New Mac Mini - No Optical Drive

[TheBaconKing]

Shall I buy a 15" Macbook Pro and a Mac Mini or a 17" Macbook Pro?

Cheers

About 2 years ago I would have said the 17 MacBook Pro.. Since then I have been ripping all my DVDs to my computer. I want a mini now to store them and be able to play them anytime without having to turn on my laptop. Or be able to stream them to my iPad with Air Video. I always am turning off my MacBook Pro when I leave so I cannot really use Air Video. Also I don't really care for large laptops. I carry mine to class with me and the 13" is perfect for that.

I'm actually thinking about selling my Pro and buying an Air to go with a Mac Mini.

 

[eljanitor]

They got rid of it on the server edition first. Mac mini has always been a great machine for the price. Looks like the days of ( DVD/ CD )discs are becoming a thing of the past for all computers now.

 

[MTI]

Media come and go . . . I still have a USB 3.5" floppy/Compact Flash/SD external, along with external DVD writer and a Zip100 drive . . . just in case.

 

[G4er?]

The essence of simplicity.

Internal is even simpler.

 

[NoNameBrand]

So much faster and cheaper? I think it's a no brainer.

Yeah, what he said.

I like the new specs on the Mini, but he is less cute without his "mouth" lol

Sharpie and a ruler?

 

[dmk1974]

This may be a dumb question, but is an internal superdrive going to write DVDs any faster than a USB external superdrive? 8X I think is 10.8 MBps and USB 2.0 spec is up to 60 MBps, but does it really ever run that fast? When I transfer from an external USB hard drive, I usually only get around 25 MBps.

 

[tommyr]

I was all excited about the new discreet chip but damn if I am going to buy one without built in optical.

I agree. No optical drive is flat out stupid. People DO still use them, me included. You'd have to add an external drive which defeats the purpose of the Mini.

 

[Tulpa]

This may be a dumb question, but is an internal superdrive going to write DVDs any faster than a USB external superdrive? 8X I think is 10.8 MBps and USB 2.0 spec is up to 60 MBps, but does it really ever run that fast? When I transfer from an external USB hard drive, I usually only get around 25 MBps.

In either case the USB transfer is much faster than the disc writing, so it shouldn't matter (at least with regard to speed) whether it's internal or external. The bottleneck is inside the DVD writer itself.

 

[henry72]

I think is a really good idea. I'm actually waiting for them to get rid of the Optical Drive on iMac so that I can buy one with a redesign of the iMac

People... we should move on!!! If you really need one, get an external one

 

[Resist]

I have been considering the Mac Mini as a media center for years and was thinking this would be the year I purchase one....until I saw the new version doesn't have an optical drive. For me that's a big issue.

I had also hoped to play Battlefield 2 on it, kind of hard to do now without a way to put it in the Mac Mini.

 

[wordoflife]

Thing is, they dropped $100 off the price tag of the Mac Mini.
So, if you need an optical drive, add $79 for an external one and it's still cheaper than what the last generation would have costed you.

 

[weckart]

that's not right - the $799 unit has the option for 2 drives - the reason the base unit does not is that the base unit is the base unit - it never really has those options. The reason the server goes back to the 3000 is either so it does not cannibalize iMac or price/profit or some sort of licensing thing...

None of those. Try thermal issues. Quadcore cpu + discrete gpu under load = meltdown.

um.. the gpu is soldered on the motherboard which is about the size of a nickle. what does that have to do with the space of the hard drive?

I dare say its heatsink robs a few cms, though not enough. Yet to see the teardown of the version with the ati gpu.

 

[G4er?]

Spending money for an external optical drive isn't the issue. The issue is having no choice but to use an external drive with what is supposed to be a desktop computer. As a desktop computer it doesn't have to be the lightest or the smallest because it isn't meant to be as portable as a laptop or tablet. The Mini could be one inch taller or three inches taller and it would still be small.
For many of us the optical drive is still a basic need and will be for some time to come. What is supposed to be the beauty of a desktop computer is its ability to house things internally. Why do you think so many of us have been screaming for something sized between the Mini and the Mac Pro? We know we don't need the horsepower of the Mac Pro and don't need all the space that big case offers but we want more than the Mini provides.

As for myself if Apple offered the iMac is a mid sized headless design that was big enough for two hard drives and an optical drive I would gladly pay $1500 for it. That's right, I'd pay a premium above the cost of an iMac with a screen in order to have one without it in a mid sized case.

 

[Baby Mac]

No problem here. There are Super Drives in my iMac I could share if I needed to. Picking one up today!!

The iMac is next to get the ax.

