Mini Superdrive Grinds

I have a mac mini bought in May 2008, whenever I put a cd or dvd in the drive it makes a horrible grinding noise like it it bouncing on the edges of the disc. It completely freezes up the mac and I have to either pull the power or sometimes holding power down resets it. Then it boots up and its fine. I thought maybe it was the disc but it has happened with my turbo tax disc and my new ilife disc. There doesn't seem to be any damage to the discs themselves (except some dust on the edges because it is grinding). Anyone ever encounter this? I have apple care and plan on taking it into an apple store but thought I'd ask first.

The slim, slot-loading drives on the Mini are rather susceptible to dirt and damage because of the design compromises that were made to fit in such a small space -- and some forum regulars suggest using an external, tray-loading firewire burner if you are a heavy cd/dvd user and the internal starts to fail.
But since you have AppleCare, Apple can just replace your drive.

Similar Messages

New Mac Mini+Superdrive+windows 7 - Will it work?

Looking at updating my father to the Apple world, thought I would get him a Mac Mini, and use Bootcamp to install Windows. As the new Mac Mini doesn't have an optical drive (I have a MacBook Air Superdrive), if I use the external one to install Windows, will it install properly? Does the Mac Mini have the drivers for the SUperdrive? Any thoughts? Thanks in advance.
vladimir10

Well, running 10 Mac Apps whilst Paralles is running XP & W7, here's the results, many DirectX tests ran at dizzing 400+++ FPS!?
I'm certain running off a SATA drive would double this.
All on a lowly iMac...
Hardware Overview:
Model Name: iMac
Model Identifier: iMac7,1
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 4 MB
Memory: 6 GB
Bus Speed: 800 MHz
Boot ROM Version: IM71.007A.B03
SMC Version (system): 1.21f4

Current Mac Mini Superdrive noise/vibrataion...Resolutions?

I've got a Mac Mini that I purchased around September or October of last year, so it's the current generation that's in the Apple Store right now. When the drive spins up anywhere near full speed, whether reading or burning, the excessive noise and vibration makes it almost intolerable to stay in the room with it. It's definitely not "normal" by any stretch of the word. No disc burning has failed because of this, but it does seem to take excessive amounts of time to burn full discs. Also, this weekend I installed Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 on my 2008 Black Macbook and it took around an hour to complete the install. I did the same install from the same DVD on my current Mac Mini and after well over 2 hours of installing and only getting to about 60% progress, I gave up and went to bed while it finished. So same speed drive, close to the same processor, 4 times the RAM...and the Mac Mini takes at least 3 times as long to accomplish the same install. That's not acceptable at all. Granted, I don't use the drive all that often, but when I do I want it to work, and to work efficiently and properly.
I've searched the discussions and see threads from over a year ago on this topic, but nothing recent. Wondering what the latest verdict is on these issues and if Apple has been replacing these as of late and/or has acknowledged the problem. I'm still within the standard 1 year warranty, but also have Applecare, so warranty is not really an issue. I've only found a couple people for whom Apple has fixed this (and then they just replaced the whole machine), and those have all said that the noise was not quite as bad, but that it was still not normal in the replacement machines, and even then that was after 2-3 replacements. I don't want to go through the hassle of replacing my machine multiple times and having to keep restoring from Time Machine backups only to have a machine that isn't quite as noisy. The noise I could honestly deal with if I had to (but I shouldn't), it's the excessively long read/write times that I can't accept. So any new news on this before I go to the trouble to take it to the Apple Store?

Right, and that's what I would fully expect. However, I'm looking for people who have recently had the problem, have taken theirs in for repair (warranty or not) and if the issue was fully resolved or if it was still a problem, even if it wasn't quite as bad as before. If I'm still going to have the issue after a drive repair/replacement I don't want to waste my time taking it in and being without a machine for a few days. I want to know current experiences with the superdrives on the last gen Mac Mini.

2010 Mini superdrive has stopped working after Mountain Lion update - anyone else?

After updating to 10.8 the superdrive on my 2010 mini has completely stopped working. It will not accept any disks. Disk Utility sees the drive as a working drive. Anyone else having this issue? If yes and you've resolved it, how??

Same thing happened to me with Mountain Lion. It seems that at the moment there's no solution. I've tried to burn a DVD with Toast Titanium, iDVD and the SimplyBurn. All of them failed.
It's a shame that Apple did this because we pay for a computer with a drive that could burn DVD discs. I´m very, very disappointed with Apple!

Backing up PC data through Mac mini superdrive?

Trying to think this through of how this is possible, but my mind isn't working this morning. How would I back up data from a PC laptop onto DVD using a superdrive built into a Mac mini? Any suggestions on software/solutions for both Mac and PC would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

You would have to do this via a network connection between the two - copying all files from PC to Mac first, then burning them to the DVD. To set up file sharing between the two, see http://www.efelix.co.uk/tech/3001.html
My suggestion - buy a low-cost external CD or DVD burner for your PC. Far more convenient with a lot less hassle.

Intel Mini superdrive VERY noisy on DVD-RW close session, media hosed

My Intel Core Duo mini with superdrive has always made LOTS of noise when rewriting DVD-RW (not the first burn).
It all goes well, for example using Apple Backup, but when it closes the session on a re-used disk it spins up REALLY loudly over and over again. It can take 15-20 minutes to close the session.
One disc did this for about 4 backup (erase->rewrite cycles) and then the drive just gave up and the disk was not visible and backup still said "closing session". I had to reboot the box and eject the disk with Disk Utility - after it was noisily spinning up a lot.
Of course the media is now unusable.
Another backup on a virgin DVD-RW from the same batch works. I am pretty sure next time I do it the close session will get noisy again etc.
I am not the only person who notices the loud close session noise and VERY slow closing of sessions - my friend has an Intel Mini Core Duo too and it does it.
Another firmware update debacle looming?
Media: Philips DVD-RW 1-4x

