[slick1two]

http://crave.cnet.co.uk/homecinema/a...back-50009616/

Says disc technology is old and holding them back because they are more prone to errors. So anyone thinking of watching a blue ray film on their mac, forget it. Although there is this something called itunes which will cater for your needs

Good move from Apple, or not? Is this like another flash is dead therefore we have dropped it on mobile devices kind of argument all over again?

[Maxatoria]

One less thing to support and also like MS will mean they won't have to pay out for DVD decoding licenses, but i'm sure that the apple churches will have external devices for you to insert DVD's in for something just shy of £1,000 which is a snip for something blessed by the spirit of the turtle necked one

[noise747]

Originally Posted by slick1two

http://crave.cnet.co.uk/homecinema/a...back-50009616/

Says disc technology is old and holding them back because they are more prone to errors. So anyone thinking of watching a blue ray film on their mac, forget it. Although there is this something called itunes which will cater for your needs

Good move from Apple, or not? Is this like another flash is dead therefore we have dropped it on mobile devices kind of argument all over again?

This is going to be the norm, which is sad. give it a bit more time and there will be more laptops with out optical drives and now MS have launched windows 8 where you can get apps online, the need for these drives will be less. so they tell us.

It is once again the big lads telling us what they think we need and like sheep people just agree.

My blu-ray writer is in use at least a couple of times a week. i was thinking of getting a MAc, but since Apple thinks they know what I want, I don't think I will bother now.

[cnbcwatcher]

Originally Posted by Maxatoria

One less thing to support and also like MS will mean they won't have to pay out for DVD decoding licenses, but i'm sure that the apple churches will have external devices for you to insert DVD's in for something just shy of £1,000 which is a snip for something blessed by the spirit of the turtle necked one

I bought an external drive for my Macbook Air, but it only cost me €79.99 from a local Apple reseller (are they also Apple churches?) So far I haven't had the men in black turtlenecks banging at the door.

[slick1two]

Originally Posted by cnbcwatcher

I bought an external drive for my Macbook Air, but it only cost me €79.99 from a local Apple reseller (are they also Apple churches?) So far I haven't had the men in black turtlenecks banging at the door.

But why should you have to fork out extra for something that could have been included on the hardware? People still use discs! people who work with music, video, photography like to have hard copies of their work. Hard drives aren't always reliable so you dont want all your content on one form of media right? Would rather have stuff on a combination of hard drives and removable storage. Before anyone says cloud services I would rather not, some server far away doesn't sound like something I would like to use to store MY data.

So All Apple are doing here is removing choice from the user, and that is never a good thing IMO.

[kidspud]

Originally Posted by slick1two

But why should you have to fork out extra for something that could have been included on the hardware? People still use discs! people who work with music, video, photography like to have hard copies of their work. Hard drives aren't always reliable so you dont want all your content on one form of media right? Would rather have stuff on a combination of hard drives and removable storage. Before anyone says cloud services I would rather not, some server far away doesn't sound like something I would like to use to store MY data.

So All Apple are doing here is removing choice from the user, and that is never a good thing IMO.

Surely, if you can go and buy a drive they are adding choice

[neo_wales]

When I think of mac users I always think of Scientology too for some reason.

I can see the end of disks is not far off. I still like to own the disk whether its software or a blu ray film but sadly their days are numbered.

[slick1two]

Originally Posted by kidspud

Surely, if you can go and buy a drive they are adding choice

No they are not adding choice. They are forcing your hand, if you are someone that needs discs then you need to go pay to have that privilege. Choice is having the option to use both discs and hard drive on a device which you have already paid for, If you are telling people the disc is dead whilst he is still holding one in his hand and has a whole collection full of them, you are thus removing any choice he has, It's hard drive or go buy something which will play discs.

That's called shafting you as a user and not giving a damn about your needs.

[kidspud]

Originally Posted by slick1two

No they are not adding choice. They are forcing your hand, if you are someone that needs discs then you need to go pay to have that privilege.

That's called shafting you as a user and not giving a damn about your needs.

No, that can't be right.

If I go and order a PC (not just mac, and I'm not just talking about some stock pc from a high street shop) I can order a machine with or without optical drives. I cannot see how this is any different.

It seems a strange definition of choice if they make you have something.

[slick1two]

Originally Posted by kidspud

No, that can't be right.

If I go and order a PC (not just mac, and I'm not just talking about some stock pc from a high street shop) I can order a machine with or without optical drives. I cannot see how this is any different.

