iDVD is a part of history because before Apple introduced it in early 2001, the only tools available for people who wanted to make their own DVDs were prohibitively expensive. Not only was the software complex and pricey, but the DVD burners themselves cost more than many computer systems. For example, before iDVD came out, the only available DVD burner cost about 4,000 U.S. dollars, the Pioneer DVR-S201, shown in Figure 18.2. Figure 18.2. Pioneer DVR-S201 DVD burner.
Basically, Apple got together with a few different companies including Pioneer, and made some deals that benefited the digital videomaking public. The result was that Apple was able to introduce a desktop G4 Power Mac model that included a DVD burner, as well as iDVD software, for the same price that just a DVD burner alone cost at the time. This DVD burner, known as the SuperDrive, brought the power of DVD authoring to the masses, giving them the ability to take digital video and make it into DVD video (see Figure 18.3). Figure 18.3. The revolutionary SuperDrive, on countless desktops around the world, with a blank DVD disc. Thanks, Apple.
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