Well here's an update.
I took a working (first burn) DVD+RW (they are all DVD+RW not -RW as previously stated sorry) and copied all the data off it onto my mini. Then I tried to erase it using Disk Utility. That was 30 minutes ago and it is still BUZZING very loudly in 10 second bursts with quite gaps in between. I've given up now and can't get the disk out of the drive, I will have to reboot and get it to throw it out then.
I want to know if I'm the only one with this problem. I will try some other media soon and I will also try the SuperDrive in the PPC G4 mini I have to see if that one is ok with the same media.
In the meantime my DiscRecorder.log shows the sorry tale... and maybe the "burning at 47x" bit is a clue to there being a problem?!!
Backup: Burn started, Fri Jun 2 12:50:35 2006
Backup: Erase started, Fri Jun 2 12:50:36 2006
Backup: Erasing in MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-846 FM3J via ATAPI.
Backup: Erase finished, Fri Jun 2 12:51:06 2006
Backup: Burning to DVD+RW media with DAO strategy in MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-846 FM3J via ATAPI.
Backup: Requested burn speed was 47x, actual burn speed is 4x.
Backup: Burn finished, Fri Jun 2 12:55:13 2006
1 successful burn.
Same disc...
Backup: Burn started, Fri Jun 16 14:38:15 2006
Backup: Erase started, Fri Jun 16 14:38:20 2006
Backup: Erasing in MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-846 FM3J via ATAPI.
Backup: Erase finished, Fri Jun 16 14:38:51 2006
Backup: Burning to DVD+RW media with DAO strategy in MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-846 FM3J via ATAPI.
Backup: Requested burn speed was 47x, actual burn speed is 4x.
Backup: Burn finished, Fri Jun 16 14:51:09 2006
OK again.
Same disk:
Backup: Burn started, Fri Jun 23 15:00:00 2006
Backup: Erase started, Fri Jun 23 15:00:06 2006
Backup: Erasing in MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-846 FM3J via ATAPI.
Backup: Erase finished, Fri Jun 23 15:00:34 2006
Backup: Burning to DVD+RW media with DAO strategy in MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-846 FM3J via ATAPI.
Backup: Requested burn speed was 47x, actual burn speed is 4x.
BOOM: This one died, Backup had to be killed. Rigmarole getting disk out of mini.
New disc:
Backup: Burn started, Mon Jun 26 10:41:19 2006
Backup: Burning to DVD+RW media with DAO strategy in MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-846 FM3J via ATAPI.
Backup: Requested burn speed was 47x, actual burn speed is 4x.
Backup: Burn finished, Mon Jun 26 10:44:46 2006
Fine.
Same disc:
Backup: Burn started, Fri Jun 30 18:45:46 2006
Backup: Burn failed, Fri Jun 30 18:45:47 2006
Backup: Burn error: 0x80020040 One of the volumes on the media is still in use.
Ooops.
New disc:
Backup: Burn started, Sat Jul 1 07:56:36 2006
Backup: Erase started, Sat Jul 1 07:56:41 2006
Backup: Erasing in MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-846 FM3J via ATAPI.
Backup: Erase finished, Sat Jul 1 07:57:13 2006
Backup: Burning to DVD+RW media with DAO strategy in MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-846 FM3J via ATAPI.
Backup: Requested burn speed was 47x, actual burn speed is 4x.
Backup: Burn failed, Sat Jul 1 08:01:45 2006
Backup: Burn sense: 4/03/00 Hardware Error, Peripheral device write fault
Backup: Burn error: 0x80020022 The device failed to respond properly, unable to recover or retry.
Ooops another coaster.
Tried to erase same disk with disk utility:
DiskManagementTool: Erase started, Mon Jul 3 09:02:49 2006
DiskManagementTool: Erasing in MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-846 FM3J via ATAPI.
DiskManagementTool: Erase failed, Mon Jul 3 09:02:49 2006
DiskManagementTool: Erase error: 0x80020040 One of the volumes on the media is still in use.
Didn't like that. Try again:
DiskManagementTool: Erase started, Mon Jul 3 09:11:08 2006
DiskManagementTool: Erasing in MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-846 FM3J via ATAPI.
DiskManagementTool: Erase failed, Mon Jul 3 09:11:09 2006
DiskManagementTool: Erase error: 0x80020040 One of the volumes on the media is still in use.
No joy.
New disc:
Backup: Burn started, Mon Jul 3 09:22:06 2006
Backup: Burning to DVD+RW media with DAO strategy in MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-846 FM3J via ATAPI.
Backup: Requested burn speed was 2x, actual burn speed is 2.4x.
Backup: Burn finished, Mon Jul 3 09:29:43 2006
Fine first burn, also at 2.4x (but worked fine at 4x too for first burn)
Tried to erase this disc manually as a test:
DiskManagementTool: Erase started, Tue Jul 4 12:51:18 2006
DiskManagementTool: Erasing in MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-846 FM3J via ATAPI.
drutil: DVD-R UJ-846: SCSITask 15310.768555 CDB: Start/Stop Unit/Eject
- had to kill it as by 13:20 it was still just doing.. (pause) ROOOOOAR (pause) ROOOOOAR (pause) ROOOAR) so much so you have to speak up loudly to talk to someone else in the room.
Here I tried to eject after killing Disk Utility, using drutil eject, no luck:
Media failed with service response = 1 (SERVICEDELIVERY_OR_TARGETFAILURE), status = 1 (TaskTimeoutOccurred)
drutil: Retry #1+
I am not happy.

Problem With Mac Mini Superdrive

I recently tried to upgrade my OS to OSX SL. Before I did this my mini was working properly. I placed the disk in and it went through the upgrade no problem. But when I tried to eject the disk it would not come out. I exhausted all possible eject solutions I could find on the web and then some. So I examined the mini a bit and there is a bar that has come up blocking the drive from having other CD's inserted. The drive appears to be working to eject the disc, but just wont. I had to remove the top of the drive to remove the CD. I did get the CD out and now there is no way to insert a disk as the bar still remains up and no disk is in the drive. With the drive top off I can place a disk in the mini and start the computer, the drive reads and plays the disk fine, it just cannot eject. It appears to be a mechanical problem with the drive itself, but I am not certain since this happened as after I upgraded. My question is, is there any way that the upgrade could have not supported my superdrive and this is why this happened (It is an older mac mini bought back in late 2007 it has 1MB of memory which is the min. requirement of OSX SL) ? I could reinstall leopard, do you think this will fix the drive issue or is the drive damaged for some reason?

http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/optical-drives/superdrives/
But there are many.
Or you can just buy an external USB unit.

2010 Mac mini Superdrive not burning DVD's

My mac mini is not burning DVD's right. I put in a 500GB harddrive a few months back and the SATA cables are attached correct. I can read DVD's but writing DVD's doesn't work. The process finishes but when after I eject the disc I can see that nothing is burning in the inner most part of the disc. When I put the disc back in the computer thinks the disc hasn't been burned and asks if it shuld be open in finder like a blank disc. I know a cd/dvd should burn from the center and spiral outward as it writes more data but it seems the disc is offset when it writes its first data, leaving the inner most part of the disc blank. Maybe I should reformat the OS and start from scratch to see if that helps. Any other ideas?

Strange these Memorex DVD's worked flawlessly a couple of times then I started getting these srange burns. I think I'm going to blitz this install I'm backing up with time machine now so I'll see what happens. Is there anyway to reapply an EFI update to make sure nothing is corrupt? I did notice what looked like brownish black burns on the logicboard when I opened it up to put the new harddrive in. They were on the long solder traces where they test the logic board by the the logic boards sata connections. I keep the system on 24/7 but don't really play any 3d or do anything that is too processor intense. Another thing is the superdriver seems to favor the left side when a DVD is initially inserted and ejected but moves to the conter when pressed all the way in I can't remember that being normal.

Mac Mini Superdrive won't feed disk

Recently my mini stopped accepting disks. This occurred just after reading and ejecting a disk. I've attempted pushing the disk slightly hard into the drive, ran disk utility, ran apple hardware test... all with no success.
Does anyone have any suggestions or have you run into similar problems?
Listed below are my specs.
Thanks!
Mac OS X v 10.6.8
Model Name:    Mac mini
Model Identifier:    Macmini4,1
Processor Name:    Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed:    2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors:    1
Total Number Of Cores:    2
L2 Cache:    3 MB
Memory:    2 GB
Bus Speed:    1.07 GHz
Boot ROM Version:    MM41.0042.B00
SMC Version (system):    1.65f2
HL-DT-ST DVDRW GA32N:
Firmware Revision:    KC08
Interconnect:    ATAPI
Burn Support:    Yes (Apple Shipping Drive)
Cache:    1024 KB
Reads DVD:    Yes
CD-Write:    -R, -RW
DVD-Write:    -R, -R DL, -RW, +R, +R DL, +RW
Write Strategies:    CD-TAO, CD-SAO, CD-Raw, DVD-DAO
Media:    To show the available burn speeds, insert a disc and choose View > Refresh

