Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

I can't believe I still can't play Blu-rays on a Mac

thiagos

thiagos

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Dec 20, 2007
371
0
NYC (Manhattan)
Since I switched to Mac back in 2003, I have been a huge fan of Apple since. They were innovative, they had excellent customer service and everything was just perfect.
Recently all Apple cares about is reducing their prices for competition and we all know very well that when you lower your prices, you also lower your quality. It just saddens me to see a company that I admired very much, will become like any other.
So to be honest I was counting on the rumor of being able to play Blu-ray on my machine, although I don't usually take rumors seriously, I thought this time would be true since Blu-ray has been on the market for quite sometime and you can buy an external Blu-ray drive for $80 on Amazon.
I have a very extensive Blu-ray collection so it is crucial for me to be able to watch Blu-ray movies and not through Parallels. I think it has been way too long waiting to play my movies on my overpriced machine and instead of focusing on the iPhone so much, Apple should work a little harder on their computers and licensing.

Anyone else feel the same way?
 
I can't believe it....

meldrewblogBBC.jpg



I think we can hope it won't be too much longer. With the ability to burn Blu-Ray and the changes to the most recent Final Cut, there is that slim sliver of hope we will eventually see it.
 
Recently all Apple cares about is reducing their prices for competition and we all know very well that when you lower your prices, you also lower your quality.
Click to expand...
I don't think that's their strategy at all. Steve-o has said he doesn't want to cater to the cheap-ass PC users and their $499 expectations. I kind of like his stubborn resistance not to be, 'all things to all people'. Of course he has a board of directors and stockholders to answer to so that could change.

I have a very extensive Blu-ray collection so it is crucial for me to be able to watch Blu-ray movies
Click to expand...
I guess that's what BR players are for.

And as stupid as this may sound, BR technology really hasn't taken the world by storm like people would have you believe. I think Apple is waiting for other, 'more sensible' mediums to catch up and they won't be optical. I finally used my superdrive for like the 3rd time last week. It made so much freaking noise our dog is now traumatized.
 
That's the problem with Apple, they've moved from innovating features that are useful to end users to innovating features which are useful for generating recurring income for them as a business. Nothing wrong with that - they are a company operating for profit after all. But the net effect for the core base of long term Mac users is that as far as making computers - they are lagging way behind on a lot of features at the moment - and they need not be for any other reason than will to change or a lack of resources. But I suspect the former as they surely have anough cash to hire a few people to enable them to update their flagship hardware more than once a year!

Take the Mac Pro, a fantastic machine in many respects, but compared to any number of off the shelf PCs (high end ones not your <$2000 trash) they are lacking a lot of features which Apple could implement if it were interested in actually serving its end users rather than merely finding new ways to charge them twice the going rate for doing something we could already do elsewhere. Lacking:

BTO Storage Options (Where are the 1.5Tb and 2 TB drives?)
Memory: Where's the 1333 Mhz RAM?
Graphics Cards: Where are the cards which are not based on 12 month old tech!
Blu Ray: As per the topic of the thread. Missing!

The list goes on and on and on.

Plenty of other stuff they do right of course, such as the design (it does look pretty) and the OS (OSX is fantastic) but it is frustrating that they focus so little on keeping their hardware up to date.

I'm holding off buying my next Mac for the above reasons. Their hardware is just plain old.

/rant
 
old-wiz said:
All you need is an external blu-ray drive and Windows running under bootcamp and you will be able to play blu-ray.
Click to expand...

That's the funny thing. For years we've heard that mac is better at this and better at that. But more and more the answer to the deficiencies these days is to say run it under Windows in Parallels or Bootcamp!


Don;t get me wrong it is nice to have that option for niche items (e.g.running Autocad), but for mainstream media like Blu Ray it is shameful that you have to resort to a whole other OS to get the job done.
 
I have no personal need for Blu-Ray, but find the logic of those defending Apple's lack of support for it baffling.
 
Why would you want to play Bluray discs on your mac anyway? Wouldnt you rather sit on a sofa than at a desk? Also you need a huge screen to appreciate the extra resolution, and even a 24" iMac doesn't compare to a 32"+ TV
 
seb-opp said:
Why would you want to play Bluray discs on your mac anyway? Wouldnt you rather sit on a sofa than at a desk? Also you need a huge screen to appreciate the extra resolution, and even a 24" iMac doesn't compare to a 32"+ TV
Click to expand...

What's the capacity of a dual-layer Blu-ray? 50GB? I also don't take my Bravia with me.

Also, the mentality of "Blu-ray will be gone soon" just doesn't cut it. Everything will be replaced at some point. The fact that for years Apple has been leading the media-based computer world is the reason they need Blu-ray support. Blu-ray has replaced DVD. When the next technology comes out, is Apple to say, "It will be gone soon, we'll wait for the next."?
 
And I can't believe it's not butter! :eek:



I don't own a BR player at home yet, and thus do not own any. I think I might be similar to the majority of people out there. But I could be wrong. :eek:
 
iShater said:
And I can't believe it's not butter! :eek:



I don't own a BR player at home yet, and thus do not own any. I think I might be similar to the majority of people out there. But I could be wrong. :eek:
Click to expand...


