The MacBook Air's US$99 USB SuperDrive is a unique part that only works with the MacBook Air. Until Now. tnkgrl Mobile has discovered a hack to make the MacBook Air's US$99 USB SuperDrive work with any Mac of PC.

Some people have speculated that perhaps the MBA SuperDrive draws more than 500 mA and that the MacBook Air provides more than 500 mA via its USB port. This is not the case…

What about drivers? I (and others) have scoured the MacBook Air system folder or additional and modified .kext files (kernel extensions) by comparing them with the ones available on other Macs - nothing.

Other people have suggested that perhaps the optical drive within the MBA SuperDrive uses special firmware. This is not the case either. After taking apart the SuperDrive and mounting the optical drive directly into a PCs removable bay, it was recognized just fine.

The trick, it turns out, is in the IDE to USB bridge which allows an IDE device to work as a USB device. This US$9 part must be replaced and requires removal of a daughterboard (containing a power connector, a USB connector, and several capacitors) and the relocation of a 12MHz crystal.

More pictures and videos of the whole process on tnkgrl Mobile.