Reset the SMC
Intel-based Macs: Resetting the System Management Controller (SMC)
1. Shut down the computer.
2. Unplug the computer's power cord.
3. Wait fifteen seconds.
4. Attach the computer's power cord.
5. Wait five seconds, then press the power button to turn on the computer.
The PRAM
Resetting your Mac's PRAM and NVRAM
1. Shut down the computer.
2. Locate the following keys on the keyboard: Command, Option, P, and R. You will need to hold these keys down simultaneously in step 4.
3. Turn on the computer.
4. Press and hold the Command-Option-P-R keys. You must press this key combination before the gray screen appears.
5. Hold the keys down until the computer restarts and you hear the startup sound for the second time.
6. Release the keys.
Then if it still not working, contact Apple Support, your local Apple Store or Authorized Apple Service Provider and have it serviced.
Apple - Support - iMac - Service FAQ

My MacBook's SuperDrive spins then ejects disc

Hi,
My MacBook's SuperDrive is not working, it just spins makes a grinding noise then ejects disc.
Does anyone have any troubleshooting advice for this?
It's a late 2008 Aluminum Unibody Macbook.
Thanks

OK so about 2 days ago out of nowhere my Superdrive would grind and eject every disc that I put into it when just the day before it was working fine but this happened earlier in the month. I was told to use a DVD/CD cleaner and that didnt work! So as a computer tech im used to taking things apart so I went under my Macbook Pro which was out of warranty and removed the Superdrive to inspect it. Everything was in tact and i even plugged it in to the motherboard and turned the computer on while the top metal cover was off and the disk ran and said ready to burn my DVD but as soon as i screwed that case back on the Disc would grind and eject again. NOW heres the reason and the fix!......When metal heats it gets soft and bends and the top metal cover that screws in over the superdrive is just a flimsy piece of metal and when it gets hot from the computer and the spinning of a DVD or CD it bends down a little onto the DVD (the grinding noise) till eventually it touches the DVD so much that the macbook just spits it out because it cant spin properly! So what you need to do it take the cover off.....bend it upward a little so that theres a little room between the DVD and the roof of the Superdrive because when the DVD goes in that little black thing that spins the DVD raises it up a little and also make sure that the little hooks that the screws screw into isnt bent downward either! if they are bend them upward a lil so that they are straight! After doing all this the Superdrive should be working as it should when you got your Mac, mines dont grind and dont make noises anymore and it actually reads my DVD's and burnes them faster!

Choosing between 720p and 1080p on Mini connected to Sony HDTV (1920x1080)

I have a late 2009 Mac Mini and a SONY HDTV and had no difficulties at all in hooking them up. I just connected the Mini Display Port to DVI connector which ships with the MAC Mini to a Belkin DVI to HDMI cable (also available from Apple Store) and connected the HDMI to my TV. I switched on the TV, selected the correct HDMI input, then switched on the Mac Mini and could see the picture immediately. I was missing the menu bar at the top so went to SYSTEM PREFERENCES and then DISPLAYS and the OPTIONS tab, and unselected OVERSCAN, and that gave me a perfect picture (slightly smaller than full screen but perfectly adequate as far as I'm concerned).
By default my resoluton was set at 1080p (presumably the Mac detected that the native resolution of my TV is 1080p). The DISPLAYS box shows a number of resolution with a little TV screen icon beside them, as if suggesting those resolutions for use with the Sony. It shows 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i and 1080p. There are also lots of others without TV icons beside them.
The only problem I found is that 1080p made it quite difficult to read text on my screen, even though it's not very far away from the sofa. My eyesight is very good but I couldn't read the screen comfortably when surfing the net or even when changing settings etc. I swiiched, therefore, to 720p and this produces a very comfortable size of text for using the MAC.
My question is whether it really makes such a big difference whether one chooses 720p or 1080p, as I really can't see much difference for playback of video from Hulu or other streaming websites. Even when I played a DVD movie from the Mac Mini superdrive, the difference in quality was hard to detect. I guess if I tried viewing Full 1080p HD material, there would be some difference, but how much of such material is available on the net anyway? I take it that switching between 720p and 1080p wouldn't cause any harm, if I chose to do so occasionally for watching any Full HD movies that I rip?
Look forward to hearing views!

Hi- I also picked up a mini a week ago, and have it hooked up to my Sony HDTV via HDMI, just as you. The same thing happened the first time I connected the mini to my tv- with overscan on, the top and bottom of the screen were cut off.
The solution is to pick up your Sony remote, go to the onscreen menus, and make sure that 'full pixels' option is selected. When you do, the screen will be absolutely perfectly aligned.
I mention this because while in overscan mode, I find that the Sony makes an absolutely beautiful screen, and text is quite easy to read, albeit a bit small.

How do I use a remote superdrive? I'd like to backup iTunes and iPhoto

I'd like to be able to use a remote shared drive. I know how to make it shared - but not how to then get another machine to share it!
I'd like to do remote backups to my mac mini superdrive - I have it there and I can see the disc, but, when I try to get iTunes or iPhoto to back up they only see the local drive.
Is there some way that I can do this with toast?
The superdrive on my G5 is faulty, I need to have it repaired. I do have one on my Mac mini that I have shared.
How do I get my iTunes backup to go to a remote, shared Superdrive DVD?

Can you not just manually drag the iTunes music files to the other drive and then burn them to the CD or DVD media? I do realize that by doing it this way you will lose all of your playlists but at least you would have copies of all your music and or video files. You could also copy all of your itunes library and related files to the shared folder or some other folder on the mini and then use iTunes on it to do the backup and then simply remove the copied files from the mini when you were done.
The built in backup that comes with iTunes is only designed to work with the built in drive not a shared drive I believe.

II can't burn any CD or DVD in my Mac Mini

Hello, I've had my mac mini (super drive) for a week when I tried to burn a data cd I got the error message "Sense Key=Medium error
Sense code=0x0C
Write Error".
After that:"The Drive Reported an Error
Sense Key=illegal Request
Sense Code =0X30,0X05
Cannot write medium,incopatible format
After that i tried to burn a cd in Finder but i had this message:
Disk Unit is not supported.error code"0X80020025
After rebooting i write the cd,but at the second copy i have the same problem
Any ideas of what the problem could be? I suspect the drive has gone bad but I'm not sure how to troubleshoot it. I have tried different types of recordable cd's with the same result. Any help would be appreciated. Desperate!!!
MAC MINI SUPERDRIVE Mac OS X (10.4)

I would take it in to a local mac reseller to test it out with different media. There are different types of blank media to write on with different speeds and specs. You could try buying different brands, but probably cheaper to bring it in. If it's a hardware problem, then they can replace it right there. Good luck.

SuperDrive media disc(s) .. assist .. update concluded . . .