Understood, but most people dont own 1TB HD either. Blu-ray is essentially a higher capacity DVD. What if Apple said, "No one will want a 1TB HD, we'll keep using 250GB HDs and wait for something better to take form." The fact is, there is no other media form that trumps Blu-ray discs at this point, so why the holdout?
 
occamsrazor said:
I have no personal need for Blu-Ray, but find the logic of those defending Apple's lack of support for it baffling.
Click to expand...

Blinkered fanboys! :D

seb-opp said:
Why would you want to play Bluray discs on your mac anyway? Wouldnt you rather sit on a sofa than at a desk? Also you need a huge screen to appreciate the extra resolution, and even a 24" iMac doesn't compare to a 32"+ TV
Click to expand...

Support to Author Blu Ray and be able to test playback on same machine. Rather simple really. Also handy to be able to play movies on the go.

The argument that a Mac is not the best place to watch movies does not hold. Apple don't make ANY kit that is the best place to watch movies. All the audio/video processing is mediocre at best. That does not mean the feature should not be available, if only as a paid for optional extra.

iShater said:
....I don't own a BR player at home yet, and thus do not own any. I think I might be similar to the majority of people out there. But I could be wrong. :eek:
Click to expand...

By the same argument why have Macs at all. After all the vast majority of homes and offices don't have them and probably never will!
 
soms said:
No. Blu-Ray will soon die, just wait. Its a useless technology.
Click to expand...

:rolleyes: Blu-Ray (and physical media in general) won't die until a) everybody has internet as fast as Japan and b) everybody has 50TB+ drives to hold all those 50 GB movies. So no, not for a while.
 
Cougarcat said:
:rolleyes: Blu-Ray (and physical media in general) won't die until a) everybody has internet as fast as Japan and b) everybody has 50TB+ drives to hold all those 50 GB movies. So no, not for a while.
Click to expand...

Not to mention when the next big thing comes along. There will always be a need for physical media for videophile presentation. Have fun with 4k2k downloads when that comes along in a few years time. BRD will have life as a medium long after 1080p "Blu Ray" has passed.

Apple will then probably decide to support low bitrate 1080p and sell it to the masses as a revolution in HD :D It'll cost 50% more than standard Blu Ray will of course. Just for your convenience.
 
thabends said:
Understood, but most people dont own 1TB HD either. Blu-ray is essentially a higher capacity DVD. What if Apple said, "No one will want a 1TB HD, we'll keep using 250GB HDs and wait for something better to take form." The fact is, there is no other media form that trumps Blu-ray discs at this point, so why the holdout?
Click to expand...

macinfojunkie said:
By the same argument why have Macs at all. After all the vast majority of homes and offices don't have them and probably never will!
Click to expand...

You guys are comparing apples to oranges (no pun intended).

An HD is an HD, 250GB or 1TB, it is NOT a new technology that is still being adopted. This is more like DVD writers when everybody was still using CDRs.
 
I personally don't see Blu Ray taking off in the same way as DVD for one reason. Broadband Internet.

Look at the :apple:tv. Who needs Blu Ray when you can download HD movies for less than the cost of a Blu Ray movie?
 
cjmillsnun said:
Look at the :apple:tv. Who needs Blu Ray when you can download HD movies for less than the cost of a Blu Ray movie?
Click to expand...

If you think what Apple call HD is really HD then dream on. The Audio files on a 'proper' HD 1080p Blu ray are larger than the video is on those overpriced Apple rentals. Apple TV is a great interface, but I don't want my content from Apple. It is not good value for money. By value I don't necessarily mean cheap. I'm more than happy to pay premiums where the quality delivers, but Apple's download movies are a joke.
 
cjmillsnun said:
I personally don't see Blu Ray taking off in the same way as DVD for one reason. Broadband Internet.

Look at the :apple:tv. Who needs Blu Ray when you can download HD movies for less than the cost of a Blu Ray movie?
Click to expand...

Apple TV, seriously? That is a sad excuse for HD. And I can't store files on it. Blu-ray isn't just some form of watching high-def. movies..it's higher capacity form of media. And Apple was quick to put DVD writers on their machines when CD's were still being used.

I feel like most people that are, for some reason, defending Apple not implementing Blu-ray capability either A) don't have blu-ray or and HDTV B) believe that blu-ray is only good for watching movies C) somehow believe Apple TV is top-notch quality or D) are just defending Apple because they'er Apple.

I bought a PS3 for $299, cheaper than the 160GB Apple TV and it plays blu-ray, streams media, plays game, has a browser, can run another OS, is ACTUALLY HD, and can easily be upgraded with any laptop HD.
 
I wouldn't be surprised if some of the delay in implementation is licensing disagreements. Blu-ray (particularly the movie playback) is heavily encrusted in licence agreements, DRM, and patents. Apple enjoys having very particular control over their machines, and I would not be surprised if that's a concern for Apple in implementing it yet.
 
broken-chaos said:
I wouldn't be surprised if some of the delay in implementation is licensing disagreements. Blu-ray (particularly the movie playback) is heavily encrusted in licence agreements, DRM, and patents. Apple enjoys having very particular control over their machines, and I would not be surprised if that's a concern for Apple in implementing it yet.
Click to expand...

Apple doesn't really like having sneaky extensions for blu-ray running in ring 0.

Personally, I can't see a reason for a blu-ray on a 13" screen; how in the world can you tell difference between DVD and blu-ray on 13"?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back