T42 DVD-RW firmware needs update...

[edelrc]

I have bought Verbatim DVD-RW 4X. I know that I would only be able to use half of that speed, but it is ok.

What I did not know is that our drives CANNOT write on them anyways. Looking further, now a see a tiny notice in the back of the case that only 4x drives can record and that older ones needs an update of firmware

This is getting too anoying already. I work on IT but I am starting not to be able to keep up with all this hassels.. I cannot imagine what percentage of DVD media that are being sold and its tens of thousands users with tons of purchased media they can even use...

Anyways... does anybody know if that firmware is available? Or I just through away with €30 in unuseful media

(My T42p has a UJ-812 (firmware K104))

[MadeInJapan]

Skip IBM....it has updates for many many drives in one download....very bulky. Streamline your update by downloading the one that is specific to yours....go here and search out your specific drive:
www.rpc1.com

[edelrc]

No hope...
It looks like I have already the latest firmware (K104) and it is unable to recognice the virgin Verbatim DVD-RW 4X.
http://forum.rpc1.org/dl_firmware.php?download_id=1780

let me see if I find them in the IBM page... but I have a bad feeling already... Don´t you all think this is a mayor issue??? I can see all available DVD media on the stores being 4X next summer!!!

[edelrc]

Confirmed. On http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... yout=print you can see that IBM latest update for the DVD multiburners that comes with all the T42 is the K104. That update cannot write in 4X DVD media....

Just Great! I just don´t worry so much for the useless 30€ I´d spend... but the hundreds more $$$ we are going to allocate on stocking up because all 2X media will sure disappear quick from the marketplace...

I am curious why so many are concern about the slow writing 2X of our drives but not that very soon we´ll even be not able to write at all on newer media!!!

[Marc_G]

Confirmed. On http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... yout=print you can see that IBM latest update for the DVD multiburners that comes with all the T42 is the K104. That update cannot write in 4X DVD media....

Just Great! I just don´t worry so much for the useless 30€ I´d spend... but the hundreds more $$$ we are going to allocate on stocking up because all 2X media will sure disappear quick from the marketplace...

I am curious why so many are concern about the slow writing 2X of our drives but not that very soon we´ll even be not able to write at all on newer media!!!

I wonder about this... is it just a DVD-RW thing? The reason I ask is that I routinely use Sony DVD-R media labeled as 1-8x without any problems. I NEVER use RW media because it gave me too many problems back in my old CD-RW days. A disk would work for a little while then go kaput and take my data with it. So, I just buy -R media, and live with the session limits.

By the time I got my multiburner, all the media for sale was at least 8x, and I've never had any trouble.

So, is it a problem specifically with RW functionality (which I never use, so I won't worry about it), or is it a problem with 4x media in general?

Marc

[edelrc]

I have used DVD-R 4X with no problem either. The issue comes up with DVD-RW media only.

[edelrc]

The case of the verbatim DVD (and many places on the net) says that the problem is "easily" solved with a firmware update from the manufacturer. But neither IBM nor Matshita had worry about an update to this "old" drive since many months ago... Unless, there is an update, I see that soon our drives will be working only with DVD-R and not with the DVD-RW disks in the market