Concluding post in relation to the earlier postings on this particular subject and thread (now officially closed by apple support) .. and to be found at SuperDrive Media Disc(s) .. Assist ... [http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=759874#759874]
APPLE DVD R DISC MEDIA TRIAL
DVD-R
8x speed
Certified for use with Apple DVD-R drives :: 4.7GB Media
Made in Japan
MAC MINI MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-845C
Mac mini 1.42GHz PowerPC G4 | 512 MB DDR SDRAM
Tiger OS X 10.4.3
Finder Burn - single folder containing many sub-folders totaling about 800Mbytes and approx. 4000 files.
Burn Speed Options : 4x(faster) : 2x : 1x(more reliable) - actual Finder media disc burn dialogue descriptions
[default selection is 4x(faster) ]
We choose 1x(more reliable) ..
Observations include .. no 8x speed media disc burn available from our little Mac mini Matshita DVD-R UJ-845C burner .. and .. as this is a DVD R .. we have time .. but no going back once burned .. and we want maximum systems compatibility .. you, dear reader, already know the drama we have previously experienced with Finder burns and older Apple iMac DV SE machine DVD drive (media disc burned) read compatibilities.
The total burn was a lengthy delay before the entire routine was completed including automatic verification.
OUTCOME
This disc did not verify correctly and is unreliable. Because this disc is unreliable, discard it and try again using a new, blank disc. (Error code ) 0x80020063
Total disc burned is almost 800Mbytes and about 4000 files.
Verification was not an available option for the burn .. a Finder burn .. meaning verification was apparently automatically included as an unseen 'yes' option at media disc burn execution time.
Examining the resulting Apple DVD R media disc burned .. we discover that things are good .. biggest single files (.dmg's at about 100Mbytes expanding to 350Mbytes - e.g. OS X 10.4.3 update) are able to be copied from the burned Apple DVD R media disc back to the Mac mini hard disk again and verify 100% when opened for installation. Encouraging. Better than anything previously experienced.
iMac DV SE [ DVD MATSHITADVD-ROM SR-8184 ]
Into the Apple iMac ancient (500 MHz PowerPC G3 operating OS X 10.4.3 Tiger | 640MB SDRAM) and we are greeted with goodness .. same accessibility as the originating Mac mini machine .. satisfying.
And yes the 'problem' of multi-session burns is yet to come on the ancient iMac and if the response is any good as now .. it may not be a problem worthy of mention. At 800 Mbytes burn and 4.7 Gbytes capacity .. one could loosely forecast up to another 5 media disc burn sessions before the DVD R is full and complete.
XP MACHINE
And now into the PC machine for an XP looksee and again .. more goodness. Cross compatible files are fully accessible (an entire - own - website burned). Large files copy 100%. Better than before.
Two thumbs up for this disk and burn.
Verification failure remains a current mystery. Anyone ?
It is easy to figure how one may doubt one's media burning hardware is any good by now .. but the gathering volume of supporting entries at the relevant media burning and error message forums reveals that hardware is unlikely to be (entirely) at fault .. rather something else .. say firmware ?
Apple Media DVD R discs are manufactured in Japan (stated on the disc) and the quality difference and price premium are consistent with what others have written of the place of manufacture and the Apple media disc as well. Mostly positive.
Still .. we should like to have access to dependable RW discs from Apple too .. for reliable re-useability.
As for the subject of burn speed ...
Many forum readers are well aware of an ongoing and gradually escalating matter between Apple and this gentleman http://www.crc.id.au/page/2/ .. we have curiously followed the unfolding events to observe the outcome of the burn speed specification variation. As you know .. our Mac mini is rated at maximum DVD media disc burn 4x and fitted with a MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-845C which is a later edition than Mr H's UJ-835 .. however .. we are more curious to observe whether the final outcome will satisfy Mr H or not. Burn speed, primarily, and quality of burn, secondarily, on selected media by Mr H. Once the outcome is known and to Mr H's satisfaction .. then we may enquire about his satisfaction with burn quality at the chosen burn speed(s) by Mr H.
Here is an offline forum communication that we shared with another Mac mini user about disc media burn speed. As you may read .. he is entirely dissatisfied with the Mac mini media burn speed and isn't too keen on using the Apple disc burn media either ...
So...Have you found any dvd-r or +r media that burns reliably on the mini? (non apple media please).
I am completely disgusted with my new mini's pathetic superdrive that I paid way too much for.
I have purchased new & built from new parts several PC's that burn DVD after DVD on a wide variety of media reliably.
No one has even replied to my post
http://www.123macmini.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=2773&start=0&postdays=0&postord er=asc&highlight=
Thanks
.. and at latest check .. no-one has responded to the post .. maybe no-one knows .. outside of Apple HQ .. mind you .. no-one has truly usefully responded to our post either .. we responded thusly ...
Mac Mini SuperDrive .. burn speed .. and burn .. reliability
Sometime I just can't get my head around the subject and have to step back and breathe in real deep .. which makes me kinda dizzy .. and wait until the focus is on the forest before
choosing the tree(s) to climb. This particular tree is getting taller ...
And congratulations on your Apple ownership. Small is beautiful.
Regret your coaster experiences. Frustrating and unfortunate.
What SuperDrive description is fitted in your new mac mini ?
We seem to be staring into a gaping black hole of acknowledgement .. from anyone.
PC users, windows operating system software computers, appear to have an extreme edge .. when it comes to media disc burning. i.e. successful burns.
Re-reading that lengthy post .. which doesn't fully format as intended .. has me fully believing that less is more and small is beautiful (still). Future specific posts will probably follow as a matter of personal self-committment .. to persist until the solutions are fully to hand. For now .. may we refer to your mentioned post in our next planned post please ? Solidarity of negatory outcome experience is credibility.
Three forums have we frequented and participated to learn more about the black hole .. we know as SuperDrive media disc burning .. only you have provided any feedback whatsoever .. post reader numbers grow but answers are missing in action .. absent from class.
http://www.crc.id.au/page/2/
We have thought the SuperDrive matter you have referred to in your post was of no concern to us .. but now you have us thinking again .. although model numbers differ .. (ours is a later numerical reference) the concerns appear to be similar .. or largely about performance .. we shall also refer to this domain in our planned next post. Yes, we are aware of the matter .. from another forum .. but shall now supply the link for others to weigh and hopefully dish out their two cents worth .. where a consensus could mean we are also a part of this particular action. An ideal consensus would be firmware is unsuitable .. requires immediate update .. and in particular the quality of burn is consensually unacceptable .. action could follow.
We have progressed no further with burning experimentations .. and will be using Apple media before progressing with our findings reporting. For now, we are unable to add to your ease of mind .. frankly .. unless the burning media is made in Japan .. we doubt any burn verification success is to be had. And we cannot find any burning media made in Japan in our locale. Where is the Apple media made?
We have come to appreciate the SuperDrive is all about the firmware .. but have no new firmware to apply .. in fact .. our research to date shows that we have been unable to find the Matshita SuperDrive at all online and cannot confirm specifications .. neither could we locate the specifications at www.apple.com.au .. which is just plain odd.
A third look has provided ... from www.apple.com/macmini/specs.html ..
Storage
* One of the following optical drives:
o Slot-loading Combo drive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW): reads DVDs at up to 8x speed, writes CD-R discs at up to 24x speed, writes CD-RW discs at up to 16x speed, reads CDs at up to 24x speed
o Optional SuperDrive (DVD±RW/CD-RW): writes DVD-R discs at up to 4x speed, writes DVD-RW discs at up to 2x speed, writes DVD+R discs at up to 4x speed, writes DVD+RW discs at up to 2.4x speed, reads DVDs at up to 8x speed, writes CD-R discs at up to 16x speed, writes CD-RW discs at up to 8x speed, reads CDs at up to 24x speed
Where were you able to establish your SuperDrive (burning) specifications ?
Writer's note : .. some things change .. and so have the Apple Mac mini SuperDrive burner specs changed .. since recording those detailed above. In fact .. they read like they maybe should have all along .. 8x DVD R media burn speed. DL is a bonus. Can anyone tell us what the drive designation is please ?
CRC says: ".. This limits burn speed to 4x for Mac Minis and 8x for Powerbooks.".
While speed matters .. and it does .. you appear to have exactly the same media disc burning problems that we are experiencing .. failed verification(s) .. and for us .. in short .. complete DVD-R media disc burned rejection from the Apple OS X.
Do we .. in actual fact .. have two separate operating challenges here .. speed of burn and quality of burn .. any burn ? Speed was not our first priority .. quality is .. now we figure that at any speed the burn quality is anywhere from dubious to coaster.
CRC says: ".. The UJ-835 that Apple use is firmware limited to suit various bits of hardware that they want to put together. The burner in the Mac Mini is the exact same model as the one in the PowerBooks. Apple load a 4x firmware on the Mac Mini, and an 8x firmware on the PowerBook drives.
My bet is that this is for marketting reasons only. ".
One of the contributors to http://www.crc.id.au/?p=21 . . says . .
# Moneky Boy Says:
August 14th, 2005 at 1:03 am
My parents have a mini and my has one of the PowerBooks. Confirmed the drives are Matsushita UJ-835. They have never had an issue burning DVDs. Confirmed it by burning DVDs last night on the wife’s 12″ PowerBook.
