Toshiba Satellite P300-16E, DVD drive Matshita DVD-RAM UJ 850S

[Narashima]

hi all!
i have a Toshiba Satellite P300-16E and the build in DVD drive Matshita DVD-RAM UJ 850S makes some problem. when i insert a dvd its played normally, but when the drive stands still and it should be started from a programm or application, then the drive will start and soon stop again, and start again, stop again and so on, like the DVD couldn't be read. the only solution is to open and close the drive, then the DVD will be read normally. i reinstalled the driver, but it didn't help, so i think it might be a hardware problem and i contacted the Toshiba service, as i still have warranty. they told me that i can only send the drive, and don't need to send the whole laptop. but now i don't know which screws i have to open to remove the DVD drive, does anyone know that particilar laptop?
thank you very much for your help.

 

[frozenlead]

Well, I can't help you with your peticular notebook, as I don't have it or it's manual. However, the guide I wrote up at the top should give you a general idea on how to get the job done. It's likely only to be held in place by a single screw which is either accessible from underneath the computer or underneath the keyboard.

 

[Narashima]

@ frozenlead: thank you for your reply. caus the problem does not occur all the time i'll wait some more and then i will try to remove the drive. do u have any ideas what might be the problem? after the symtoms i described earlier, do you think its a hardwareproblem? thanks again

 

[frozenlead]

It sounds like a typical DVD drive acting up. I'd say about 3/5 drives with those symptoms are bad, but that's still a pretty good chance for it to be a software issue. Does the problem still occur if you attempt to boot from a CD?

 

[Narashima]

i have no cd to boot from, and the last days it didn't occur at all while booting, only when i wanted to read a dvd with a programm. some of my dvd's also got circular scratches, very light ones only.

 

[frozenlead]

Try a firmware upgrade if you can, and clean the entire CD tray with alcohol. See if that makes a difference.

 

[Buzzy1]

I just got a software update from Toshiba, and my CD-DVD drive problems went away.

--Buzz