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No optical drive on macbook? WHY?!

T

TheOnlyOasis

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Dec 4, 2007
25
0
I'm really aggravated after finding out that the new macbooks will most likely not have an optical drive. My budget is 1500 dollars max, and I was going to buy the 1299 macbook, but decided to wait until MWSF. However, apparently they're taking out the optical drive... so I'll have to buy an old outdated mac just to have it built in?

I wanted to use my mac for school projects where we would need to make a video for class that i could burn onto a CD, or to watch DVDs on a plane or long car ride or something. I may just end up getting a new dell with an optical drive in it instead if the rumors turn out to be true.

Do most people not use the CD drives anymore or what? I think getting rid of it is a VERY high price to pay just to make the macbook a little slimmer. GAH. What do you guys think, is it worth it?
 
I think you are confusing the MacBook with the rumored ultraportable Mac. The MacBooks will have an optical drive, too many things are dependent upon optical media for apple to drop it this early.
 
TheOnlyOasis said:
I'm really aggravated after finding out that the new macbooks will most likely not have an optical drive. My budget is 1500 dollars max, and I was going to buy the 1299 macbook, but decided to wait until MWSF. However, apparently they're taking out the optical drive... so I'll have to buy an old outdated mac just to have it built in?

I wanted to use my mac for school projects where we would need to make a video for class that i could burn onto a CD, or to watch DVDs on a plane or long car ride or something. I may just end up getting a new dell with an optical drive in it instead if the rumors turn out to be true.

Do most people not use the CD drives anymore or what? I think getting rid of it is a VERY high price to pay just to make the macbook a little slimmer. GAH. What do you guys think, is it worth it?
Click to expand...

The new product, if it came with no internal optical drive, would HAVE to come with an external one :) Knowing Apple, the external optical drive would be easy to carry around with you. So, if you needed to burn things onto a DVD or wanted to watch a DVD on a plane, you'd just bring along your ultra-slim optical drive.

Personally, I never use my optical drive (except to load apps). So, I'd prefer it to be external. I use iTunes, not DVDs, for most of my video content as it is :)
 
Whoa! They aren't putting an optical drive in the new sub-notebook MacBook Air because it's too thin. Just like all the other sub-notebooks that use an external optical drive because they're too small - nobody makes an optical drive small enough.

The form factor of the MacBook and MacBook Pro will likely be unchanged and will continue to have optical drives just as they alway have.

Anyway, wait two days and then you'll know whether or not you have something be upset about.
 
Chrispy88 said:
The new product, if it came with no internal optical drive, would HAVE to come with an external one :) Knowing Apple, the external optical drive would be easy to carry around with you. So, if you needed to burn things onto a DVD or wanted to watch a DVD on a plane, you'd just bring along your ultra-slim optical drive.
Click to expand...

Likely true, but knowing Apple, the external optical drive will be something you have to pay extra for. That's been common in the industry. My old IBM X-40 didn't have an optical drive. I had to buy the dock, which did, or buy an external. Wasn't part of the deal. I ordered it with the docking station, which added a lot of bulk, but I also bought a Targa external DVD-ROM that plugged into the USB ports. Like the MacBook Air will likely have, my X-40 had a power plug ("special" USB port") built into the side to run it. It wasn't very convenient, but I mainly used the thing on the road and found I rarely needed an optical drive.
 
Thanks for the replies and clearing the stuff up for me, everyone! I guess it won't be so bad if the external doesn't cost much and is easy to carry around.

Grimace said:
Essentially, you are complaining because you can't yet afford Apple's cheapest portable option.

Umm...:confused:
Click to expand...
Nope... I was just saying that I'm frustrated about it not having an optical drive. :)
 
Substantial HD space and external drives removed any real need for me to care for optical drives on a notebook - I have a desktop that can handle all disc-reading duties.

I have backups of all my DVDs that I can take on the road with me, saving physical space as they're in a digital format and I'm guessing making the battery last longer since it doesn't have to spin a disc furiously for one or two hours.

Burning CDs? People still do that?? :p The ubiquity of USB external thumb drives has really removed a lot of the need for that in my environment.

The only real reason I use my disc drive nowadays is to burn an audio CD for the car, and a lot of new systems will allow you to just plug your iPod directly in. iPods make for nice compact external drives too...

It's not all about being slim either.. being light would be more important. There are 13 inch laptops with features that would make a MacBook blush (see the LG P300 - HDMI, LED, 2GB RAM standard... and 3.5lbs compared to MacBook's 5!) - I'm thinking travellers will also appreciate the weight benefit of no internal optical drive too if they also use their notebooks in this way.

So, well, there are some pros for no optical. I'm guessing there would still be an optional disc drive, just in external usb/fw form which you can detach when not required. That would be the best setup I think.
 
Dang jnc, those are some good points actually. When it comes down to it, I can just download the DVD's to my computer from an external drive and watch them that way, right?

I just want CDs so I can listen to them through the CD player in my room and for CDs in the car.

