Computer help
Hey people who are smarter than I am with computers.
I use a notebook, a Dell Vostro 1500. My DVD drive seems to have stopped working. Last night I wanted to play Bioshock, but when I put the disc in it didn't work. So I tried a few other discs, and none of them could be read. It would keep spinning, occasionally making little noises, but it would never actually read the disc.
So, I'm assuming my disc drive died. Are they easy to replace? Is there anything I should know about them before I try to get it replaced? There are lots of computer hardware stores around here, so I can pick up a new one easily. Do you have a rough estimate, ballpark, of what these should cost? In China a lot of merchants are assfucks and they overcharge me if I don't know what I'm doing.
I use a notebook, a Dell Vostro 1500. My DVD drive seems to have stopped working. Last night I wanted to play Bioshock, but when I put the disc in it didn't work. So I tried a few other discs, and none of them could be read. It would keep spinning, occasionally making little noises, but it would never actually read the disc.
So, I'm assuming my disc drive died. Are they easy to replace? Is there anything I should know about them before I try to get it replaced? There are lots of computer hardware stores around here, so I can pick up a new one easily. Do you have a rough estimate, ballpark, of what these should cost? In China a lot of merchants are assfucks and they overcharge me if I don't know what I'm doing.
Comments
Are you still in warranty?
Cuz if you are they'll send someone out to wherever you are and fix it for you free of charge! Dell are normally good enough to fix their fuckups...
Otherwise i don't know of prices and whatnot...
A quick Google search yields varying prices, as low as $39 for a replacement combo drive. Not sure if you have a combo drive or one with DVD-burning capabilities, so that may alter pricing somewhat, but even SuperDrives aren't terribly expensive these days (this one, though advertised for the Mac, would probably work fine on your Dell with the proper drivers).
Another search shows that it's groin-grabbingly easy to remove said drive. One of the nice things about these sorts of PC laptops is their modular nature, allowing easy removal and replacement of internal components with minimal fuss or disassembly.
EDIT: I'm trying to look it up, but if nothing else I can talk to her about it tomorrow.
EDIT2: I think it happens with XP as well, but before I get carried away you'd want to check your device manager and see if there is a driver installed for it and functioning. It may help to uninstall the drive through the device manager and reboot, thus letting Windows reinstall the drive.