stubenkastl, I have very similar experiences with you, it just can not read most of my CD, DVDs, very sad. I thought at the beginning it is due to the external enclosure i used (Neo N525U2-SL-NEC, NEC chipset), checked the retailer webpage, it should be compatible with 1693S no problem. Then I found your post. I can not return it to store now. Feel quite frustrated, haven't tried upgrade the firmware, but don't hope much at this moment.