Won't even read cd's- autostart fails...

There are two lasers, one for CDs, other for DVDs. Sounds like the CD
read (and possibly Write) laser is worn out, or defective. Time for a
new drive. DVDs will be fine, because they don't use the other laser at
all.

Got the same problem with my desktop where my samsung cd-rw/dvd combo drive is installed. After a few months of minimal use it can no longer read data/audio/video cds except for DVDs. So I browsed samsung website & started downloading updates and religiously followed their suggested solutions posted on their website but to no avail. So the best solution that I did was I bought a new cd writer/dvd drive(no longer samsung! mind you) then I emailed them a litany of my frustrations and believe me they never have the guts to email me back not even a hint on what to do with their junk product!

It is my understanding that the laser in the optical drive has to
change it's characteristics depending on the media it's reading (or
writing). I believe what the drive does is try different laser
settings (such as beam size, and intensity) until it can read the
media. Your drive probably has a fault with this feature. You can try buying one of those CD/DVD cleaning disk kits at a music or electronics store. Maybe cleaning the lens on the laser will make a difference. Best way to clean it though is manualy, if you know how to open it up without causing damage. If this doesn't help, you probably need a new drive, even though trying to reinstall the firmware/drivers is also an option.

Let us know what worked if any ;]