Early reports seem to say there is room for another HDD/SSD but there is no cable provided (from replaced optical drive) to hook it one up to. I'm looking forward to iFixit's teardown to see for myself...

For all the posters smiling as they remove a feature valued by many, why don't you tear out the optical drives in your 2010 minis and give the cable to those folks who have a 2011 mini with an empty space where they could put in another hard drive.

Just buy a superdrive,problem solved!

External SuperDrive
Compact and convenient, the external MacBook Air SuperDrive connects to your Mac mini with a single USB cable. It lets you install new software and play and burn both CDs and DVDs, including double-layer DVDs.

Everything you need in an optical drive.

* * *

The essence of simplicity.

That's already built in to my 2010 mini. Next you'll extol the virtues of removing wireless capability, then tell us that Bluetooth is antiquated, and all the ports in back need to go because one Thunderbolt is all you need.

I have never used the DVD drive in My Mac Mini HTPC, if I need to watch a DVD I rip it and handbrake it on My fastest computer...All My CDs are gone and stored in iTunes and My DVDs are going next

Your fastest computer is next, if Jobs has anything to say about it. No more ripping for you!

 

[MattyO]

I think is a really good idea. I'm actually waiting for them to get rid of the Optical Drive on iMac so that I can buy one with a redesign of the iMac

People... we should move on!!! If you really need one, get an external one

I agree. The next Imac in my opinion will be sans optical drive.

 

[T'hain Esh Kelch]

Shall I buy a 15" Macbook Pro and a Mac Mini or a 17" Macbook Pro?

Cheers

How do you expect any of us to answer that question, unless you are buying it for one of us?

 

[bcojoe]

Holy Mac-erel!!!

I save like $30 a month on electricity, compared to when I was using a Windows PC...

I hope you didn't just trash that Windows machine! I'm sure the Smithsonian, or Guinness, or Ripley's...Someone would be interested in paying big bucks for a computer that consumes more electricity than a water heater. Well, my water heater anyway. I'm sure a water heater in a household of more than 1 person who's rarely home might use more electricity than your old PC. But still... $30/month. That's incredible!!!

Or maybe you were exaggerating just slightly for dramatic effect.

Or maybe you really think that. Yikes.

 

[Photics]

I hope you didn't just trash that Windows machine! I'm sure the Smithsonian, or Guinness, or Ripley's...Someone would be interested in paying big bucks for a computer that consumes more electricity than a water heater. Well, my water heater anyway. I'm sure a water heater in a household of more than 1 person who's rarely home might use more electricity than your old PC. But still... $30/month. That's incredible!!!

Or maybe you were exaggerating just slightly for dramatic effect.

Or maybe you really think that. Yikes.

I used to run my PC all the time, with the Folding@Home GPU client. I had to upgrade the power supply to accommodate the video card — an NVIDIA GeForce 9800. That's not really such an antiquated piece of technology. Actually, power hungry video cards seems to be the norm for Windows PC — especially with PCs setup for gaming.

So, roughly 400 Watts per hour... at approximately 20¢ per kilowatt hour... is roughly $2 a day or $60 a month. Even without all the folding stuff, it's roughly 200 Watts per hour, that's still $30 a month. I saw a significant drop on my electric bill soon after switching to my Mac Mini.

With my Mac Mini, I haven't figured out a way to run the NVIDIA GeForce 9400 for CUDA based folding@home... so that is a huge power savings. (I tried to figure it out, but it didn't work.) But even without that, my Mac Mini is quiet. It's more like a laptop than a desktop, but it's still peppy enough to get my work done.

 

[timiambeing]

I agree. No optical drive is flat out stupid. People DO still use them, me included. You'd have to add an external drive which defeats the purpose of the Mini.

Its a killer for me as well, I wanted the Mac Mini as a home theatre unit under the 50" plasma, not much point in that if my family can't just put in a DVD and watch it! And what about ripping audio CD's to iTunes - and no I don't want a bloody add-on super drive, or use my MacBook superdrive and transfer the damn files - more boxes, more cables! Don't you lot who say 'just get a USB DVD drive' realise what's going on here? Most people who buy this will not have a clue it hasn't got a optical drive, so when they want to buy software for it what will they do - ah! they will use the App Store! How convenient for Mr. Apple, another locked off and certified platinum plated revenue stream! And when they want to add some music or a movie - ah! iTunes store! This is getting silly now, I am starting to talk about Apple the way I used to talk about Microsoft a few years ago - don't these corporate morons realise we actually 'know' whats going on? Do they think we are all certifiably stupid? I was going to fill my new house with Apple gear, Mac Mini as the central home theatre unit, AX's in every room feeding powered speakers, AE bringing in the wireless, iPad for a remote... it goes on. I love the gear, I am starting to hate the company... not good PR :-/

