DVD burning / encoding hardware solution

[jbucaran]

Hello,

While searching about why iDVD takes a lifetime to burn my DVD's (direct to the DVD player) I read that it's because iDVD is a software. This makes sense so it doesn't matter how powerful your Mac is, it will never be the same as a hardware system.

However I failed at getting meaningful results with Google on this.

So, what *hardware solutions* are available? I am definitely getting one.


J

 

[xstep]

I'll be surprised if you find something for a laptop. I found this old demo of Capty Fast Encoder. Of course the resulting file isn't usable in iDVD. So you would need to use something else to create a DVD. That software would also have to separate the audio from the video as a separate stream.

Here is a card for the Mac Pro.

What you really want is something that integrates with iDVD so that when iDVD does the encoding, it uses the add-on hardware. I've never heard of anything like that yet.

 

[phxazmacaddict]

While I realize that iDVD is a pain in the lower posterior area, there *are* other solutions, of course. I have used Toast 9 Titanium for months, and in the current iteration (ver. 9.0.2) it works quite well. Granted, it will set you back between $69 and $99, but it's worth the reduction in headaches and physical time spent on such an endeavour.

Cheers!

 

[xstep]

Could iDVD be updated for free?

The only time Apple gives iDVD for `free' is with a purchase of a new Machine. After that, one must buy the iLife bundle to get a newer version. There is no upgrade version either.