Q: Drive won't read any dvd-ejects it automatically after spinning some time

I was having the same problem, and my drive was even making some very unpleasant sounds when trying to mount the drive. What worked for me (warning: this will void your warranty, and not recommended for those who are nervous about removing nearly 30, tiny screws) was taking my Macbook apart, and ensuring that the ribbon cable to the optical drive was well seated. In fact, I removed the optical drive, and removed its top case as well for good measure. I used a can of compressed air to clean the interior, including the optical element. With the top cover of the optical drive off, I tested the mechanism to ensure nothing was sticking.

When I was done, I reassembled the optical drive and keyboard, and power cable (only parts stopping the computer from working at this stage) and carefully verified that the drive had begun working (to my amazement, it was!). I shut down the computer, and reassembled my MacBook completely.

I write this now with OS X Snow Leopard successfully mounted on my desktop.

Note: For those comfortable taking the MacBook apart and who want to try this out, the ifixit guide (www.ifixit.com) came in extremely handy for the take apart, put back together process:

http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Repair/MacBook-Pro-15-Inch-Core-Duo-Optical-Drive-Re placement/489/1

followed by:

http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Repair/Jammed-Optical-Drives/772/1

If you find that your optical drive isn't working once you reassemble your optical drive and data/power cable, your keyboard cable and your power cable (be very careful operating your mac in this state!) you can simply shut it down, and, assuming you have a spare ready, install your new replacement drive you obtained from an auction site, etc.

Been having the same problem that everyone else on the prior 12 pages have had - on my Early 2008 MBP with a HL-DT-ST DVDRW GSA-S10N. It recognizes CD's, but spits out DVD's. After repairing permissions 5 million times, resetting my PMU, cleaning the drive, I was able to borrow TWO external superdrives through work... and both of these have the exact same problem as my internal drive...I am totally at a loss at this point in time.

I did the same with my MacbookPro Unibody 15"... The thing is I bought Snow Leopard on Friday and it was impossible to mount the DVD (Works more or less fine with others DVD). I tested too the SL DVD on another Macbook in AppleStore... mounted perfecly.

So I decide to clean (I can't think to be without cumputer and send it to Repair :(), removing each part like into the iFixit guide... but without success. My Optical drive is still not working

But I got an other issue... now when I try to shutdown my computer (shutdown, or close the screen to put it in sleep)... it automaticaly reboot.
And if I keep it close... it's doing a loop a rebooting.

Did I touch something bad near the optical drive? There is the Swith on/off button near the drive so...
The funny thing is after this problem... I remove again my optical drive to see if I forget something... and for 3 hours I have been able to shut it down. But then like magic... (Maybe some move) can't shutdown.

What can I do to repair this?

I have the same problem:-
MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-857E:
Firmware Revision: ZA0E

Reads and rips CDs, wont recognize DVDs, including my brand new Snow Leopard disk. This is not the annoying thing though. The thing that really p*sses me off is the fact that I have had my Superdrive replaced twice already under warranty, and more frustrating still, I don't think I have actually read a DVD since I had it back last time, which was maybe 6 months ago. I read DVDs maybe twice a year, and only for hardware stuff.

I really, really would like to have the *€~|&%$* thing working though. It's not like I can drive down the road for 15 minutes and drop the machine into my local repairer. No, I live up a hill out in the sticky I have to take half a day off and drive for 45 minutes (if I'm really lucky) to find my local service centre or wait for courier pickup.

Not happy at all.

Adding mine to the list...

3 year old Model GSA-S10N. Would burn and read CDs, would only read commercial DVDs and just spit blank DVDs out. The compressed air trick worked after the second try. Ordered a replacement from fastmac.com - turns out it's also a GSA-S10N... It'll just sit until the current one goes out on me again.

Went to install Snow Leopard today. I haven't used the drive since the last OS X upgrade. Found that I am having the same problem in a MacBook Pro that has just passed its warranty date. Tried all of the suggestions in this forum to no avail. Insert any disk. Drive spins a few times and spits it out.

MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-857:

Firmware Revision: HAEA
Interconnect: ATAPI
Burn Support: Yes (Apple Shipped/Supported)
Cache: 2048 KB
Reads DVD: Yes
CD-Write: -R, -RW
DVD-Write: -R, -RW, +R, +RW
Burn Underrun Protection CD: Yes
Burn Underrun Protection DVD: Yes
Write Strategies: CD-TAO, CD-SAO, DVD-DAO
Media: No

I got the Snow Leopard DVD today, and it gets ejected after 1 minute and 8 seconds.
When I try to burn DVD´s I get the dreaded "The device failed to calibrate the laser power level for this media" error.
It will not read any movie DVD or burn anything, but it can read a normal music CD (tried just now with a 22 Pistepirrko CD).
I haven´t tried much to fix this yet except the "voodoo trick" described here: http://forums.macosxhints.com/showthread.php?t=77414
But this didn´t do the trick for me. Tomorrow I´ll by a can of compressed air and see if it helps to blow compressed air into the superdrive slot.
Details on my mac:

System Version: Mac OS X 10.5.8 (9L30)
Model Name: MacBook
Model Identifier: MacBook2,1
MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-857D:
Firmware Revision: KBVB
Interconnect: ATAPI
Burn Support: Yes (Apple Shipping Drive)
Cache: 2048 KB
Reads DVD: Yes
CD-Write: -R, -RW
DVD-Write: -R, -RW, +R, +R DL, +RW

I have had the same problem with my Wife's 13" MacBook (2008) plastic. We noticed the DVD problem (DVD's not mounting) right when we got it and took it took it back to the apple store. They said it was something with the DVD drive and loaded VLP to view DVD's with. Problem Solved? Apparently NOT. I guess I am relieved that other people are having the same problem. Time for Apple to solve it.

Cleaning the drive with some compressed air and I was able to get SL installed on Saturday. Haven't tried burning any disks though.

Same problem here - 15" MBP late 2007.

MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-857E Firmware ZA0E

Works fine with CD's & CD-R's. But won't mount any DVD's including my new Snow Leopard install disk. Tried all the fixes mentioned to no avail.

Luckily covered with AppleCare, so will get the drive replaced under extended warranty, but with what I'm reading here, there's no guarantee of success!

Looks like this thread was picked up on apple insider, http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/09/09/04/appleusers_report_superdrive_failures_more_ipod_cameracases.html. The comments there may help users here. One tip I hadn't seen was that opening up Disk Utility causes the superdrive to spin up and that fixed his issue.

Adding mine to the list
MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-857E:

Firmware Revision: ZA0E
Interconnect: ATAPI
Burn Support: Yes (Apple Shipping Drive)
Cache: 2048 KB
Reads DVD: Yes
CD-Write: -R, -RW
DVD-Write: -R, -R DL, -RW, +R, +R DL, +RW
Write Strategies: CD-TAO, CD-SAO, DVD-DAO
Media: To show the available burn speeds, insert a disc and choose View > Refresh

Took me 3 tries to get SL to install. This drive does not like DVD's

With my Macbook air, I had another issue. I've first started using an old external drive with a Plextor DVD reader. It mounted the install DVD but I would get the same error message that the install has halted and ask to relaunch. Did it several times and after a minute, it will dismount. Robooted both the drive and the MBA but no avail!

Then I tried it using Remote Disk from a Windows PC (of all things). The MBA saw the install disk, and started to do the install. The drive from the HP DC7700 would constantly make erratic reading noise. It would speed up and down, until after 10 to 15 minutes, I see the install menu.

Going thru the few steps of the install process, it took approx. an hour to do the installation before finally rebooting. Phew.... I finally gotten SL installed! So far so good. Also gain approx. 8GB back!

From reading this thread, I suspect it's how OSX reads the SL Disk. But Windows, did the trick, despite strange noises coming from the player. Hope this helps.

As Gryff noted earlier in relation to Apple Insider - let's stay on point here - THIS IS NOT A SNOW LEOPARD ISSUE! Yes, many of you are apparently just finding that you have a SD problem as you attempt to install SL - and that's a real shame, but that isn't the issue on this thread. The rest of us have been dealing with SDs that don't load, read, write anything - and we've been dealing with it for months, long before SL was a glint in Apple's eye