 

[MJL]

Its a killer for me as well, I wanted the Mac Mini as a home theatre unit under the 50" plasma, not much point in that if my family can't just put in a DVD and watch it! And what about ripping audio CD's to iTunes - and no I don't want a bloody add-on super drive, or use my MacBook superdrive and transfer the damn files - more boxes, more cables! Don't you lot who say 'just get a USB DVD drive' realise what's going on here? Most people who buy this will not have a clue it hasn't got a optical drive, so when they want to buy software for it what will they do - ah! they will use the App Store! How convenient for Mr. Apple, another locked off and certified platinum plated revenue stream! And when they want to add some music or a movie - ah! iTunes store! This is getting silly now, I am starting to talk about Apple the way I used to talk about Microsoft a few years ago - don't these corporate morons realise we actually 'know' whats going on? Do they think we are all certifiably stupid? I was going to fill my new house with Apple gear, Mac Mini as the central home theatre unit, AX's in every room feeding powered speakers, AE bringing in the wireless, iPad for a remote... it goes on. I love the gear, I am starting to hate the company... not good PR :-/

I am so glad I did not wait and bought my Mac Mini 10 days before the new Mini came out. If I look at all the hoops I have to go through to do a restore and how long it takes then I regret going to Apple hardware (but I like the form factor and the low noise level). No DVD is a killer for me and I am not going to add an external (USB) DVD. Takes away the "cute" factor. (on my Windows 7 laptop it takes me less than 5 minutes to restore my machine from backup, on the Mini I am talking hours....)

Apple imho is far worse than M$N ever was. I am suprised that they have not been broken up yet and that no one has started some anti-competitive behaviour proceedings against them. A month ago I was blissfully unaware of their antics but especially their iPhone reporting stuff got me irked no end. (reporting what program you start, when you stop it and where you are located at that moment through GPS positioning). That is a no-no for me so it is a given that as soon as something comparable comes on the market locally (and able to run windows natively) that can take over from the Mac Mini that I will no longer be an Apple customer. A first and a last here.

 

[Resist]

Thing is, they dropped $100 off the price tag of the Mac Mini.
So, if you need an optical drive, add $79 for an external one and it's still cheaper than what the last generation would have costed you.

That may be true but an external drive also requires yet another electrical outlet. And even with a power strip, I am about maxed out for plugs. I wish these devices just daisy chained off each other for power.

 

[Kyahx]

That may be true but an external drive also requires yet another electrical outlet. And even with a power strip, I am about maxed out for plugs. I wish these devices just daisy chained off each other for power.

Except that the external SuperDrive Apple sells for $79 is bus powered, so it's a single USB cable and that is it...no extra brick or outlet required. I've also seen a number of slim external DVD drives that are USB powered for as low as $30.

 

[MattyO]

Most people who buy this will not have a clue it hasn't got a optical drive, so when they want to buy software for it what will they do - ah! they will use the App Store! How convenient for Mr. Apple, another locked off and certified platinum plated revenue stream! And when they want to add some music or a movie - ah! iTunes store! not good PR :-/

I am sure this was a main reason that the optical drive was dropped. It only makes sense $ wise. It makes it a lot easier for people to justify buying music off iTunes.

 

[-SD-]

Also, this last week I purchased some software for $200, it came on 3 DVD's. There is no way that if this was on the app store that I would even think of downloading it.

I really don't understand why you wouldn't buy the same software from the App Store? It could end up cheaper than buying it on DVD, and would be exactly the same. If your HDD dies, the software licence is tied to your Apple ID so you can just download it again, and that's only if you don't have a current back-up to restore from.

The removal of the Super-Drive was inevitable, and I'm glad to see they've started the process. I'm sure the next iMac update will definitely remove the optical drive from the 21", maybe even the 27" too. If that means better GPU and CPU options then that's really awesome.

I really don't know a single person who bothers with CDs or DVDs now. Everyone I deal with uses USB pens/HDDs or SD cards if it has to be on a physical format.

 

[Aussieiphone]

I really don't know a single person who bothers with CDs or DVDs now.

Roflmao

Whilst solar flares or other magnetic fields wiping HDDs is unlikely, DVDs @ 10c each, is cheap/mb for archiving/giving photos & movies to friends family (YouTube is good but not always ideal and not everyone uses FB or will on principle).

As an HTPC the previous model was the pinnacle. HD streams perfect and DVDs/CDs play great - not to mention ripping them too.