It seems a strange definition of choice if they make you have something.

Of course it's different, cos there will be models that have no optical drive and models that have both. With the new macs there wont be any optical drives. so you don;t have a choice with the product that you have in its configuration to play discs. Why should you have to buy an add on? That's another product. The product which you have bought and what you have paid for, won't play your media if you have discs, so you basically got NO choice but to buy an add on if you need it to play your discs.

[kidspud]

Originally Posted by slick1two

Of course it's different, cos there will be models that have no optical drive and models that have both. With the new macs there wont be any optical drives. so you don;t have a choice with the product that you have in its configuration to play discs. Why should you have to buy an add on? That's another product. The product which you have bought and what you have paid for, won't play your media if you have discs, so you basically got NO choice but to buy an add on if you need it to play your discs.

What do you mean, pay extra. Do you think when you buy a PC that they throw an optical drive in for free?

If you think choice is being told you have to have something, then fine.

[Staunchy]

If you are someone who relies heavily on disks then you have the choice whether you want to buy a Mac and an external disk drive or you opt for another make and flavour of operating system.

DVDs and CDs will die at some point, just as floppies did before them, faster internet connections will see to that. I've just ordered a Mac Mini, in the process of considering my purchase the lack of a disk drive wasn't an issue but for some potential buyers it would be. Horses for courses.

[nanscombe]

I bought an external USB optical drive to use with my netbook, which didn't have one due it's small footprint, I'd just plug that in when I needed it.

Not to mention the ability of the computers to use ethernet or wireless based NAS systems. Or probably just to use the optical drive of another machine on the network.


And then last year Samsung Intros Wireless Optical Drive and Portable Blu-ray Writer

The SE-208BW is not only a CD/DVD writer but also a wireless access point. It features an Ethernet port and can serve as a repeater for those who already have a wireless router, amplifying signal strength. The SE-208BW can also act as a server; a USB storage drive can be connected and accessed wirelessly.

An ethernet capable, portable DVD/CD writer.

[slick1two]

This person summed it up.

anonymous 29 October, 2012 17:34

I work with music (production, recording, producing) and I was considering buying a MacPro to be my machine of choice when I am out and about (I prefer Windows as my main desktop for its flexibility and abilities regarding to tweaks), but now I won't. I still need an optical drive for a lot of tasks and it won't be practical to carry an external driver with me at all times. So Apple has lost a potential customer. If only they would give us the choice to choose between versions of their desktops/laptops featuring the optical disk. Not a smart move, I reckon, unless "niche market" is unimportant to them now. It is worth remembering, though, that the music industry has a huge number of Apple "loyalists". It remains to be seen how many of them will be upgrading, as we all need optical drives on a regular basis. And the same can be said about video professionals.

Not sure how you can argue with that.

http://crave.cnet.co.uk/homecinema/a...back-50009616/

[psionic]

It is inevitable that optical drives will eventually die out. Personally though, a desktop computer without at least a DVD RW drive is not attractive to me at this stage. I can do without them on ultrabooks and even laptops, but it is still essential for me on a desktop. For now at least. However my use of them is diminishing as time goes on.

Still it's come as no surprise that Apple would ditch optical drives. It's been on the cards for ages..

[noise747]

Originally Posted by Staunchy

If you are someone who relies heavily on disks then you have the choice whether you want to buy a Mac and an external disk drive or you opt for another make and flavour of operating system.

DVDs and CDs will die at some point, just as floppies did before them, faster internet connections will see to that. I've just ordered a Mac Mini, in the process of considering my purchase the lack of a disk drive wasn't an issue but for some potential buyers it would be. Horses for courses.

There is a major problem with your faster internet idea. there is a lot of people who can't get faster internet and it could be many years before they do, so what do these people do?

Just like Microcrap with their apps idea, oh download them from the net.
Great idea idea. not

[noise747]

Originally Posted by psionic

It is inevitable that optical drives will eventually die out. Personally though, a desktop computer without at least a DVD RW drive is not attractive to me at this stage. I can do without them on ultrabooks and even laptops, but it is still essential for me on a desktop. For now at least. However my use of them is diminishing as time goes on.

Still it's come as no surprise that Apple would ditch optical drives. It's been on the cards for ages..

Getting rid of removable storage is a stupid idea. I got disks of pictures and videos stored at a few friends place just in case something happen here. i may like to take a DVd to a friends place to watch there or maybe a CD to a friends place.

