[Ti] Am I missing something?

[Kynan Shook]

John Griffin <jwegriffin at mac.com> writes:
> If the mechanism in the 1 Ghz is capable of 2x DVD burning (it is the 
> same
> mechanism in the 17" Powerbook) and it is shipped with the ability to 
> only
> burn at 1x, I call it "Hobbling."

Several points to note:
First, neither the 15" nor the 17" have SuperDrives that can burn at 
2x.  The Tech Specs page initially listed the 17" drive as being a 2x 
DVD-R drive, but this has since been corrected.
Second, from what somebody else wrote (I think to this list, but I 
don't recall), Apple is purchasing a mechanism that is technically able 
to go to 2x, but they are purchasing it as a 1x drive; in other words, 
the manufacturer is testing each drive to see whether it's capable of 
burning at 1x or 2x.  Those that are able to burn at 2x are sold to 
people who pay more (individual customers, or other companies).  Those 
that are only able to burn at 1x are sold to Apple and anybody else 
that wants a less expensive SuperDrive.  Everybody wins; the company 
can sell a higher percentage of the equipment they manufacture, and we 
get a less expensive computer.  It's certainly possible that some of 
the drives can burn at 2x, but not guaranteed; therefore, nobody can 
have it.

FWIW, a similar thing is often done with processors; each processor is 
given a rating for the maximum speed it can go within a given 
environmental specification.  You could take a slower processor with a 
higher temperature rating, and run it at a higher clock speed in a 
cooler location.  Or you could just take a faster processor for the 
expected environment and slow it down (or run it slower in a hotter 
environment, too).  There's lots of playing around with these 
specifications done by chip manufacturers, and by the companies that 
buy those chips and drop them on a board.


Kynan Shook
kshook at mac.com
http://homepage.mac.com/kshook/index.html