In short I need a cheap external disc drive and dont want to cough up the 20$ and buy online so thrift store it is. I cant really come up with a way to test these usually usb powered drives besides somehow setting up a computer or asking the workers for help (doubt they will). Does anyone have an idea to narrow down if a drive is defective or should i just take a chance and hopefully the store has a return policy?
The majority of thrift stores I’ve been to dont even allow to bring in bags so sadly dont think this will work in my case but I’ll still ask the staff when I go for future reference thank you
You can usually go in empty handed first and ask if it’s ok for you to bring in just your laptop to see if a usb drive works, and then go get it with minimal other stuff for them to be suspicious about.
Then when you try to leave they’ll tackle you for ‘stealing’ a laptop.
That’s one reason to talk to them and ask permission first, avoiding that kind of drama.