Hitachi-LG GTC2N 6x DVD-RW 内蔵OEMスリムライン光学ドライブ (12.7mm)

This article covers the Hitachi-LG GTC2N 6x DVD-RW 内蔵OEMスリムライン光学ドライブ (12.7mm), including the practical snags you hit during installation.

Overview

The Hitachi-LG GTC2N is a 12.7mm slimline internal DVD Super Multi drive.

The short verdict: it is aimed almost entirely at replacing a dead optical drive in an older 12.7mm-bay laptop, or building your own external DVD writer from a slim enclosure.

Outside those two jobs there is little reason to pick it. There is no Blu-ray support at all, read or write.

It ships as an OEM bulk unit, so no retail box and no software. On Amazon.co.jp the listed price was ￥4,345 as captured on 10 September 2026; prices move, so check the product page for the current figure.

The same listing shows 63 reviews averaging 4.4 out of 5 (about 88%).

That is a small sample, but for a bulk optical drive it points to a steady, unremarkable-in-a-good-way product.

On the spec side the headline feature is M-DISC (DVD+R format) support alongside DVD±R/RW, DVD-RAM and CD-R/RW, plus LG's Super Multi and Silent Play, the latter cutting spin noise during playback.

Is it 6x or 8x?

The product name says 6x while the spec table lists DVD-R SL at 8x. That is not a contradiction — the two numbers describe different things.

Optical drives quote rewrite speed for DVD-RW media separately from write speed for write-once DVD-R. The "6x DVD-RW" in the name refers to rewritable media; the 8x figure is for burning DVD-R SL.

In wall-clock terms, a full single-layer DVD (~4.7GB) at 8x takes roughly 8–10 minutes; a dual-layer disc at 4x takes well over twice that.

If burn speed matters to you, a slim drive is the wrong category — the 12.7mm height limit means it will always trail a full-height 5.25-inch desktop drive.

That is physics, not a defect.

Compatibility Guide

The interface is slimline SATA, the thin connector that carries data and power together, in a 12.7mm slimline form factor.

What you need depends entirely on where it is going.

• Laptop drive swap: If the bay is 12.7mm, it drops straight in. It will not fit the 9.5mm bays common in thinner machines. Measure the drive you pull out — this is the single most common mistake.
• Desktop install: Motherboards use standard SATA, so you need a slimline-SATA-to-SATA-plus-power adapter, and a bracket to mount a slim drive in a 5.25-inch bay.
• External use: A slimline SATA to USB enclosure turns it into a USB drive. If it runs on bus power, a weak USB port can drop the connection mid-burn; an enclosure with a Y-cable for extra power is the safer choice.

One detail people forget: the front bezel and rear bracket. Bulk slim drives arrive with a plain or OEM faceplate, and no bezel that matches your laptop's shell.

In most cases you transplant the bezel and bracket from the drive you removed — so keep the dead unit, broken or not.

On the software side, DVD/CD drives are normally recognised by the in-box Windows 10/11 drivers with nothing to install. Note that Windows has not included DVD-Video playback since Windows 10, so you will need your own player software; none is bundled.

Product Info

This is OEM bulk stock. No SATA cable, no adapter, no screws, no burning software, no bezel — the bare drive only.

The ￥4,345 figure (Amazon.co.jp, captured 10 September 2026, subject to sales and stock) is genuinely cheap, but if you plan to use it externally, add the cost of an enclosure.

For that use case a finished external USB DVD drive is often cheaper overall and far less fiddly.

The 63 reviews averaging 4.4 are not a large sample, but they at least rule out a product dominated by dead-on-arrival complaints — a real risk in the bulk-drive category, where handling and shipping damage drag ratings down.

To restate the key specs: slimline SATA interface; DVD±R/RW, DVD-RAM, CD-R/RW and M-DISC (DVD+R) media; M-DISC support, Silent Play and Super Multi features.

