ROUNDUP: The best CD/DVD drives for the modern Mac

No optical disc drive? No problem, check out our pick of the best drives to keep those discs spinning on modern Macs

- LORY GIL

A CD/DVD DRIVE is essential if you have an iMac or MacBook that doesn't have an optical disc drive built into it — which is most of the newer models these days as Apple discontinued optical disc drives back in 2016.

An external optical disc drive enables you to easily use discs with your Mac. You can import your movies and music from a disc to your Mac, or the other way round. You can also back up important documents, photos and anything else you want to keep safe on a disc, and you can watch your favorite DVD movies.

The good news is external drives are relatively cheap as the need for them begins to wane. We've selected the best drives below. 

ASUS ZenDrive U9M 

$34.99 From www.asus.com

Features Max read speeds: 8x DVD–ROM, 24x CD–ROM. Max write speeds: 6x DVD+R DL, 6x DVD–R DL, 8x DVD+R, 8x DVD–R, 24x CD–R. Max rewrite speeds: 8x DVD+RW, 6x DVD– RW, 24x CD–RW. 5.6" x 5.3" x 0.54", 8.3 oz

This super–slim drive from Asus has plenty of features to offer those looking for a great drive to upgrade their Mac. It comes in three different colors: gold, black or silver, and the concentric–circle hairline finish looks very premium. At just over a half inch thick, it's the slimmest drive here, though it's not quite as light as the LG Ultra Slim, nor is it quite as inexpensive (though it's still very reasonable at around $35).