Reviews for Apple USB SuperDrive

I recently bought this to install software on my new MacBook Pro with retina display and it does its job quite well. Although it still irks me that such a device is even necessary in this day and age. Sure improved portability is a nice feature but taking away the optical disk drive to do so seems silly. Overall no complaints, however.

962 of 1142 people found this useful

Excepting those who legitimately had a defective superdrive, many of the reviews here are very inaccurate, misinformed, and misleading to prospective customers. In my research as someone who was changing from a PC to the newest iMac, I found many of these reviews incredibly frustrating. The best review I read that had great advice and common sense was this one:

(QUOTE) - The drive works perfectly as described.
My response to others are as follows:

1) It is a DVD drive, not a Blue Ray drive. No DVD players can play Blue Ray, though Blue Ray can play both. The reason that Apple does not have a Blue Ray option is due to rights ownership. Don't blame Apple, blame Sony.

2) Ejecting a CD/DVD on a MAC is different than on a Windows box. Try clicking the eject button on your top bar in OSX, if it is not there, right click on the drive's icon on your desktop and then click on "Eject". Don't blame Apple for your lack of understanding on how to use their products.
(UNQUOTE)

Be informed before giving a review that will mislead others. I plugged this in, ripped my cds like crazy (quiet AND fast!) and it's been fantastic. I have it sitting FLAT on the 'foot' of my iMac where it coordinates perfectly. I use the eject button on the top right of my Apple wireless keyboard, though you can also do it on screen.

I have absolutely no complaints about this product, but I definitely do have complaints about some of the reviews. Accuracy is important when doing a review. Thank=you.

292 of 310 people found this useful

Simple and straightforward, this drive does what it says on the tin. One caveat however, is that the usb lead used to connect the drive is ridiculously short which sometimes makes it inconvenient to use. You would think for the price charged Apple would supply an extension to the lead in case it was needed.

257 of 303 people found this useful

This optical drive by Apple has been, by far, the best driver I've ever had. Prior to purchase I read the reviews here and was surprised to see how many people had problems ejecting a "non-DVD" disc (i.e. game, software load, app manager, etc) ... There is waaaay too much misinformation and speculation being made by wannabe, hot potato users. The drive works perfectly and ejects ANY disc on demand ... only requirement... Human needs to be SMARTER than Driver ! I've seen knuckle heads suggesting the total disassembly of the unit to remove a disc ! Why own a computer if you're still in the stone age?

The optical drive will recognize DVD and non-DVD discs, common sense dictates that if the drive doesn't recognize a disc as a DVD...you're not going to succeed in commanding the DVD controller to eject it. It's not a technically DVD ! (note: that is whether or not it is a DVD!...Sometimes a DVD format may be incorrect, so it gets disqualified),

All you need to do is go to the disc icon on your desk top (if you've selected in "System Preferences" to show the disc icon on the desk top) or just hit "Command+up arrow" till you reach the disc and drivers level, then right click on the disc icon and select eject.

The DVD controller will grey out the Eject option so you cannot do anything there. This process is very similar to PC formats except that PC always puts a disc icon on your desk top. Apple gives you the choice.

188 of 217 people found this useful

I used it once and now it won't eject my cd. This is absolutely not a reliable product !

233 of 325 people found this useful

I bought the USB Superdrive with my MBA in 2011. I used it to install four different software programs. When I went to use it a week ago, it wouldn't accept any discs - the drive mechanism was failing. So for $80, I was able to load FOUR discs. I took it to the Apple Store and they offered to give me a refurb for $60+. This drive is a piece of junk, but since you have a machine w/o a drive, you have no choice. Good luck with this purchase.

155 of 185 people found this useful

I have a MacBook Pro with Retina Display, which has no built-in optical drive, and I was in need of one. Initially, when I saw the price of the Apple USB SuperDrive, I laughed and looked elsewhere for a Mac-compatible external USB DVD Burner. I found one on Amazon by a very reputable manufacturer at less than half the price. It had good overall reviews, so I didn't hesitate to order it. I got it, and my first impressions were, "wow, this thing feels cheap." It was made of glossy, cheap-feeling plastic, which I had no problem with since I would only have to use it occasionally.

However, the performance of the unit was awful. It would disconnect at times, burn jobs would fail, and when it did work, it was painfully slow even for an optical drive. I had to return it because it was practicably unusable. I then bit the bullet and ordered an Apple USB SuperDrive, and I'm glad I did.

My first impressions were, "this feels sturdy," and "wow, that's pretty." It matches the MacBook Pro perfectly, with the same finish and build quality. Performance was excellent compared to the first drive I tried, and it "just works."

Overall, I'm very happy with it. Yes, the Apple drive is a little overpriced, but you definitely get what you pay for in this instance, at least in my experience. I would recommend just going with the Apple USB SuperDrive if you don't want to deal with the hassle of the cheaper drives.

133 of 143 people found this useful

I only played about 30 DVDs on this before it died. Set aside about $3/DVD for its replacement.

Since durability is the most important factor, two stars is all I can justify despite its typical Apple awesome appearance and minimalist design.

132 of 147 people found this useful

I am a new Apple computer user, and I purchased a MacBook Air. I watch a lot of movies on my computer, and to play them, I purchased The USB Superdrive because I am a strong supporter of Apple products. This product did not live up to Apple quality. For movies, this device is extremely difficult to use. If the movie has a scratch on it, the entire computer will freeze and their is no easy way to eject the CD from the drive. Without a external eject button, it is hard to safely remove the disk. For the price, it's not worth the hassle.

119 of 135 people found this useful