Apple quietly changed the SuperDrive speed of PowerBook G4 17"

Browse here:
http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/P...IndustrialProductDetails/0,1444,32416,00.html

And then here:
http://www.tapeandmedia.com/detail.asp?product_id=DVS-R470WDD50
http://www.electroweb.com/product/media2.htm

We can order them at our company (we are in Greece) BUT as you can see they ARE expensive and that's the reason why we didn't so far...

That's why I said in a previous post that I hope that companies will lower the prices and make them mainstream... But then again they DON'T want to... :mad:
 
even though double sided dvds may be expensive. i must admit that tha 4.5 GB dvd prices have gone done quite a lot here in Greece.
i can get an Intenso (i them consider a relatively good company) DVD 4.5 GB with 3 euros. that $3 per disc. while simple 650mb CDs cost around 0,75 euros. i think thats a good price :)
 
Originally posted by stealth
even though double sided dvds may be expensive. i must admit that tha 4.5 GB dvd prices have gone done quite a lot here in Greece.
i can get an Intenso (i them consider a relatively good company) DVD 4.5 GB with 3 euros. that $3 per disc. while simple 650mb CDs cost around 0,75 euros. i think thats a good price :)
Click to expand...

You've been warned Stealth!

Now, seriously: I've burn MANY DVDs for customers, for me, etc. BUT there is a BIG difference in el cheapo DVD-R disks and the expensive branded ones: Compatibility!

While I've NOT tested every single cheap DVD-R disks out there the ones I've tested seem to lack compatibility across a huge spectrum of products: Built-in DVD-ROMs, DVD-R/Ws inside Macs and PCs as well as the deck solutions of Sony, Pioneer, et al. By compatibility I mean the quality of playback or reading data from or even NOT be able to read them at all... While with the branded (but expensive) disks this is a rare phenomenon.

Also, one other thing that the cheap disks lack is the long life and they also damaged much more easily...

As I said: Use them at your own risk... :rolleyes:
 
i dont think Intenso is an low quality brand. i might have found their dvds at a low price. BUT i think they should be rather compatible. ill check them out!
 
So, what about my question? :)
If there would be 9GB single-sided DVD-Rs out, would it be possible for a regular Superdrive to burn those 9GB?
Like there are 99mins CDRs out and as far as I know any CDRW-drive can burn the max size of the medium...
 
Originally posted by Zammy-Sam
So, what about my question? :)
If there would be 9GB single-sided DVD-Rs out, would it be possible for a regular Superdrive to burn those 9GB?
Like there are 99mins CDRs out and as far as I know any CDRW-drive can burn the max size of the medium...
Click to expand...

Well, technically this cannot occur... From what I know all the current models of SuperDrives cannot write single-sided media above 4.7 GB... However, maybe with a firmware update? Only Pioneer, Matsushita, Apple, et al know for sure ;)

Also, take note that the >80min of CD-ROMs have issues reproducing their contents in other CD/DVD/etc. devices... Even in other CD-RWs one cannot be sure that his/her 90min CD disk will reproduce its contents without problems! Those things are "Use it at your own risk" areas :D

I for one NEVER burn something absolutely important in anything less than a branded CD-R(74min-650MB)/DVD-R(4.7GB) disk at 4 or 8 speed recording... Maybe it sounds insane or paranoid but then again I never had a CD/DVD read error occur even on very old & hard used optical media! :D :D :D
 
Originally posted by Zammy-Sam
So, what about my question? :)
If there would be 9GB single-sided DVD-Rs out, would it be possible for a regular Superdrive to burn those 9GB?
Like there are 99mins CDRs out and as far as I know any CDRW-drive can burn the max size of the medium...
Click to expand...

The problem with consumer DVD burners is just that -- they are burners, not injection-molders. DVD burners create one's and zero's by literally burning (or not burning) tiny segments of metal in the dvd. Professional DVD's one's and zero's are made with actual physical bumps and pits in the plastic. You can read about this cool, complex process here:
http://www.howstuffworks.com/dvd2.htm

But the important thing about this is a one-sided professional DVD disc can have 2 separate layers of data. The outer layer's data is stored on a semi-reflective gold layer and the DVD drive's laser can 'see through' the gold layer when it wants to to read the inner layer (which uses Aluminum). A double-sided professional DVD disc can have 4 separate layers.

The layers are actually created separately and then 'glued' together. DVD-burner manufacturers have decided that they don't want to have consumers trying to align and glue layers of DVD's together (probably a very good idea), so we are stuck with half the capacity of a professional DVD.

Got any rubber cement? ;)
 
Right. More specifically, they are single-sided, dual-layer discs -- although they don't quite hold 9.4 GB. (The second layer can't hold quite as much.) They come out to about 8.5 GB total.

Here's a webpage with nice graphical images of the different formats we've all been talking about:
http://www.disctronics.co.uk/technology/dvdintro/dvd_formats.htm#DVD5

Basically:
DVD-5 = 4.7 GB (single-sided, single-layer)
DVD-9 = 8.54 GB (single-sided, dual-layer)
DVD-10 = 9.4 GB (double-sided, single-layer)
DVD-18 = 17.08 GB (double-sided, dual-layer)

DVD-9 and DVD-18 are impossible for current burners to create because they actually consist of two separate layers, made separately and glued together.
 
Originally posted by aishafenton
So does the superdrive support DVD-10?
Click to expand...

Yes oh yes...

Basically is the same thing as the 4.7 GB single sided disks... So, if you can find easily and cheap 9GB disks buy 'em!

Also, let me know so that I will sent you money in order for you to send me some 9 GB disks :D :D :D
 
Originally posted by hulkaros

...Also, let me know so that I will sent you money in order for you to send me some 9 GB disks :D :D :D
Click to expand...

hulk is a cheap ass, and hes got green skin. just send them 2 me :)
 
Originally posted by stealth
hulk is a cheap ass, and hes got green skin. just send them 2 me :)
Click to expand...

Hulkaros smash puny Stealth! Stealth will have no skin after Hulkaros finishes with Stealth... Then Hulkaros will have those GB 9 DVD dark disks!
 
This is straight from apple:
"Before you use this media in any DVD recording device, it is important that your device be up to date. Apple has made it very easy to update your Apple 2x SuperDrive and recommends that all 2x SuperDrive-equipped Macintosh systems be updated. Please visit www.apple.com/hardware/superdrive for more information about updating your Apple SuperDrive. If you plan to use this media in any other DVD recording device, please contact your device manufacturer for an update. Certain DVD-R/RW drives and DVD-R/RW video recorders that have not been updated may not recognize this media and may even be damaged by it.

A 2x SuperDrive writes to 4x media at 1x, so to obtain the highest performance from your 2x SuperDrive, we recommend that you continue using 2x DVD-R media just as you do today"

Regarding the 4x DVD-R disks... Sounds scary, isn't it?

Some other reasons for me to prefer slower and bigger media and not just fast :D
 
i just used a 2x DVD-r Media to record at 2speed for the first time. it was nice ... he he he.
but the damn media was quite more expensive than the 1speed Media!
 
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