Apple Patents Mini CD/DVD-ROM Adapter For Slot Loading Drives

[Rodimus Prime]

Maybe the reason for the adapter is because these drives are burners as well. Perhaps the reason it works on the Wii is because it had the parts to make it work properly without jamming, but with the additional hardware for the drive to be a cd/dvd burner it is not possible.

That would not be a reason. If you took apart a burner and a non burner and put the parts out they would look almost exactly the same. The only difference is the lazer on the burner is slight different to account for the burner. Hardware wise they are exactly the same.

You could lay out the parts and at most you would only see a different lazer but chances are they would look exactly the same.

Personally I am not a fan of slot loaders. I like the old fashion try loads. They are simpler and have first parts and is less likely to break. They are cheaper as well and as an added bonus they can be used a cup holder.

 

[freiheit]

Prior art

I am kind of wondering how they would paten something like that. To me it just common senses that something like that would be formed (which means it might not hold up if apple tries to sue any one over it)

Not only is it common sense but 8cm to 12cm adapters for CD/DVD media already exist and are sold by dozens of companies. Prior art here would seem to invalidate Apple's patent unless they're patenting the specific way the adapter folds together or something, but there's plenty of prior art for things which fold in half as well. My daily newspaper, for instance, comes folded in half. I don't foresee the LA Times paying Apple royalties to continue doing this.

 

[SiliconAddict]

Nintendo Wii slot drive anyone?

I've seen these adapters before though.

Yah I hate to rain on Apple's patent frenzy but there is a ton of prior art. I've seen these things as early as the late 90's.

 

[overanalyzer]

The one thing this very lively conversation seems to be missing is that Apple files endless amounts of patents that it never uses. Their commitment to R&D just for the sake of exploring new ideas is part of what makes Apple the company we all know and love. But on the flipside, the likelihood of seeing any given random patent come to fruition isn't really that high. There have certainly been more interesting Apple patent applications posted on here in the past that are more compelling and more likely than multi-piece optical media. So let the debate go on, but don't get your hopes or protests up too high.

 

[0098386]

seriously, who gives a crap about this.

what's to stop itunes from offering software downloads in the future? you can download many major apps as demos now too. what do we even need discs for anymore? i think they'll be gone very soon, so this little invention is sorta pointless.

plus, mini discs are barely used now anyway....

we don't need cd drives anymore.

harddrives and space are cheap; the internet is fairly fast; music, software, etc can all be purchased/downloaded online.

What planet are you 2 on?

I've got a stack of mini DVDs and cases, the capacity is just enough for me to fit my games on when I sell them. Costs a lot less to post.

 

[ScubaDuc]

Please don't laugh but I really need one of those adaptors.

I get the small CD's at medical conferences all the time, and often with all the conference papers on them. It's a pain in my tail fethers because I either have to leave my MB home and take the old Acer or wait until I get home and use an external drive...

 

[reno]

What planet are you 2 on?

I've got a stack of mini DVDs and cases, the capacity is just enough for me to fit my games on when I sell them. Costs a lot less to post.

i dunno what planet we're on, but i think you're on Planet Old School ...

 

[notjustjay]

A disposable electronic device would really not impress me, no matter what size it would be and even if it only cost 0.01$.

Well, ok, maybe not that disposable. But I think it's the obvious progression. Right now you buy a printer or some other peripheral, it comes with a CD that you pop into your drive and install the software. One day you'll receive a USB memory stick with it instead. You'll pop it in, mount the disk and run the installer.

Either that or download bandwidth will become so high that you won't need to pop anything in, you'll just download whatever you need.

 

[mikeinternet]

shouldn't optical drives be replaced by thumb drives by now?

- they are tiny
- they are cheaper everyday
- and they are reusable

 

[Shasterball]

Apple has issued a patent application for an adapter to convert mini CD/DVD-ROMs to standard 12 cm size for use in slot-loading drives found on many of Apple's computer models.

You file patent applications -- you don't issue them.

Sorry, I just keep seeing the same error everytime one of these is reported.

 

[Shasterball]

Yah I hate to rain on Apple's patent frenzy but there is a ton of prior art. I've seen these things as early as the late 90's.

Hahaha. What did you accidently nab a copy of the MPEP?

 

[DoFoT9]

woooow.

taht is seriously awsome.

ive always had problems, only my imac g3 can read these smaller CD's/DVD's. been waiting for apple to do something about it for ages.

yaaaay

 

[bondsbw]

Wow... I could have used this earlier today... I got a mini-DVD stuck in it, had to stick a thin strip of plastic in my Macbook until the eject mechanism triggered enough to push the disc out.

Sure, sure, RTFM, but I didn't have a manual, and I have a Wii, so I just figured there weren't any problems with it.