Not everyone got the internet,

[Matt D]

Originally Posted by slick1two

http://crave.cnet.co.uk/homecinema/a...back-50009616/

Says disc technology is old and holding them back because they are more prone to errors. So anyone thinking of watching a blue ray film on their mac, forget it. Although there is this something called itunes which will cater for your needs

Good move from Apple, or not? Is this like another flash is dead therefore we have dropped it on mobile devices kind of argument all over again?

Well, anyone wanting to watch a BD on an older model iMac would also have to "forget it", unless they bought an external drive. Lack of BD support is not new - the "superdrive" in the 2011 iMacs and older was only CD/DVD.

What's new is dropping the optical drive altogether... Something that IMO is a mistake, no matter how much Apple wants people to buy everything from iTunes.

I bought an iMac (my first one) back in the summer, after I gave up waiting for the 2012 model.

And tbh, I'm glad I got it then, as I still have need of a CD/DVD drive, despite what Apple says. I still have CDs to rip, I have a large DVD collection, and I also still need an optical drive for redeeming many BD "digital copies", as a lot of those need you to insert the additional DVD when redeeming the code instead of just using the code. Having a 2012 iMac would mean needing an external optical drive... which adds desktop clutter and goes against the whole point of an "All-In-One" computer.

I would rather they kept the optical drive in the new model, instead of sacrificing it for the sake of a thinner case. Sure, the new iMac does look nice, but... who cares if it's thinner? I can't see how thick or thin it is when I'm using it, as I'm facing the display!

[kidspud]

The examples given here are mad. You can plug an optical drive into the mac if you need to use one.

The superdrive is the size of a dvd case (actually not even that big), so going by the argument given by the music man, he can carry a load of disks around to burn to, but he cannot carry something round the size of a dvd box. If he uses it that much he (like the rest of us who use laptops in business) would use a laptop bag which would fit the drive in easily.

[Staunchy]

Originally Posted by noise747

There is a major problem with your faster internet idea. there is a lot of people who can't get faster internet and it could be many years before they do, so what do these people do?

Just like Microcrap with their apps idea, oh download them from the net.
Great idea idea. not

Disks won't stop being made tomorrow, they'll probably be around for for a few years yet. Some companies have released software on flash memory media, they can take up less room than disks in their cases and nearly all computers these days have a slot.

[Matt D]

Originally Posted by kidspud

The examples given here are mad. You can plug an optical drive into the mac if you need to use one.

The superdrive is the size of a dvd case (actually not even that big), so going by the argument given by the music man, he can carry a load of disks around to burn to, but he cannot carry something round the size of a dvd box. If he uses it that much he (like the rest of us who use laptops in business) would use a laptop bag which would fit the drive in easily.

I'd rather have one built in, than have an external one cluttering my desk just so that my AIO computer is smaller in a way I won't actually normally notice.

[quizzimodo]

Originally Posted by slick1two

http://crave.cnet.co.uk/homecinema/a...back-50009616/

Says disc technology is old and holding them back because they are more prone to errors. So anyone thinking of watching a blue ray film on their mac, forget it. Although there is this something called itunes which will cater for your needs

Good move from Apple, or not? Is this like another flash is dead therefore we have dropped it on mobile devices kind of argument all over again?

You can't watch a blu ray on a Mac anyway

[Tigerpaws]

Originally Posted by slick1two

This person summed it up.



Not sure how you can argue with that.

http://crave.cnet.co.uk/homecinema/a...back-50009616/

Actually this person is wrong and the non retina MacBook Pros that were updated this year all still have optical drives.

[cnbcwatcher]

Originally Posted by slick1two

But why should you have to fork out extra for something that could have been included on the hardware? People still use discs! people who work with music, video, photography like to have hard copies of their work. Hard drives aren't always reliable so you dont want all your content on one form of media right? Would rather have stuff on a combination of hard drives and removable storage. Before anyone says cloud services I would rather not, some server far away doesn't sound like something I would like to use to store MY data.

So All Apple are doing here is removing choice from the user, and that is never a good thing IMO.

Nobody told me I had to buy the external drive, it was my own decision to buy one. I just had to find somewhere to get one as we don't have Apple churches (sorry, stores) in Ireland. Doesn't stop me visiting them in the UK though when I go over

[Roush]

Originally Posted by quizzimodo

You can't watch a blu ray on a Mac anyway

You can, actually. You just don't get a BD Video player included, but that's no different to Windows.

An external Blu-ray drive and player software is all you need.