Hello G-listers,
I was asked what I want for Christmas, and it just now popped into my head as I was reading the latest G-List digest - "What about a used G4 that could do video processing and DVD burning?"
So...
1. What would be the minimum G4 model I would need for processing video and burning it to DVD?
2. What commercially available DVD burners are compatible with G4s? (I'd like to use OSX and iMovie, but I probably can't afford an Apple DVD burner).
What I really want to do is transfer video from our DirecTV via ethernet (we're planning on getting a DirecTivo unit and hacking it) and burn the digital recordings to DVD.
I know that Tivo records in a proprietary format, and that there are Windows programs for converting it to DVD mpeg, but is there a Mac program that can do that?
--
Wade Tinney
Hi Wade,
The minimum you should be looking for would be a G4 sawtooth with lots of memory and a lot of disk space. As for commercially available DVD burners compatible with the G4s, you should be looking for a DVD-R burner, not a DVD-/+RW drive that's available out there. The most compatible one would be the Pioneer DVR-105 or AO-5 burner, which I believe is what Apple is using for its Super Drive now? The IDE version for the DVR-105 can be used as an internal drive for the G4 and should be available for no more than $110 US. A newer DVR-106 is out as a replacement model to the 105. OS X 10.2.8 supports this 105 out of the box.
There are a number of useful and freeware OS X software that allows conversion of some video formats for burning to DVD, but I don't have a first hand experience with Tivo format at all. But I would caution you not to do a lot of video format conversion without having a really FAST CPU (400Mhz/500Mhz may not cut it to your satisfaction). It helps a lot if you have a minimum of 900Mhz or higher to save you time or it may just make the video conversion a waste of your time.
************************************************************************
* I LOVE my Apple! Do you? *
A souped up G4-900Mhz Graphite Tower with Asus GeForce 2MX & Radeon 7000 PCI A PC PII-366Mhz laptop and a Jornada 680 PDA as its slaves. :) ************************************************************************
-- ************************************************************************ * I LOVE my Apple! Do you? *
A souped up G4-900Mhz Graphite Tower with Asus GeForce 2MX & Radeon 7000 PCI A PC PII-366Mhz laptop and a Jornada 680 PDA as its slaves. :) ************************************************************************
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