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This is an image of my laptop motherboard DVD drive connector. Seems to be 13 pins:

enter image description here

And this is another image of the connector to an internal laptop DVD drive I have (one that doesn't physically fit into my laptop). Seems to be 25 pins:

enter image description here

QUESTION: What cable do I need to buy to connect the two together? Are both ports SATA ports? I don't know anything about hardware.

UPDATE with more information:

  • Don't see any model number on the motherboard. Laptop: Acer Extensa, model MS2394

  • DVD drive is from Sony, model number: CRX880A

By the way, I should mention that the laptop didn't ship with any DVD drive in it, but it seems pretty obvious opening up the laptop that it has an unused connector that I could use for connecting a DVD drive. They just put a hunk of removable plastic instead of a DVD drive, presumably to keep the laptop as cheap as possible (it's a low-end laptop).

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  • It would help if you edit your question to provide the make/model number of both your motherboard and your DVD drive ...
    – DavidPostill ♦
    Commented Sep 4, 2015 at 17:26
  • @HardwareIgnoramus - Please take the time to provide the specifics we have requested. You just edited your question. If you want an answer this really is required for us to help.
    – Ramhound
    Commented Sep 4, 2015 at 17:42
  • @DavidPostill Thanks, more info posted. does this help?
    – Hardware Ignoramus
    Commented Sep 4, 2015 at 17:57
  • How old is this laptop? I can't find any evidence it exists on the web.
    – Ramhound
    Commented Sep 4, 2015 at 18:03
  • @Ramhound It's actually a very new laptop. I bought it only a few months ago. It shipped with Windows 8 or 8.1.
    – Hardware Ignoramus
    Commented Sep 4, 2015 at 18:05

2 Answers 2

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You can’t use this DVD drive in your laptop. The drive has an IDE connector, while the laptop has a newer SATA port.

Here is a link to your DVD drive. It has a Parallel ATA interface while the laptop has a Serial ATA interface. They are not electrically compatible.

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  • Hey, the drive doesn't have to go into the laptop itself. I don't mind a cable connecting the two and the drive remaining outside the physical laptop itself (the cable would just go through the opening of the laptop). Is there such an IDE to SATA cable?
    – Hardware Ignoramus
    Commented Sep 4, 2015 at 18:21
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    @HardwareIgnoramus No! They are two incompatible interfaces.
    – kinokijuf
    Commented Sep 4, 2015 at 18:56
  • Thanks, your great wisdom astounds me. Can you mention a cheap DVD/CD drive + cable on eBay that I can connect to the motherboard SATA port with a cable? Again, the drive doesn't have to fit into the laptop itself, it can be outside of it. An ugly setup, but it works for me. (Although bonus points if it fits into the laptop! Of course harder to find I guess)
    – Hardware Ignoramus
    Commented Sep 4, 2015 at 19:41
  • @HardwareIgnoramus, if you turn your workaround into hardware shopping recomendation you are falling down into off-topic darkness.
    – Francisco Tapia
    Commented Sep 4, 2015 at 19:45
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    @HardwareIgnoramus: They sell converters that would let you interface the two, but you would end up with a kluge of the convertor and connector adapters, and it probably wouldn't have the performance of just using the right type of drive (and you wouldn't save much by the time you were done).
    – fixer1234
    Commented Sep 4, 2015 at 19:45
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Slim ATAPI to Mini Sata?? but i have never seen one as this in the normal stores, maybe you miss a propietary piece of hardware(an adapter)[if the DVD is the original] or instead a compatible Optical Hardware.

I suggest you to ask about the spare code about the compatible hardware with Acer support and compare with your current device.

There is an referencial image about what im talking about.

enter image description here

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  • I knew the bottom was ATA just could figure out why it don't have more pins, it's because, it's slim/micro :$
    – Ramhound
    Commented Sep 4, 2015 at 21:40

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