As far as updating the Firmware in your optical drives, no, you do not have to remove them from the machines to update their firmware. I’ve updated the firmware on my optical drives (for Region Free and/or speed gains) via the GUI in Mac OS X. One application that will do this is called DVRFlashX I believe. The key is then finding the firmware, which is platform agnostic.
BTW, removing the drive wouldn’t void the warranty on your Mac but messing with the firmware certainly will void the warranty on the drive.
Our primary concern remains SuperDrive media disc burn quality .. while you do appear to share the same concern as well as speed performance. Mr Haigh's only concern appears to be speed .. and here we may have missed any opportunity .. since the MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-845C
SuperDrive is a later designation and the speed performance specifications showing on the apple web-site are likely consistent with current performance capabilities of that SuperDrive and later .. including yours ?
Mr H may have indeed received marketing materials that promised 8x while actually receiving a 4x SuperDrive .. which only performs at 2x unless exceptional media disc(s) .. so he does have a legitimate claim concerning performance. Do we ?
What has us fully curious is whether he can burn quality media disc(s) with his new SuperDrive ..
(Update 24/12/2005 07:10pm (+11 GMT)
Well, it seems that Apple have decided to replace my hardware. I've started the proceedings yesterday and will hopefully get some news in the new year as to what they are going to replace. At the moment, I'm looking to send in the 12" Powerbook for a replacement, then see what changes in the mac mini side of things. I'm not going to accept the same DVD drive - as we all know the problems with the UJ-835. Stay tuned for more details as they come to hand.) .. http://superdrive.crc.id.au/
.. which would likely be the same as yours .. now that should prove an interesting outcome .. which he seems likely to voluntarily report and will be the essence of any enquiries from us in the near foreseeable future assuming Mr Haigh is forthcoming in his SuperDrive computing developments.
Mr Haigh may have begun to scratch the surface (so to speak) .. and find the more serious problem is that no matter how fast or slow the SuperDrive .. reliable media disc burns are a fantasy !
As yet no update .. almost three months .. could the delay by Apple could have something to do with the model identification of any replacement DVD burner .. if they use an UJ-845 .. then all **** could break loose as Apple users realise (such as we) they do have the same DVD burner and (in a Mac mini) are limited to 4x maximum speed DVD media disc burning performance .. so another designation may be required .. one that already delivers 8x DVD burns .. bit of a mess really .. and the latest Mac mini SuperDrive sports 8x DVD R media burn speed.
We are curious about you too, dear reader .. are you satisfied with your non Apple disc media burn quality ? We are able to openly admit that we are dissatisfied with our non Apple disc media burn output quality.
We are currently satisfied with the Apple DV R disc media burn quality. However at a price of premium dollars and an unexplained media burn verification failure message.
Burn speed, we nonchalantly confess, is not our greatest concern, and, for now, falls to a lower priority of importance with us.
For now the matter is at rest with us.
How about you ?
Yours Sincerely
Stuart
PS. .. helping to explain the confusions surrounding the Mac mini SuperDrive is this extracted from ..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mac_mini
October 2005–February 2006
Multiple reports exist that the Mac mini was quietly upgraded in October 2005 to 64 MiB VRAM, and either a 1.33 GHz (up from 1.25 GHz) or 1.5 GHz G4 (up from 1.42 GHz) processor, with 512 MiB of PC3200 RAM while underclocking it to PC2700. The 80 GB drive is currently a Seagate Momentus 5400.2 ST9808211A, which runs at 5400 RPM with an 8 MiB cache. The SuperDrive is a MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-845, which supports +R DL burning, and may also have unofficial support for DVD-RAM. Apple did not revise the official specifications on their web site. This may be to avoid issues with discounting or discontinuing of old stock.
Well .. whatever .. we use a MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-845C SuperDrive .. wouldn't that mean we have +R DL feature too ? .. probably not judging by the following explanations .. sort of .. and yes you could grab the mac_min.pdf service manual and do your own upgrading and overclocking as it pleases you .. try google for more info.
PPS. .. http://www.macintouch.com/macmini11.html
Mac Mini Part 11
January 9, 2006
Stealth Upgrade
Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxx
I recently received the SuperDrive Mac Mini that I ordered from Amazon the day after Christmas. To my delight, my Mini contains a 1.5 GHz PPC and 64MB of video RAM.
The SuperDrive is listed as a Panasonic UJ-845. According to Panasonic's web site this drive is supposed to allow DVD-RAM writing (and I assume reading). Has anyone attempted to use DVD-RAM discs with this drive under 10.4.3?
Xxxxxx Xxxx
I also have a new SuperDrive mini with the same specs, and note that the UJ-845 drive doesn't include DVD-RAM capability, though as Gordon notes the OEM Panasonic drive does. However, Panasonic's spec page is for the UJ-845-B drive, and I expect that the one in the mini is instead a special version of the UJ-845 that Panasonic made for Apple with DVD-RAM disabled. For some reason Apple doesn't seem to want to support DVD-RAM, which is a pity. I believe the drive will work with DVD-RAM discs, but treat them like DVD-RW, requiring complete erasure every time they're used, rather than allowing addition and subtraction of individual files, which is what makes DVD-RAM a great backup/exchange medium, especially for travelers.
My new PowerBook came with an Apple-labeled Panasonic UJ-825-C drive, which System Profiler saw as simply "UJ-825" and which didn't include DVD-RAM although Panasonic's specs showed it; I replaced it with an 825-B I got on eBay, which System Profiler sees as "845-S" and which now does DVD-RAM even without Patchburn. Note that the 825 is two generations earlier than the current 845/846 drive (whose new feature is DL burning); DVD-RAM has been available for a long time, but Apple has been using special versions of the drives without it.
How to exactly determine the capabilities of your drive: Insert a disc (any type, CD or DVD, but not a blank recordable disc that has to be formatted), open Disk Utility, and on the left side select the drive (not the disc in the drive), then look in the lower right side of the window where it says "Capabilities". You may have to widen the window to see the whole list, as it doesn't wrap for some reason. If it says "DVD-RAM" in the list, the drive should do DVD-RAM discs as they are meant to be used: like a 4GB floppy disk, they must be formatted once, then can be used as "random access media" (RAM). Doesn't matter what kind of disc you put in the drive; any type will make the drive appear in Disk Utility, which will then show its capabilities.
FOLLOWUP: I opened up the Mac Mini, and found the SuperDrive is an Apple label "UJ-845C", presumably a special version of the 845 with DVD-RAM disabled, unlike the UJ-845-B spec'd at the Panasonic site.
[MacInTouch]
We just received a middle-model Mac Mini - 80GB/512MB/AirPort+Bluetooth/Tiger - ordered from Amazon (currently $519.99 after rebate) and were pleased to find that it is one of Apple's "stealth" upgrades, where the label belies the actual specifications. Apple shows it as a 1.42GHz model, but it's actually running at 1.5 GHz, according to System Profiler.
It has a Seagate ST9808211A hard drive, which is a 5400-RPM model (better than the dog-slow 4200-RPM drives Apple started shipping sometime after the original Mini models debuted).
The optical drive is a Matsushita CW-8124, a Combo drive with 24X CD writing and reading and the ability to read DVD-R and DVD-RW, as well as DVD-ROM, at 8x.
System Profiler shows 64 MB of video RAM - double Apple's specified amount - for the "ATY,RV280" graphics card (ATI Radeon 9200) on an AGP bus, supporting display rotation and Quartz Extreme but not Core Image.
(For what it's worth, we found that we could not connect a Dell 1704FPT to the digital video port while an analog video cable was connected; after removing the analog cable, the Dell works beautifully with the Mini's DVI video. The Dell display also worked fine with analog video via the adapter included with the Mini.)
We also tried a WiebeTech Maxelerate hard drive enclosure but found it unpleasantly noisy, even in a special reduced-RPM version the company offers customers who raise the issue. By contrast, the miniStack we previously reviewed is virtually silent with the same hard drive inside.
Xxx Xxxxxxx
While this isn't the first time I've seen this type of 'error' from Apple, or other firms, this particular incident seems to have gone beyond the typical example, and I'm beginning to wonder if it is more than just an overlap in an otherwise complicated process.
I've done my share of OEM documentation, including manuals, labels and cartons. I know how hard it is to maintain reality in this regard. But in this case, it seems to me that the mismatch between the inside and the outside of the package has gone beyond the norm, and I'm wondering if someone along the line has simply decided to live with it, rather than deal with it up front. I can see this saving money...changes cost more than just the ink - it takes time and planning to overcome a spec change and cover all the bases.
I wouldn't be surprised if someone in a position to decide hasn't simply elected to run out the materials without implementing changes. After all, the customer gets more than they expect, which can be favorable publicity, and we all know the saying "any publicity is good, and good publicity is even better".
On the other hand, it can be a minefield to fess up. Once word gets out, customers start hand-picking the good from the better, taking the higraded units and leaving the rest as floatsom. Or they buy the downgrade for less, then return it shortly thereafter, demanding the up while refusing to pay more.
Let's just hope the sun keeps shining on this particular parade, and no one decides to claim fraud. All it would take is one competitor with a surplus of over-eager attorneys, and Apple would be forced to apologize for over-stuffing the golden goose.

