I've had pretty good luck with my asus dvd writer. It's not the quietest thing when it spins up full speed but most are rarely quiet. Streaming is an option if just looking to view something and if the person has enough speed and available bandwidth (not all connections are unlimited and video is a good way to burn through limited internet access).
Optical media still has its uses, it only takes a short bit of time to burn a disc and if using it for video can be played just about anywhere since most people have a bluray, dvd or game system with dvd/br playback capabilities connected to a t.v. or video player in a vehicle. Depending what internet service someone has it may or may not be working (if the cable is down/out no streaming) but so long as there's power and a player, optical media still works.