Bad Macbook Core Duo Combo Drive

[jhendrix74]

I have a Macbook (Core Duo model) and my combo drive is useless reading discs anymore - I've had to rely on an external drive for now.

I also have an old Powerbook G4 (Titanium) that I'm getting ready to get rid of for parts. The Powerbook also has a combo drive that still works very well.

My question is will the combo drive from my Powerbook fit into the Macbook?

Thanks -

 

[discounteggroll]

unfortunately, no. The powerbooks utilized pata connections while macbooks utilize a sata connection

 

[eman]

Put in a superdrive from ebay like the UJ-857, UJ-857_C or GWA-4080M.

 

[MultiFinder17]

unfortunately, no. The powerbooks utilized pata connections while macbooks utilize a sata connection

Actually, it would probably work just fine, as the original MacBooks used a PATA connection for the optical drive.

 

[discounteggroll]

Actually, it would probably work just fine, as the original MacBooks used a PATA connection for the optical drive.

oh, if that's the case then it could work. Just need to be sure the metal brackets and screw holes line up and transfer the cable from the old one to the new one

 

[MultiFinder17]

Yup - the other thing that you'd want to check on is the thickness of the drive itself. I'm not sure if the slot-loader used in the TiBook was any thicker than their modern ones or not, but it's certainly something to consider. You'd probably want to check on that beforehand considering how much the TiBook sucks to get apart.

 

[jhendrix74]

Good point - I'm looking at OWC's website and their replacement drives for reference. Looks like the Powerbook TI drive is 12.7mm (H) and the Macbook drive is 9.5mm (H). I'm guessing that's enough of a difference to make this a problem.

As for taking apart the PB - the nice thing is I wouldn't be putting it back together, just stripping out a few parts that I think could be useful. Oh well.

 

[alust2013]

Good point - I'm looking at OWC's website and their replacement drives for reference. Looks like the Powerbook TI drive is 12.7mm (H) and the Macbook drive is 9.5mm (H). I'm guessing that's enough of a difference to make this a problem.

As for taking apart the PB - the nice thing is I wouldn't be putting it back together, just stripping out a few parts that I think could be useful. Oh well.

Yeah, the PB drive is too tall, so it wouldn't fit.

 

[MultiFinder17]

Ah, bummer mate. If you don't use your optical drive all too often, you might want to look into an external drive. Newegg has a ton of the buggers. Saves you from having to buy an expensive slot-loader, and from taking your MacBook apart. And if you want to take your MacBook apart anyway, you could always stick a PATA hard disk in where the optical drive is (assuming the cable works and all that) for some extra storage.