Think what you want. All my computers have disc drives. If they dont, I have external ones.

I am still using disc drives from the 90s with zero issues. I actually take care of my shit unlike most people so maybe thats why. One of my DVD players sat in a storage shed getting covered in dust for like 8 ish years (not climate controlled either), had stuff dropped on it, still works fine. Thats a heavy metal body onkyo though with component out. Any DVD player with HDMI only out is pretty much shit and cheaply made.

VCRs are even better. Ive rarely found one I can't get working with minimal effort.

I've had an external dvd player for years now and never had an issue. Maybe because i only use it once a month or so ? But it does not seem like defective garbage, and at the time i picked the cheapest one i could find.