 

[zarusoba]

Woowoo

Big deal. I had one in the 80's when CD singles came out.

 

[DoFoT9]

Big deal. I had one in the 80's when CD singles came out.

any idea where to buy them from

 

[e12a]

shouldn't optical drives be replaced by thumb drives by now?

- they are tiny
- they are cheaper everyday
- and they are reusable

DL DVD is still a heck of a lot cheaper than a 8gb thumb drive. Dont expect Apple to sell leopard on thumb drives anytime soon.
Optical drives = still alive and kicking.

 

[Cloudsurfer]

This has probably been said a million times over, but my Wii has a slot loader and accepts both 12 and 8 cm discs.

Why is Apple having so much trouble with it?

 

[137489]

About damn time they did something. Mini-DVD camcorders are becoming very popular.

Yeah, there are a ton of mini-DVD camcorders out there, and people will probably be using them a while - but they are on the way out. I went to Best Buy because I really needed a camcorder upgrade (still using a 10 year old handy cam with 8mm tapes). They are pushing the newest ones with internal hard-drives that act like an external hard drive when you connect it to your computer.

But seriously. I am not a fan of mini-CD/DVD as they are incompatible with most drives, including CD players in your car (most cars still do not come with ipod connectors- although I use the FM transmitter but it sometimes loses sound quality). Also, I have about 10 full size DVD's that hold my backups (40 gigs of music, electronic books, and misc software I downloaded). I also do not like mini-DVD camcorders as I like to edit my videos to get rid of bad shots, add a music overlay, etc.

I need something that will not scratch and that will be good for permanent backups without worrying about damage or electronic failure of jump/thumb drives (we killed 2 where I work).

 

[MiC07]

Multitouch Mouse in January!

This is the most boring patent I've ever seen from Apple. But read carefully the explanation for it. It absolutely makes sense with only one product, that still doesn't exist: The Multitouch Mouse.

To me it seems like a discrete hint, that they bring it in January.
Anyone who want's to bet on it?

 

[137489]

Fold-able plastic? Keep folding and unfolding and eventually - snap! Another broken part.

And for those who said to go with USB jump/thumb drives. Ok, cost high. Electronic parts that will fail (I know got 2 dead at work). And how do you write or put a label on those that says what is stored on it? I can see it now - they came out with printers that print directly on CD's. Now a printer to print on re-usable thumb drives?

Seriously though - CD/ DVD/ HD/ Blue Ray/ Double-layer - all that media, all those sizes, limited compatibility between devices. So much for sharing information - even on your own computers.

 

[twoodcc]

this is good. we need something like this. especially now that imovie supports mini-dvd camcorders

 

[dazzer21]

Could this mean..?

Either no-one's mentioned this, or my reading head isn't on today. Would the application of this be in connection with Apple's supposed sub-notebook we are going to see sometime soon? Makes sense to me that there would be some effort by apple to get software manufacturers to jump on the sub-sized CD/DVD route (global warming and all that, if Steve is to be believed) and then the adaptor merely be used to make those disks readable in desktop/full sized notebook machines.

Quite how the standard is just going to be limited to Macs, I can't quite perceive - they must be looking to a future where ALL computers, PCs or otherwise, are going to be compatible with this format, and I can only assume that most, if not all of the PC vendors out there, are looking to make a big thing out of powerful, smaller laptops as well. Would the discs will be high density enough to make all the standard size ones obsolete. Doesn't get around the fact that everyone will still be using full sized disks, mind...

 

[Bonte]

shouldn't optical drives be replaced by thumb drives by now?

- they are tiny
- they are cheaper everyday
- and they are reusable

And can be fitted with a robust copy protection to dub as a software dongle.

 

[BenRoethig]

Yeah, there are a ton of mini-DVD camcorders out there, and people will probably be using them a while - but they are on the way out. I went to Best Buy because I really needed a camcorder upgrade (still using a 10 year old handy cam with 8mm tapes). They are pushing the newest ones with internal hard-drives that act like an external hard drive when you connect it to your computer.

Best buy bushing the hard drive ones might also have something to do with them being $200 more expensive. The hard drive players might have a lot of advantages, but they also pretty much need a computer to be involved. Tape/DVD camcorders allow you to just pop out the movie and watch it.

 

[kristenz]

Inputing Video

I own a Sony Camcorder that records to mini-disks. When I finally saw the light and converted from PC to Mac, I didn't realize that I wouldn't be able to play mini-disk. I thought there would be no worries as I could use a fire-wire to input video into my 24" imac. Unfortunately, I happen to own the only Sony model camcorder without a firewire port.

I was considering buying a new Camcorder altogether. This new patent information has me wondering if I should wait.

Can any of you help me with a quick fix solution to input video in the meantime?

Kristen

24" imac
15" macbookpro