a bit, but I don't expect to find anything useful.

[Armin]

Anyone know where to find replacement laptop parts?

[truste1]

Anyone know where to find replacement laptop parts?

Just a guess, Newegg?

[Armin]

Already checked, no laptop CDROMs there.

[Blaze]

eBay is where I find all of my random laptop accessories.  Sometimes, if you can't find a specific part, just see if you can find a broken laptop that somebody wants to sell for parts.  This can sometimes be cheaper then a specific part itself. 

[Armin]

That's a good idea, thanks!

[Chavo]

ebay is your only option if you don't want OEM prices (which are way too high for laptop replacement parts).  Obviously there is a gamble in quality

[Towelie]

have you considered killing yourself?

[MyndFyre]

have you considered killing yourself?

Stop using what is clearly my suggestion!!!

[Towelie]

have you considered killing yourself?

Stop using what is clearly my suggestion!!!

That was posted November 27, 2006. Clearly it is not longer your suggestion, for it is out dated.

[Armin]

ebay is your only option if you don't want OEM prices (which are way too high for laptop replacement parts).  Obviously there is a gamble in quality

You're probably right, but I'm curious as to where one would find OEM laptop replacement parts.

[MyndFyre]

ebay is your only option if you don't want OEM prices (which are way too high for laptop replacement parts).  Obviously there is a gamble in quality

You're probably right, but I'm curious as to where one would find OEM laptop replacement parts.

Perhaps the OEM?

[Armin]

Does each OEM have their own website I order the part from, or is there a central website like newegg that acts as a store front for these OEM laptop replacement parts?

[MyndFyre]

I would order from Gateway directly for my notebook.

[Chavo]

Correct, you would need to talk to the manufacturer (or at least final assembler in some cases) for OEM parts.  There are sites that sell OEM parts second hand, but I wouldn't give them my money/creditcardnumber/etc.

Actually, in this case your best bet (apart from getting the current drive working) would be to buy a USB cd-rom drive or a USB/Firewire enclosure for cd-rom drive.

[Camel]

You're probably right, but I'm curious as to where one would find OEM laptop replacement parts.

Perhaps the OEM?

Slightly off-topic, but I've noticed that soft/hardware labeled OEM tends to mean manufactured-by-anyone-that-is-not-the-original-equipment-manufacturer. Not sure how that happened, since the acronym is pretty clear; probably a misunderstanding that caught on years ago.