Concluding post in relation to the earlier postings on this particular subject and thread (now officially closed by apple support) .. and to be found at SuperDrive Media Disc(s) .. Assist ... [http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=759874#759874]
APPLE DVD R DISC MEDIA TRIAL
DVD-R
8x speed
Certified for use with Apple DVD-R drives :: 4.7GB Media
Made in Japan
MAC MINI MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-845C
Mac mini 1.42GHz PowerPC G4 | 512 MB DDR SDRAM
Tiger OS X 10.4.3
Finder Burn - single folder containing many sub-folders totaling about 800Mbytes and approx. 4000 files.
Burn Speed Options : 4x(faster) : 2x : 1x(more reliable) - actual Finder media disc burn dialogue descriptions
[default selection is 4x(faster) ]
We choose 1x(more reliable) ..
Observations include .. no 8x speed media disc burn available from our little Mac mini Matshita DVD-R UJ-845C burner .. and .. as this is a DVD R .. we have time .. but no going back once burned .. and we want maximum systems compatibility .. you, dear reader, already know the drama we have previously experienced with Finder burns and older Apple iMac DV SE machine DVD drive (media disc burned) read compatibilities.
The total burn was a lengthy delay before the entire routine was completed including automatic verification.
OUTCOME
This disc did not verify correctly and is unreliable. Because this disc is unreliable, discard it and try again using a new, blank disc. (Error code ) 0x80020063
Total disc burned is almost 800Mbytes and about 4000 files.
Verification was not an available option for the burn .. a Finder burn .. meaning verification was apparently automatically included as an unseen 'yes' option at media disc burn execution time.
Examining the resulting Apple DVD R media disc burned .. we discover that things are good .. biggest single files (.dmg's at about 100Mbytes expanding to 350Mbytes - e.g. OS X 10.4.3 update) are able to be copied from the burned Apple DVD R media disc back to the Mac mini hard disk again and verify 100% when opened for installation. Encouraging. Better than anything previously experienced.
iMac DV SE [ DVD MATSHITADVD-ROM SR-8184 ]
Into the Apple iMac ancient (500 MHz PowerPC G3 operating OS X 10.4.3 Tiger | 640MB SDRAM) and we are greeted with goodness .. same accessibility as the originating Mac mini machine .. satisfying.
And yes the 'problem' of multi-session burns is yet to come on the ancient iMac and if the response is any good as now .. it may not be a problem worthy of mention. At 800 Mbytes burn and 4.7 Gbytes capacity .. one could loosely forecast up to another 5 media disc burn sessions before the DVD R is full and complete.
XP MACHINE
And now into the PC machine for an XP looksee and again .. more goodness. Cross compatible files are fully accessible (an entire - own - website burned). Large files copy 100%. Better than before.
Two thumbs up for this disk and burn.
Verification failure remains a current mystery. Anyone ?
It is easy to figure how one may doubt one's media burning hardware is any good by now .. but the gathering volume of supporting entries at the relevant media burning and error message forums reveals that hardware is unlikely to be (entirely) at fault .. rather something else .. say firmware ?
Apple Media DVD R discs are manufactured in Japan (stated on the disc) and the quality difference and price premium are consistent with what others have written of the place of manufacture and the Apple media disc as well. Mostly positive.
Still .. we should like to have access to dependable RW discs from Apple too .. for reliable re-useability.
As for the subject of burn speed ...
Many forum readers are well aware of an ongoing and gradually escalating matter between Apple and this gentleman http://www.crc.id.au/page/2/ .. we have curiously followed the unfolding events to observe the outcome of the burn speed specification variation. As you know .. our Mac mini is rated at maximum DVD media disc burn 4x and fitted with a MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-845C which is a later edition than Mr H's UJ-835 .. however .. we are more curious to observe whether the final outcome will satisfy Mr H or not. Burn speed, primarily, and quality of burn, secondarily, on selected media by Mr H. Once the outcome is known and to Mr H's satisfaction .. then we may enquire about his satisfaction with burn quality at the chosen burn speed(s) by Mr H.
Here is an offline forum communication that we shared with another Mac mini user about disc media burn speed. As you may read .. he is entirely dissatisfied with the Mac mini media burn speed and isn't too keen on using the Apple disc burn media either ...
So...Have you found any dvd-r or +r media that burns reliably on the mini? (non apple media please).
I am completely disgusted with my new mini's pathetic superdrive that I paid way too much for.
I have purchased new & built from new parts several PC's that burn DVD after DVD on a wide variety of media reliably.
No one has even replied to my post
http://www.123macmini.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=2773&start=0&postdays=0&postord er=asc&highlight=
Thanks
.. and at latest check .. no-one has responded to the post .. maybe no-one knows .. outside of Apple HQ .. mind you .. no-one has truly usefully responded to our post either .. we responded thusly ...
Mac Mini SuperDrive .. burn speed .. and burn .. reliability
Sometime I just can't get my head around the subject and have to step back and breathe in real deep .. which makes me kinda dizzy .. and wait until the focus is on the forest before
choosing the tree(s) to climb. This particular tree is getting taller ...
And congratulations on your Apple ownership. Small is beautiful.
Regret your coaster experiences. Frustrating and unfortunate.
What SuperDrive description is fitted in your new mac mini ?
We seem to be staring into a gaping black hole of acknowledgement .. from anyone.
PC users, windows operating system software computers, appear to have an extreme edge .. when it comes to media disc burning. i.e. successful burns.
Re-reading that lengthy post .. which doesn't fully format as intended .. has me fully believing that less is more and small is beautiful (still). Future specific posts will probably follow as a matter of personal self-committment .. to persist until the solutions are fully to hand. For now .. may we refer to your mentioned post in our next planned post please ? Solidarity of negatory outcome experience is credibility.
Three forums have we frequented and participated to learn more about the black hole .. we know as SuperDrive media disc burning .. only you have provided any feedback whatsoever .. post reader numbers grow but answers are missing in action .. absent from class.
http://www.crc.id.au/page/2/
We have thought the SuperDrive matter you have referred to in your post was of no concern to us .. but now you have us thinking again .. although model numbers differ .. (ours is a later numerical reference) the concerns appear to be similar .. or largely about performance .. we shall also refer to this domain in our planned next post. Yes, we are aware of the matter .. from another forum .. but shall now supply the link for others to weigh and hopefully dish out their two cents worth .. where a consensus could mean we are also a part of this particular action. An ideal consensus would be firmware is unsuitable .. requires immediate update .. and in particular the quality of burn is consensually unacceptable .. action could follow.
We have progressed no further with burning experimentations .. and will be using Apple media before progressing with our findings reporting. For now, we are unable to add to your ease of mind .. frankly .. unless the burning media is made in Japan .. we doubt any burn verification success is to be had. And we cannot find any burning media made in Japan in our locale. Where is the Apple media made?
We have come to appreciate the SuperDrive is all about the firmware .. but have no new firmware to apply .. in fact .. our research to date shows that we have been unable to find the Matshita SuperDrive at all online and cannot confirm specifications .. neither could we locate the specifications at www.apple.com.au .. which is just plain odd.
A third look has provided ... from www.apple.com/macmini/specs.html ..
Storage
* One of the following optical drives:
o Slot-loading Combo drive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW): reads DVDs at up to 8x speed, writes CD-R discs at up to 24x speed, writes CD-RW discs at up to 16x speed, reads CDs at up to 24x speed
o Optional SuperDrive (DVD±RW/CD-RW): writes DVD-R discs at up to 4x speed, writes DVD-RW discs at up to 2x speed, writes DVD+R discs at up to 4x speed, writes DVD+RW discs at up to 2.4x speed, reads DVDs at up to 8x speed, writes CD-R discs at up to 16x speed, writes CD-RW discs at up to 8x speed, reads CDs at up to 24x speed
Where were you able to establish your SuperDrive (burning) specifications ?
Writer's note : .. some things change .. and so have the Apple Mac mini SuperDrive burner specs changed .. since recording those detailed above. In fact .. they read like they maybe should have all along .. 8x DVD R media burn speed. DL is a bonus. Can anyone tell us what the drive designation is please ?
CRC says: ".. This limits burn speed to 4x for Mac Minis and 8x for Powerbooks.".
While speed matters .. and it does .. you appear to have exactly the same media disc burning problems that we are experiencing .. failed verification(s) .. and for us .. in short .. complete DVD-R media disc burned rejection from the Apple OS X.
Do we .. in actual fact .. have two separate operating challenges here .. speed of burn and quality of burn .. any burn ? Speed was not our first priority .. quality is .. now we figure that at any speed the burn quality is anywhere from dubious to coaster.
CRC says: ".. The UJ-835 that Apple use is firmware limited to suit various bits of hardware that they want to put together. The burner in the Mac Mini is the exact same model as the one in the PowerBooks. Apple load a 4x firmware on the Mac Mini, and an 8x firmware on the PowerBook drives.
My bet is that this is for marketting reasons only. ".
One of the contributors to http://www.crc.id.au/?p=21 . . says . .
# Moneky Boy Says:
August 14th, 2005 at 1:03 am
My parents have a mini and my has one of the PowerBooks. Confirmed the drives are Matsushita UJ-835. They have never had an issue burning DVDs. Confirmed it by burning DVDs last night on the wife’s 12″ PowerBook.
