Ive had mine for about 3 years now and have used it about a couple hundred times and even though I dont recall on burning too many coasters I still think its starting to die out. Are there any simple tests that can check the status of a burner?

Apart from taking it to a repair shop, I cant think of any, but a couple of hundred times shouldn't affect the performance, it should be fine going into the thousands

Not really, but try the Nero Info Ttool and CDSpeed from HERE (http://www.cdspeed2000.com/).

Burners are so cheap these days, if it makes you feel better and more confident, just bin it and get another one.