Burning DVDs at 2x on a PowerBook G4 SuperDrive?


Can you upgrade your PowerBook's SuperDrive firmware? The answer might be 'Yes'.

An interesting piece at hardware site MacBidouille note, courtesy of xlr8yourmac, that revised firmware for the Matshita (model UJ-815) internal 'SuperDrive' can double the speed of the costly slot-loading SuperDrive on your PB-12, 15 or 17.

According to the article, Apple has not released this firmware, but it is available. The firmware will reportedly remove the 1x DVD-R restriction and allow you to write DVD-Rs at 2x. CD-R burn speed improves as well; writing speed doubles to 16x with the firmware applied. MacBidouille has generously put the firmware up for download to save you looking for it.

As ever, applying 'unofficial' firmware carries with it certain risks, including that of rendering your DVD-R/RW inoperative, and voiding your warranty on that part. Do this at your own risk - but let us know the results if you've had a success (or even a failure).