If I buy a stock iMac - can i create DVD's

[fisha]

Long time PC person here. Looking to jump ship to Apple. Currently torn between a macbook pro ( likely 15" ) and an iMac ( likely 27" ).

One of the things I'll be using it for is basic video editing. We have a little un on the way and I want to be able to make some basic DVD's as time goes on that I can send onto the grandparents. One of my grandparents is housebound, and a fair distance away, and it would be nice to join together some footage and some pictures, and have it play on the TV for her.

I'm a little unclear on the part about burning DVD's

If I buy a stock iMac/Macbook Pro, I get iLife with it, of which is included iMovie which will be able to stick my clips together. Once thats done, can it then burn to DVD, or do I need something different again.

I've looked through the forum and seen the comments about iDVD and DVDSP no longer being sold via apple, does that mean that in stock form I cant burn any DVD's ?

( Lets not get into the sidetrack of the future of the ODD ... i need it for the moment, and thats the way it'll stay )

 

[simsaladimbamba]

You can not create video DVDs with the stock applications. You either try Burn, contact Apple and ask nicely for the iLife DVD or if that fails, buy iLife via Amazon to get iDVD.

 

[MacScott]

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3684091?start=0&tstart=0

will answer your questions.

 

[fisha]

Great - thanks ... will read up a bit on Burn then.

 

[crimton]

I had this problem a while back. I tried all the obvious choices to use for Mac like Burn etc... I spent a few weeks trying different things and could not get anything I liked. In the end I ended up installing VMware Fusion then Windows 7. After that I installed ConvertxtoDVD in Windows. Now I can just open windows in the VM and burn using the best DVD converting/burning app imo.
A lot of trouble but I finally got it working