CD ROM / DVD drive

The CDROM / DVD drive is used to run data, video and audio disks. These devices consist of a mechanical assembly that spins the CD (or DVD) disk and the information on these disks is read optically. This is done with the help of a fine laser beam that detects the digital information that is encoded onto the surface of the disks. This laser beam assembly moves in a manner that is similar to that of a record player -radially from the center to the outer edges. The differentiation between CD and DVD drives is in the amount of data that can be stored on the disks. This varies from 650 MB for CD-ROMs up to 17 GB for DVD disks. CD and DVD drives are classified according to their interface and the maximum speed of the drives.