As far as updating the Firmware in your optical drives, no, you do not have to remove them from the machines to update their firmware. I’ve updated the firmware on my optical drives (for Region Free and/or speed gains) via the GUI in Mac OS X. One application that will do this is called DVRFlashX I believe. The key is then finding the firmware, which is platform agnostic.
BTW, removing the drive wouldn’t void the warranty on your Mac but messing with the firmware certainly will void the warranty on the drive.
Our primary concern remains SuperDrive media disc burn quality .. while you do appear to share the same concern as well as speed performance. Mr Haigh's only concern appears to be speed .. and here we may have missed any opportunity .. since the MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-845C
SuperDrive is a later designation and the speed performance specifications showing on the apple web-site are likely consistent with current performance capabilities of that SuperDrive and later .. including yours ?
Mr H may have indeed received marketing materials that promised 8x while actually receiving a 4x SuperDrive .. which only performs at 2x unless exceptional media disc(s) .. so he does have a legitimate claim concerning performance. Do we ?
What has us fully curious is whether he can burn quality media disc(s) with his new SuperDrive ..
(Update 24/12/2005 07:10pm (+11 GMT)
Well, it seems that Apple have decided to replace my hardware. I've started the proceedings yesterday and will hopefully get some news in the new year as to what they are going to replace. At the moment, I'm looking to send in the 12" Powerbook for a replacement, then see what changes in the mac mini side of things. I'm not going to accept the same DVD drive - as we all know the problems with the UJ-835. Stay tuned for more details as they come to hand.) .. http://superdrive.crc.id.au/
.. which would likely be the same as yours .. now that should prove an interesting outcome .. which he seems likely to voluntarily report and will be the essence of any enquiries from us in the near foreseeable future assuming Mr Haigh is forthcoming in his SuperDrive computing developments.
Mr Haigh may have begun to scratch the surface (so to speak) .. and find the more serious problem is that no matter how fast or slow the SuperDrive .. reliable media disc burns are a fantasy !
As yet no update .. almost three months .. could the delay by Apple could have something to do with the model identification of any replacement DVD burner .. if they use an UJ-845 .. then all **** could break loose as Apple users realise (such as we) they do have the same DVD burner and (in a Mac mini) are limited to 4x maximum speed DVD media disc burning performance .. so another designation may be required .. one that already delivers 8x DVD burns .. bit of a mess really .. and the latest Mac mini SuperDrive sports 8x DVD R media burn speed.
We are curious about you too, dear reader .. are you satisfied with your non Apple disc media burn quality ? We are able to openly admit that we are dissatisfied with our non Apple disc media burn output quality.
We are currently satisfied with the Apple DV R disc media burn quality. However at a price of premium dollars and an unexplained media burn verification failure message.
Burn speed, we nonchalantly confess, is not our greatest concern, and, for now, falls to a lower priority of importance with us.
For now the matter is at rest with us.
How about you ?
Yours Sincerely
Stuart
PS. .. helping to explain the confusions surrounding the Mac mini SuperDrive is this extracted from ..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mac_mini
October 2005–February 2006
Multiple reports exist that the Mac mini was quietly upgraded in October 2005 to 64 MiB VRAM, and either a 1.33 GHz (up from 1.25 GHz) or 1.5 GHz G4 (up from 1.42 GHz) processor, with 512 MiB of PC3200 RAM while underclocking it to PC2700. The 80 GB drive is currently a Seagate Momentus 5400.2 ST9808211A, which runs at 5400 RPM with an 8 MiB cache. The SuperDrive is a MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-845, which supports +R DL burning, and may also have unofficial support for DVD-RAM. Apple did not revise the official specifications on their web site. This may be to avoid issues with discounting or discontinuing of old stock.
Well .. whatever .. we use a MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-845C SuperDrive .. wouldn't that mean we have +R DL feature too ? .. probably not judging by the following explanations .. sort of .. and yes you could grab the mac_min.pdf service manual and do your own upgrading and overclocking as it pleases you .. try google for more info.
PPS. .. http://www.macintouch.com/macmini11.html
Mac Mini Part 11
January 9, 2006
Stealth Upgrade
Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxx
I recently received the SuperDrive Mac Mini that I ordered from Amazon the day after Christmas. To my delight, my Mini contains a 1.5 GHz PPC and 64MB of video RAM.
The SuperDrive is listed as a Panasonic UJ-845. According to Panasonic's web site this drive is supposed to allow DVD-RAM writing (and I assume reading). Has anyone attempted to use DVD-RAM discs with this drive under 10.4.3?
Xxxxxx Xxxx
I also have a new SuperDrive mini with the same specs, and note that the UJ-845 drive doesn't include DVD-RAM capability, though as Gordon notes the OEM Panasonic drive does. However, Panasonic's spec page is for the UJ-845-B drive, and I expect that the one in the mini is instead a special version of the UJ-845 that Panasonic made for Apple with DVD-RAM disabled. For some reason Apple doesn't seem to want to support DVD-RAM, which is a pity. I believe the drive will work with DVD-RAM discs, but treat them like DVD-RW, requiring complete erasure every time they're used, rather than allowing addition and subtraction of individual files, which is what makes DVD-RAM a great backup/exchange medium, especially for travelers.
My new PowerBook came with an Apple-labeled Panasonic UJ-825-C drive, which System Profiler saw as simply "UJ-825" and which didn't include DVD-RAM although Panasonic's specs showed it; I replaced it with an 825-B I got on eBay, which System Profiler sees as "845-S" and which now does DVD-RAM even without Patchburn. Note that the 825 is two generations earlier than the current 845/846 drive (whose new feature is DL burning); DVD-RAM has been available for a long time, but Apple has been using special versions of the drives without it.
How to exactly determine the capabilities of your drive: Insert a disc (any type, CD or DVD, but not a blank recordable disc that has to be formatted), open Disk Utility, and on the left side select the drive (not the disc in the drive), then look in the lower right side of the window where it says "Capabilities". You may have to widen the window to see the whole list, as it doesn't wrap for some reason. If it says "DVD-RAM" in the list, the drive should do DVD-RAM discs as they are meant to be used: like a 4GB floppy disk, they must be formatted once, then can be used as "random access media" (RAM). Doesn't matter what kind of disc you put in the drive; any type will make the drive appear in Disk Utility, which will then show its capabilities.
FOLLOWUP: I opened up the Mac Mini, and found the SuperDrive is an Apple label "UJ-845C", presumably a special version of the 845 with DVD-RAM disabled, unlike the UJ-845-B spec'd at the Panasonic site.
[MacInTouch]
We just received a middle-model Mac Mini - 80GB/512MB/AirPort+Bluetooth/Tiger - ordered from Amazon (currently $519.99 after rebate) and were pleased to find that it is one of Apple's "stealth" upgrades, where the label belies the actual specifications. Apple shows it as a 1.42GHz model, but it's actually running at 1.5 GHz, according to System Profiler.
It has a Seagate ST9808211A hard drive, which is a 5400-RPM model (better than the dog-slow 4200-RPM drives Apple started shipping sometime after the original Mini models debuted).
The optical drive is a Matsushita CW-8124, a Combo drive with 24X CD writing and reading and the ability to read DVD-R and DVD-RW, as well as DVD-ROM, at 8x.
System Profiler shows 64 MB of video RAM - double Apple's specified amount - for the "ATY,RV280" graphics card (ATI Radeon 9200) on an AGP bus, supporting display rotation and Quartz Extreme but not Core Image.
(For what it's worth, we found that we could not connect a Dell 1704FPT to the digital video port while an analog video cable was connected; after removing the analog cable, the Dell works beautifully with the Mini's DVI video. The Dell display also worked fine with analog video via the adapter included with the Mini.)
We also tried a WiebeTech Maxelerate hard drive enclosure but found it unpleasantly noisy, even in a special reduced-RPM version the company offers customers who raise the issue. By contrast, the miniStack we previously reviewed is virtually silent with the same hard drive inside.
Xxx Xxxxxxx
While this isn't the first time I've seen this type of 'error' from Apple, or other firms, this particular incident seems to have gone beyond the typical example, and I'm beginning to wonder if it is more than just an overlap in an otherwise complicated process.
I've done my share of OEM documentation, including manuals, labels and cartons. I know how hard it is to maintain reality in this regard. But in this case, it seems to me that the mismatch between the inside and the outside of the package has gone beyond the norm, and I'm wondering if someone along the line has simply decided to live with it, rather than deal with it up front. I can see this saving money...changes cost more than just the ink - it takes time and planning to overcome a spec change and cover all the bases.
I wouldn't be surprised if someone in a position to decide hasn't simply elected to run out the materials without implementing changes. After all, the customer gets more than they expect, which can be favorable publicity, and we all know the saying "any publicity is good, and good publicity is even better".
On the other hand, it can be a minefield to fess up. Once word gets out, customers start hand-picking the good from the better, taking the higraded units and leaving the rest as floatsom. Or they buy the downgrade for less, then return it shortly thereafter, demanding the up while refusing to pay more.
Let's just hope the sun keeps shining on this particular parade, and no one decides to claim fraud. All it would take is one competitor with a surplus of over-eager attorneys, and Apple would be forced to apologize for over-stuffing the golden goose.

