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LAPTOP: How best to save batt life watching dvd? DVD drive, USB Drive, HDD, microdrv

post #1 of 18
7/18/06 at 10:39pm
Thread Starter 
Hey guys so Im curious what is the best way to watch a movie on a laptop and use the least amount of power?

Shall I bring the DVD itself?

Rip the DVD onto my local machines HD

Play the Movie off a USB connected HD

Or play the movie off a external CF card using a memory card reader (not microdrive)

Thanks!
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post #2 of 18
7/18/06 at 10:44pm
umm, i guess it would be jsut running str8 from the ahrd drive, no no other aprts are used, and then u disable all other things, like firewire etc etc, but no one is gonna rip a full length dvd to the hard drive, just to save pwoer, LMFAO. i store all my porn / movies on a external ahrd drie, thats connected via USB, i jsut watch it from it all like that, with AC plugged in
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post #3 of 18
7/18/06 at 10:52pm
Now, if there is a software that would disable all the unneccessary stuff for you and allow u to run the DVD for an extended time period, that would be great. Then when u are done with dvd, a button to enable all the settings back to original. I don't think anyone has made a program like that.
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post #4 of 18
7/18/06 at 10:53pm
Thread Starter 
Im on a 6 hour flight want to extend my battery as long as possible, external and AC power not an option
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post #5 of 18
7/19/06 at 1:53am
Rip the DVD to the hard drive. That way you don't have to have the dvd spinning the whole time. As an added bonus, if you have 50 gigs of free space you can put 8 Dvd's on the hard drive (think lotr).
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post #6 of 18
7/19/06 at 4:41am
yeah, ripping the dvd to your hdd is probably one of the better options. you could also encode to divx/xvid avi files, but that takes a long time. just make sure to shut off wireless and dim the screen as much as possible.
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post #7 of 18
7/19/06 at 6:09am
well there is software that lets you play dvds without having the os active. but its proprietary and comes with specific models so its not a purchase option, not that i'm aware of. you would probably have to remap the keys too since a lot of those models have dedicated dvd playback buttons.
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post #8 of 18
7/19/06 at 1:58pm
Wouldn't ripping the DVD to the hard drive mean the hard drive is spinning the entire time instead? Not to mention, it probably takes more processor power to play a formated media file off the hard drive than a DVD, due to the decoding and such that has to take place.
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post #9 of 18
7/19/06 at 2:01pm
It isn't a formatted media file that you would be paying. You would be paying the same .VOB files found on the DVD itself. The only difference is that on the DVD, the files are encrypted, On your hard drive they are not.
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post #10 of 18
7/19/06 at 3:21pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by BCloud99
Now, if there is a software that would disable all the unneccessary stuff for you and allow u to run the DVD for an extended time period, that would be great. Then when u are done with dvd, a button to enable all the settings back to original. I don't think anyone has made a program like that.

I always wondered if someone out there's ever made a Linux package that turns your laptop into nothing but a DVD player...
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post #11 of 18
7/19/06 at 3:47pm
u can create a hardware profile for watching DVDs. Shut off all but the mandatory services, disable all the wirelss tuners, usb drives etc. and use that for playing your DVD's.
Many people do this for gaming. Create gaming profiles that have nothing but the must run services and programs to squeeze out every last bit of cpu/gpu for the game.
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post #12 of 18
7/19/06 at 5:17pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by SMP_Homer
I always wondered if someone out there's ever made a Linux package that turns your laptop into nothing but a DVD player...

software like that exists, when i was buying my hp i was researching quickplay
theres definitely at least 3 different ones out there
but u need to make a new paritiont for them obviously
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post #13 of 18
7/19/06 at 6:36pm
there is movix linux which is something along the lines, but i dont really know, more reasearch is needed.

best way i found to extend my battery life is to play the movie off the hdd, dim the screen, kill wifi, disable useless services to decrease cpu usage....haha, then again my laptop is only rated at something like 2 hours...aka 1 movie.
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post #14 of 18
7/19/06 at 7:27pm
On my toshiba you can play a DVD without booting. Oh and Dell SUCKS.
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post #15 of 18
7/19/06 at 8:45pm
wow! what does the dvd play in when it doesn't boot anything, even a specialized version of linux? i mean, i have a friend who has an HP that still has to boot, but boots faster into a movie playing mode...
//end sarcasm

anyway, what's the point of tacking on those last 4 words? completely off topic, and there has been no mention of dell prior in this thread.
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post #16 of 18
7/19/06 at 10:20pm
Aha! I went fishing and found yet another Dell Fanboy.
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post #17 of 18
7/20/06 at 4:57am
you're an idiot id3372. Please do the humane race a favour and go and top yourself...

anyway back onto topic, my older Toshi had the ability to play music cds without booting up... probably not the same but the basic principle is kinda the same. Also seeing as how there are portable DVD players out there which are basically a laptop with a dedicated purpose I don't see why the ability to play a DVD without booting (at least into full windows/whatever other OS)

Just my $0.05 AUD

Mike Check
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post #18 of 18
7/20/06 at 3:05pm

Ripping it to your hard drive?!!

I recon your best bet is to rip the dvd to a usb flash drive, if you have one that large? Also use a player that requires very little cpu usage (I recommend vlc). To add to this benefit see if you can down-clock your processor to further conserve battery-life. Don't forget the general stuff aswell like adjusting your screens brightness and shutting down unnecessary services and devices (i.e. bluetooth/wifi etc.).

Adam
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