2021 M1 iMac - external DVD

[adamonearth]

Hey there!

We had our new M1 iMac delivered this week of which I purchased a SuperDrive to go with it.

I tried using both the Apple USB A to USB C dongle and also a USB hub however couldn’t get the SuperDrive to work with the iMac saying it wasn’t connected to a powered port.

Apple refunded the SuperDrive however anyone have any recommendations for a USBC DVD r/rw that’s compatible with the M1 iMacs?

Appreciate any help!

 

[Fishrrman]

I think most 3rd-party (non-Apple) USB DVD/CDs should work.

Something to be aware of:
SOME (not "all", but "some") 3rd-party DVD/CD drives require TWO USB ports to work.
These come with a "Y" cable. The "double end" gets connected to two USB ports, the single end goes to the drive itself.
The reason is that the drive draws too much bus power for a single port -- thus, two ports "ganged together" are needed to power the drive.

Be aware that these drives might just need a single port, but it all depends on the Mac to which it's connected.

A "workaround" would be to use a POWERED USB hub, and see if the drive would work ok connected to that.

AGAIN, NOT ALL drives require 2 USB ports, but some do.

I would thoroughly investigate a drive before you bought it -- check user reviews from Mac owners to see what they say.

I have a Samsung USB Bluray/DVD/CD drive that runs fine from only one port, but they seem to have exited the market...

 

[Berries-A-Million]

Most should work, I use the OWC External 5.25" bay and have a LG Blu-Ray burner in it, and it works with my M1 Mac Mini just fine.

 

[adamonearth]

Most should work, I use the OWC External 5.25" bay and have a LG Blu-Ray burner in it, and it works with my M1 Mac Mini just fine.

Thanks for the reply!

i found this one ASUS U9M - USB C Drive that seems to have good reviews.

May give it a try.

 

[Marshall73]

Thanks for the reply!

i found this one ASUS U9M - USB C Drive that seems to have good reviews.

May give it a try.

That model works fine with the 24" iMac. Bought one for a client who uses it to burn DVD-R with it.

 

[adamonearth]

That model works fine with the 24" iMac. Bought one for a client who uses it to burn DVD-R with it.

Thanks mate. Have ordered it today!

 

[pshufd]

I have not used a DVD in a long time but I have a 2009 iMac 27 inch and a 2007 MacBook Pro that I think that I could mount a shared DVD drive on. So this may be an option for those that have an old system hanging around.

 

[Gnattu]

I have not used a DVD in a long time but I have a 2009 iMac 27 inch and a 2007 MacBook Pro that I think that I could mount a shared DVD drive on. So this may be an option for those that have an old system hanging around.

Apple removed the CD/DVD sharing function in macOS Catalina, so you can no longer use the DVD-ROM on your old system.

 

[pshufd]

Apple removed the CD/DVD sharing function in macOS Catalina, so you can no longer use the DVD-ROM on your old system.

I'm running Mojave on my MacBook Pros and High Sierra on the old iMac so it looks like I would have to do the DVD operation directly on my older hardware. The last time I think that I needed a DVD drive was to install TurboTax and that was a few years ago.

 

[jdb8167]

Hey there!

We had our new M1 iMac delivered this week of which I purchased a SuperDrive to go with it.

I tried using both the Apple USB A to USB C dongle and also a USB hub however couldn’t get the SuperDrive to work with the iMac saying it wasn’t connected to a powered port.

Apple refunded the SuperDrive however anyone have any recommendations for a USBC DVD r/rw that’s compatible with the M1 iMacs?

Appreciate any help!

That’s interesting. My old Apple SuperDrive works fine with my M1 MacBook Air. I wonder if Apple is finally deprecating the custom high-power mode on the USB ports that is required by the SuperDrive. Another possibility is that your USB-C to A is hindering the high-power mode.

My USB-C dock, a Caldigit SOHO, requires a kernel extension to enable that mode. I just plug directly into one of the two USB-C ports though and it works fine.

 

[RUQRU]

Hey there!

We had our new M1 iMac delivered this week of which I purchased a SuperDrive to go with it.

I tried using both the Apple USB A to USB C dongle and also a USB hub however couldn’t get the SuperDrive to work with the iMac saying it wasn’t connected to a powered port.

Apple refunded the SuperDrive however anyone have any recommendations for a USBC DVD r/rw that’s compatible with the M1 iMacs?

Appreciate any help!

Just tried it on my 8/8/16 M1 iMac and it works as expected. I used the USB A-C adapter.
I also tried plugging into both the A and C ports on my OWC Thunderbolt dock and it did not work.

As as an observation I have not burned a DVD in a long time and forgot how F$%*ing slow they are!

 

[Mr.Blacky]

Hi, quick question:
I got an M1 iMac yesterday and wanted to use my external LG DVD burner with it. But when I connect it to the Mac, the DVD burner just makes a ticking noise (like a clock) and nothing else.
Any ideas what's the issue?

 

[JumperLaurel]

That model works fine with the 24" iMac. Bought one for a client who uses it to burn DVD-R with it.

I have been trying to get this to play for 2 days, it would play a home burned dvd, but I want to see stuff my mom had converted to slideshow at a conversion service, ad it wont do anything. sending it back

That model works fine with the 24" iMac. Bought one for a client who uses it to burn DVD-R with it.

I have been working w? my new Asus u9m for 2 days. will play a homebred dvd, but mom had slides and pix converted and a slideshow disk made, with an online service and it wan't play, so I went looking for apps, nd downloaded VLC media player and I get this.........

Your input can't be opened
VLC is unable to open the MRL 'dvdnav:///dev/rdisk4'. Check the log for details.