Thinkpads Forum

Hi,

I've got a T41 with a bog standard combo drive and would like to upgrade to a dvd burner. Thing is, IBM dvd burners are expensive, round about €80, while one can get hold of nec or ricoh ones for as little as €20.

They look just as slim with the same plug at the back - but has anybody got practical experience of another burner in their thinkpad? I did it on my old 600E, but this here is a different kettle of fish, me thinks...

Any help greatly appreciated.

Hi

The problem with T4x/T6x is that DVD burner is 9,5mm not standard 12,7mm.
Never heard about NEC or RICOCH drives which fit into T4x.
Could you input specification/links/photos to them

Regards

Right, first thing I did not know was that some are 9.5, others 12.7 mm in height. VALUABLE info masterus, thank you. Will post specs of burners that fit for further dissection.

Your choice of optical drives is limited to one of several offerings from Panasonic (M a t s u s h i t a), the sole manufacturer of multi-burners in the 9.5mm form factor that fit in T4X and T6X Ultrabays. There have been many rumors of drives available from other manufacturers for the T4X and T6X series Thinkpads, but they've all turned out to be vaporware.

For reference, "Slim" optical drives are 12.7mm thick. 9.5mm optical drives are considered "Ultraslim".

Suitable optical drives can be widely found on eBay for reasonable prices, but "cheap" drives that will fit don't exist.

James

Thanks for the hint. There were a few 9.5 mm drives out there, but in the end I got an IBM DVD burner for $50, which is less than €40 (cheap!!). And a mate who is just in the States is going to bring it back This would set you back close enough to €100 in Europe!