CD-ROM drive A computer peripheral that plays back CD-ROMs and--with the right software--audio CDs. It consists of a spindle that revs up the disc, a laser that flashes onto the disc's uneven surface, a prism that deflects the laser beam, and a light-sensitive diode that reads the flashing light. Since the audio CD standard calls for data transfer of 150 kilobytes per second (KB/sec), all CD-ROM drives can handle this speed, and most can manage 2X (double-speed, or 300 KB/sec) or 4X (quad-speed, or 600 KB/sec) rates. There are also 6X (900 KB/sec) and even 8X (1,200 KB/sec) drives, but since most CD-ROM titles are squarely aimed at transferring data within the 2X/4X bandwidth, you'll usually not see much advantage to drives with higher transfer rates than with a 4X drive. See also: CD-ROM