I wonder if or when Apple will discontinue the Superdrive add on?

MisterBigMack said:

I wonder - when Apple will discontinue the add on optical drive - I think it will be a long long time - I bet they sell a load of these


In my case - I have an iMac with superdrive, and tbh I only used to get my audio cds onto iTunes - apart from that, never use it!


But the mainstream still would need use for it I would suspect

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Not soon, they even have a thunderbolt to VGA adapter,WTF VGA.

Doubtful. Apple still supports Firewire. Who uses that ancient technology?

"Apple still supports Firewire. Who uses that ancient technology?"

Many, many do -- it's a standard in the audio recording industry.

OllyW said:

There are a lot of monitors and projectors with VGA still in use.

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Tell me about it! Try giving a presentation in Academia these days without a VGA adaptor.....

OllyW said:

There are a lot of monitors and projectors with VGA still in use.

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Yeah, I am aware of that, I just wish these legacy ports would go, there are also still quite a few electronics with RS-232(sub-d 9), even brand new TV's.
(Mostly for software installs or servicing)
Wish they invented something new.

I think the reason VGA is still much around because PC manufacturers are still making this stuff, i.e. old fashioned.

MisterBigMack said:

I wonder - when Apple will discontinue the add on optical drive - I think it will be a long long time - I bet they sell a load of these.

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If you are referring to the external SuperDrive, I would expect they will keep it for some time as every Mac except the Pro is dropping built-in optical media support.

justperry said:

Yeah, I am aware of that, I just wish these legacy ports would go, there are also still quite a few electronics with RS-232(sub-d 9), even brand new TV's.
(Mostly for software installs or servicing)
Wish they invented something new.

I think the reason VGA is still much around because PC manufacturers are still making this stuff, i.e. old fashioned.

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RS-232 has been , is and will continue to be the paramount way to control entertainment devices at the high end ( where precise control is a necessity ). IR is a total mess and control over HDMI is a disgusting lump of proprietary crap.

Don't believe me? Just ask any $100k + home theater integrator. Old tech that continues to hang on decade after decade tends to do so for a reason.

justperry said:

Not soon, they even have a thunderbolt to VGA adapter,WTF VGA.

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Walk into just about any conference room at just about any company and try to hook up your computer to the projector. Tons of VGA-only projectors are still around.

justperry said:

RS-232(sub-d 9), even brand new TV's.

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I would love to have RS-232 on all my Home Theater components. Makes control so much better and more reliable. Look at any high-end Home Theater and you'll see tons of RS-232 everywhere.

Wish they invented something new.

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Why? Because a VGA/RS-232 connector doesn't look as slick as an HDMI/USB/Thunderbolt one? Because they have screws on them? Those technologies, while somewhat old, work very well. There's no reason to throw something away and redesign it just because they've been around for a while.

mslide said:

Why? Because a VGA/RS-232 connector doesn't look as slick as an HDMI/USB/Thunderbolt one? Because they have screws on them? Those technologies, while somewhat old, work very well. There's no reason to throw something away and redesign it just because they've been around for a while.

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Exactly.... And furthermore it's often extremely reassuring embracing something that has withstood the test of time. Heh just look at Ethernet or even TCP/IP and even the foundation of OS X itself...

No reason for Apple to discontinue until sales crater. It's a low cost, high margin item that many people need due to their legacy collection of DVD and CD-R discs. But even if Apple kills it, so what. You can pick up a Samsung slim drive for $26.