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Replacing Superdrive in Macbook Pro 17" with Blu ray drive

waywardsage

waywardsage

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Dec 22, 2006
282
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CA
I'm getting a top of the line 17"MBP and was very disappointed that they didn't offer an optional BTO Blu ray drive. But, I need to get a MBP now for video editing now.

My question is this: Can I replace the superdrive later on with a future slot loading blu ray drive? I don't want to drop $3K again just to get Blu ray playback in the future.

I also will have apple care. Do i have to go to an authorized replair tech to make this okay with my apple care plan?

Is this feasible? Will it run the Blu ray drive with no problems?

The reason is, all the movies i buy now are Blu ray since i have a PS3. So i want to be able to take my movies on the road and watch them on my 3K laptop. So please no posts about how I "don't need a blu ray drive." I just want to know if i can get my drive replaced easily and for it to work.
 
http://store.fastmac.com/product_info.php?products_id=338

It will cost you $1,000, plus any installation fees if you don't install it yourself. Also, you will only be able to play BR movies through windows (boot camp, parallels, VMware, etc.) as there is no BR playback software for macs at the moment. Windows has PowerDVD, which I think is what you'll need. But, on the mac-side I believe the BR drive works to read and write files for storage purposes. Just no movie player.

Prices should be much lower, but I think fastmac is the only one selling slot-loading drives for the 17" MBP. So, they're employing monopoly prices. Might see that price drop if Apple ever offers a BR-drive BTO. Good luck.
 
I know Fastmac is the only one. I'm not buying now, more like 6 months down the line. When prices fall. I just don't want to be stuck with a mac that I can't upgrade. I'll buy when the drive is around $400.

I just want to know if the 17" MBP will handle it or whether i'll have to sell it for the "new thing" in 6 months.

What program does mac use for DVD playback? I'm sure they'll release a Blu ray update player.
 
If battery life is important while you're "on the road" then you are better off transcoding your BD's to a different format and resolution. You'll be lucky to get through one long movie on a single charge with the original discs, at least until Apple release a BD player that can offload to the GPU.
 
waywardsage said:
I know Fastmac is the only one. I'm not buying now, more like 6 months down the line. When prices fall. I just don't want to be stuck with a mac that I can't upgrade. I'll buy when the drive is around $400.

I just want to know if the 17" MBP will handle it or whether i'll have to sell it for the "new thing" in 6 months.

What program does mac use for DVD playback? I'm sure they'll release a Blu ray update player.
Click to expand...

The fastmac BR drive has been around for awhile now. I'm pretty sure well over a year. The price hasn't fallen a dollar. BTO BR drives for dell are already $400 and cheaper, but fastmac's prices don't reflect the falling prices. You could wait 10 years and it might not lower to $400. Also, if you read the website, it says the fastmac BR drive is compatible with the 17" MBP, so I don't know what you mean by whether the 17" MBP "will handle it"? Yes, it will handle it? Also, there is no indication of any mac dvd playback software supporting BR in the near future. But, yes, if Apple offers BR drives, then the software will follow (or be included). Of course, Apple may NEVER offer BR drives, so as to force people to watch their HD movies via iTunes. The solution right now is fastmac + windows, the 17" MBP can "handle it", and there is no way of knowing what apple will do (or not do) with BR in the future. As far as the waiting game, some people have been waiting since 2006. So, good luck with that.
 
I know that rumors said that there were battery issues. Now the Blu ray association is saying that problem is fixed now.

Either way, it's probable that Apple is gonna redesign things to fit the Macbook Pro. But if they go any thinner, they'll have the same problem again.
 
waywardsage said:
I know that rumors said that there were battery issues. Now the Blu ray association is saying that problem is fixed now.
Click to expand...

You are probably referring to the power requirements for the blu-ray laser; that is peanuts compared to the almost 100% CPU load caused by decoding 1920x1080 H.264 video. Until Apple releases a GPU accelerated BD player, those are gonna kick your battery's ass. :D
 
it has been almost 11 moths for this post. and still the price of the drive is 1000 USD.
DAAAAAAAAAMN :confused::confused:

i wonder if there ever will be a price drop?
:D
 
You could always get an external blu ray drive. I know it's a bit bulky but for the savings i'd say worth it.
 
I'm in the same boat as you. I bought the 17" Penryn "Multitouch" Macbook Pro last April. I was hoping for over a year to wait out till Blu ray came around. I kept thinking it was just beyond the horizon. But, after almost a year later, I'm glad I didn't wait.

As for the internal drive. Fastmac is the only legit option. I've heard that as of the Penryn model and above it can decode Blu ray. It just takes up 100% of your CPU's processing power. And i can't imagine how much heat that'll put out.

There is one alternative. I seem to remember a report about a slimline EXTERNAL blu ray player available. Like the Air's superdrive in dimensions. One was anounced by some company last year and another was announced at this years Macworld. Ah here we go:

http://i.gizmodo.com/5124981/fastmacs-mac+specific-blu+ray-external-drive-is-slim-and-99

I'd think you could buy this drive, strip it out of the enclosure and install it in your macbook pro. Since i have apple care and over 3 years of coverage, i'd prob. have to wait till that expires before i start tinkering. But, it seems theoretically possible

plus its better than spending $1K for Blu ray playback. As for the software solution? Windows is it...sigh.
 
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