bd/dvd drive problems with N53sv and other asus laptops

Hi!
I have a problem with N53sv bd/dvd drive: it wouldn't detect anything. When I put dvd or a cd (havn't tried blue rays) in, it would make some sound for a few seconds, but then would stop completely. It applies to both burned dvd's and purchased ones.
In an earlier thread related to similar problem someone mentioned it might be lens... Could this be the case?

It might be worth mentioning that I previously owned Asus G2sv and Asus A1 and both at some point suffered from similar problems (not detecting dvds).
In case of A1 it was solved by taking to Asus centre and replacing the dvd drive. So my question is- does anyone have any idea why this tends to happen? Is it normal for laptops' dvd drives? I hardly use the drives!!!
Any help/advice would be appreciated!

 

Often, it is a dirty, lens, cleaning it won't cost you anything and doesn't incur any risks so try it.

The optical drives in laptops are one of the parts that are more prone to failure due to their mechanical nature. They don't fail often, but they will fail more often than say a processor, lcd panel and other non moving parts.