Also, my parents always want digital pictures to be in CD form as a backup... especially after our computer crashed once and we lost a lot of memories form pictures :)(). Sure, thats less likely to happen on a mac, but better safe than sorry.

I guess I just hope that the externaloptical drive better not be too expensive...
 
There are lots of small inexpensive external USB CD drives, if the Apple solution is too expensive..

If you don't need something super small for travel, any of these would be fine if you left them at home...
 
OK really. Everyone here thinks Apple will totally get rid of the optical drive?


Have you people read any of the rumors?

Rumors state that the ultra portable will come with an external optical drive that can be left at home when not needed.

You people are silly.
 
Wow...

TheOnlyOasis said:
I'm really aggravated after finding out that the new macbooks will most likely not have an optical drive. My budget is 1500 dollars max, and I was going to buy the 1299 macbook, but decided to wait until MWSF. However, apparently they're taking out the optical drive... so I'll have to buy an old outdated mac just to have it built in?

I wanted to use my mac for school projects where we would need to make a video for class that i could burn onto a CD, or to watch DVDs on a plane or long car ride or something. I may just end up getting a new dell with an optical drive in it instead if the rumors turn out to be true.

Do most people not use the CD drives anymore or what? I think getting rid of it is a VERY high price to pay just to make the macbook a little slimmer. GAH. What do you guys think, is it worth it?
Click to expand...

Dude, now we're getting aggravated not only at models Apple won't make (mid-range tower), but now we're upset about RUMORS of Apple products?

How exactly would the introduction of a slim, optical drive less laptop make the existing Macbook obsolete?
 
appleretailguy: If the new notebook came out and they discontinued the one with the optical drive, then I would consider it to be obsolete, yes. And you're saying that the fact that I'm discouraged by a more-than-likely rumor is wrong?
 
But there's no way they'll replace a macbook with a macbook air. They replaced the iPod mini with the iPod nano, not the shuffle...
 
Bardsley said:
But there's no way they'll replace a macbook with a macbook air. They replaced the iPod mini with the iPod nano, not the shuffle...
Click to expand...

yup absolutely not, the "macbook air" was supposed to be an ultraporatble MBP. so therefore the MB will still be a grade down in specs/price from the airmac or whateva it is and the MBP.
 
TheOnlyOasis said:
appleretailguy: If the new notebook came out and they discontinued the one with the optical drive, then I would consider it to be obsolete, yes. And you're saying that the fact that I'm discouraged by a more-than-likely rumor is wrong?
Click to expand...

Massive apologies if this sounds patronising, but I think you're getting a little confused.

There rumour of an ultra thin 'macbook air' is that it will be exactly that, an ultra thin (ultra mobile) notebook.

The Macbook is a consumer product, where as the 'Macbook air' isn't likely to be. The Macbook air is also likely to cost more than the Macbook (maybe somewhere in between the Macbook and the Macbook Pro).

The Macbook's replaced the iBook, and Apple have had 'consumer' line notebooks for some time (the iBook was around since early G3 models), and therefore I doubt they will suddenly drop the consumer line, especially as most of their revenue from PC switchers comes from the Macbooks.

I think as long as you remember that the Macbook Air is a completely different product and will be an ADDITION to the current line up, you'll be ok :)
 
What?

TheOnlyOasis said:
appleretailguy: If the new notebook came out and they discontinued the one with the optical drive, then I would consider it to be obsolete, yes. And you're saying that the fact that I'm discouraged by a more-than-likely rumor is wrong?
Click to expand...

That is a ridiculous assumption. There isn't a chance in hell a new product like that would REPLACE the Macbook.

But let's say it did...what's to stop you from buying the existing Macbook? I would.
 
gazfocus said:
Massive apologies if this sounds patronising, but I think you're getting a little confused.

There rumour of an ultra thin 'macbook air' is that it will be exactly that, an ultra thin (ultra mobile) notebook.

The Macbook is a consumer product, where as the 'Macbook air' isn't likely to be. The Macbook air is also likely to cost more than the Macbook (maybe somewhere in between the Macbook and the Macbook Pro).

The Macbook's replaced the iBook, and Apple have had 'consumer' line notebooks for some time (the iBook was around since early G3 models), and therefore I doubt they will suddenly drop the consumer line, especially as most of their revenue from PC switchers comes from the Macbooks.

I think as long as you remember that the Macbook Air is a completely different product and will be an ADDITION to the current line up, you'll be ok :)
Click to expand...

Gotcha... you're right, I misunderstood. I was under the impression that it would replace the consumer macbook. Thanks a lot for clearing that up =]

PS: Its impressive how fast people reply on this site... this must be a really active message board. Nice.
 
TheOnlyOasis said:
Gotcha... you're right, I misunderstood. I was under the impression that it would replace the consumer macbook. Thanks a lot for clearing that up =]

PS: Its impressive how fast people reply on this site... this must be a really active message board. Nice.
Click to expand...

nerds on a computer forum?
 
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