Ok so my DVD-R on my G4 Mac Mini is shot ...how much to replace?

I have the infamous problem of none of my cd/dvd able to read from the disk drive. I tried the reset thingy (unplug, how power when plug in power cord, turn on) no avail
So has anyone actually brought this in to shop? What is the average cost? If under $100 I may bite it and make the replacement.
I need to do Turbo Tax soon and caught in a bind (also wanted to upgrade to Leopard but that may be shot as well)

Firstly, make sure you have completed the correct PMU reset procedure which applies to G4 minis (posted below). Failure of the optical drive can be due to the power management unit. Thus, to reset the PMU in your G4 mini:
-Unplug all cables from the computer, including the power cord.
-Wait 10 seconds.
-Plug in the power cord while simultaneously pressing and holding the power button on the back of the computer.
-Let go of the power button.
-Press the power button once more to start up your Mac mini.
If that doesn't work, try a lens cleaner to make sure that the problem with the drive is not simply dirt or debris on the lens. The slot-loading drives seem a little prone to this.
If that doesn't resolve it, replacement drives via an Apple Approved Service provider are likely to be around $150 or so, plus some labor charges. You can, of course opt to replace the drive yourself, in which case a replacement bare superdrive can be had for $99 or $109 from sources such as OWC (http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/mac-mini/superdrive/), and while fitting is a bit fiddly, is not beyond the capabilities of most people, with a little care and reference to any of the many on-line guides to taking a G4 mini apart.
Alternatively, as suggested, an external drive may be the best option, with a good basic choice being the drive at http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Other%20World%20Computing/MRBFWU2D115/. This drive may need the third-party PatchBurn utility though, and may not allow ready booting of the system for use with macOS installers,

Mini Superdrive Grinds

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