Apple has announced the release of iDVD 2, the latest major upgrade to its consumer-oriented DVD creation tool. MacCentral reported yesterday that the company was accepting pre-orders for iDVD 2 through its online store.

iDVD 2 is the first major upgrade to Apple's consumer DVD mastering software. The software works in conjunction with Power Mac G4s equipped with "SuperDrives:" Pioneer-built DVD-R/CD-RW combination drives that can burn 4.7GB DVD-R discs, which can then be played back using consumer DVD players.

The new version of iDVD has been developed for Mac OS X version 10.1, and adds features including motion video in menu buttons and backgrounds. Other features include support for Mac OS X multitasking -- you can encode the DVD even as the project is being built; the ability to add up to 90 minutes of material (iDVD 1 could only do 60 m! inutes); and creation of slide shows of digital photos accompanied with music.

iDVD requires a SuperDrive-equipped Power Mac G4, Mac OS X version 10.1, and 256MB of RAM. The software is available now in English, French, German and Japanese as an upgrade package for current iDVD users through Apple's Mac OS Up-to-Date program, and costs US$19.95.

Apple also noted that iDVD 2 is now included on Power Mac G4 867MHz and dual 800MHz configurations.