Does M-DISC Actually Matter?

M-DISC records by physically etching an inorganic layer rather than relying on the organic dye used by ordinary recordable DVDs, so it resists the UV and humidity degradation that fades dye over time. The GTC2N can write it, and having that on one of the cheapest drives you can buy is a real advantage.

Two caveats. First, M-DISC media costs more than the drive on any meaningful volume — per-disc pricing is far above ordinary DVD-R, so it is not a realistic way to archive hundreds of gigabytes.

Second, capacity is DVD-class (around 4.7GB), which suits scanned documents, contracts and photo sets but means far too many discs for video.

Long-term storage also depends on something outside the media: whether a drive that can read the format still exists in twenty years. Since DVD drives are only getting scarcer, archiving to M-DISC sensibly means storing a drive alongside the discs.

How It Compares

Bluntly: if your goal is anything other than filling a laptop's optical bay, there is little reason to choose this drive. If it is that, a new Super Multi for around four thousand yen is a sound deal.

Best Use Cases

• Owners of a 12.7mm-bay laptop with a failed drive — the obvious first pick. Match the bay height, move the bezel over, done.
• Anyone who already owns a slim USB enclosure — replace just the mechanism, cheaply.
• People archiving photos and documents to M-DISC — strong value for small volumes of irreplaceable data.
• Budget CD/DVD ripping setups — read speeds are perfectly adequate for that job.

Before You Buy

Height first. It will not fit a 9.5mm bay.

"Slimline" is not one size — it covers both 12.7mm and 9.5mm.

Measure before ordering; this is the number one cause of returns.

Bezel and bracket. Bulk units come with a generic faceplate or none, so expect a visible mismatch on the side of your laptop unless you transplant the original.

Budget a small Phillips driver and some patience with the plastic clips.

Do not expect Blu-ray. It cannot even read BD-ROM, let alone 4K UHD Blu-ray.

If BD is on your horizon, an external BD drive is cheaper than buying twice.

Warranty and support. As an OEM part there is generally no direct manufacturer warranty channel; defects go through the seller.

This Amazon listing is sold and shipped by a marketplace seller (RAREWAVES-JP), so their return policy governs. Read it before you order.

Verify the listing itself. Manufacturer, model and bundled-item details on Amazon pages are sometimes wrong, and bulk optical drives in particular ship in lots that differ in bezel colour or tray style.

Confirm from the product photos, the title, and if necessary a question to the seller that you are getting a 12.7mm slimline SATA GTC2N before ordering.

Realistic burn quality. Slim drives run hotter and vibrate more than desktop units, so cheap media burned at maximum speed raises error rates.

For anything important, drop one speed step and always run a verify pass afterwards. That is a slim-drive habit, not a flaw specific to this model.

FAQ

Q. Will it fit my laptop?
A. Yes if the optical bay is 12.7mm; no if it is 9.5mm. Pull the old drive and measure it.

Q. Can it read Blu-ray?
A. No. Media support stops at DVD±R/RW, DVD-RAM, CD-R/RW and M-DISC (DVD+R).

Q. Can I use it in a desktop?
A. Yes, with a slimline-SATA-to-SATA-plus-power adapter and a 5.25-inch bay mounting bracket.

Q. Can I make it external? A.

Yes, in a slimline SATA USB enclosure, sold separately. Prefer one with auxiliary power if your USB ports are weak.

Q. Do I need drivers? A.

Normally no — Windows 10/11 recognise it natively. DVD-Video playback still needs third-party player software, which is not included.

Q. What is in the box?
A. Treat it as the bare drive. Cables, screws, bezel and burning software are all on you.

Product Disclosure (Amazon)

• Manufacturer: LG
• Seller: RAREWAVES-JP
• Fulfilled by: RAREWAVES-JP
• ASIN: B096T6RC5S
• Note: This article covers a manufacturer-made product based on Amazon listing details.