Steve Jobs Suggests Blu-ray Not Coming to Mac Anytime Soon

[lilo777]

Study: Blu-ray disc production on the rise

According to this CNET article: "This year, worldwide "pre-recorded" Blu-ray disc production is expected to reach more than 400 million units, representing a 60 percent increase over 2009 production, research firm Futuresource announced today. But that figure will pale in comparison to Blu-ray shipments just a few years from now.
Futuresource said that in 2014, it expects 2 billion Blu-ray discs to be shipped worldwide."

 

[pr5owner]

According to this CNET article: "This year, worldwide "pre-recorded" Blu-ray disc production is expected to reach more than 400 million units, representing a 60 percent increase over 2009 production, research firm Futuresource announced today. But that figure will pale in comparison to Blu-ray shipments just a few years from now.
Futuresource said that in 2014, it expects 2 billion Blu-ray discs to be shipped worldwide."

according to apple fans 2 billion isn't a very high number because BLURAY IS DEAD

 

[AidenShaw]

Introducing - the "Apple TV Pro" !

according to apple fans 2 billion isn't a very high number because BLURAY IS DEAD

I wonder what the response would be (both in sales and the angst among the Apple fans on MacRumours) if Apple added the "Apple TV Pro" with a BD-ROM drive....

I'd bet that they would "fly off the shelves" "like hotcakes". And the Apple fans would sing hosanna to the turtlenecked "genius" for his innovation.

ps: I realize that the term "Apple TV Pro" is ludicrous, but most of the time when Apple attaches the modifier "Pro" to a product it's ludicrous.
_____________

Edit:

pps: Actually, "Mini Mac Pro" would make more sense - a BD drive in an IOS device would make the overlord's head explode. Or maybe call it the "Mini Mac Pro HTPC Edition", although that seems like a name that Microsoft might use.

 

[iEdd]

ps: I realize that the term "Apple TV Pro" is ludicrous, but most of the time when Apple attaches the modifier "Pro" to a product it's ludicrous.

Really? Are you telling me that common folk can have a 320M? I thought that screaming tech was only for professionals?

 

[pr5owner]

Really? Are you telling me that common folk can have a 320M? I thought that screaming tech was only for professionals?

actually i think the "PRO" version of apple laptops use the GT 335 which is "ok" its out of date but still able to do some 3D stuff. but at the price point of $1500+ its garbage.

if apple was serious about any kind of design work or graphics, they would be using the nVidia Quadro 3800m in their laptops, not a low end gaming card.

 

[AidenShaw]

actually i think the "PRO" version of apple laptops use the GT 335 which is "ok" its out of date but still able to do some 3D stuff. but at the price point of $1500+ its garbage.

if apple was serious about any kind of design work or graphics, they would be using the nVidia Quadro 3800m in their laptops, not a low end gaming card.

Apple's spec sheets say that the 13" MBP has an integrated 320M (256 MiB shared), the discrete GT 330M is in the 15" (256 MiB or 512 MiB) and 17" (512 MiB).

 

[Imhotep397]

They won't be satisfied until they realize that it cost 10x as much to encode, maintain through technological breakdown and defend from hackers a consumer film vault than to just sell physical copies of the media.

There's no server that can't be hacked and having physical copies dispersed everywhere with no central "Vault" puts a larger burden on criminals to decode, copy, replicate and distribute. In 10 years when enough disgruntled employees get out into "The Wild" and show other hackers how to break in there will be a crisis and the industry will crawl (quickly) back to a physical format of some kind.

Forcing everyone to dial into a network to watch a movie or play a game is downright offensive and it's plainly Un-American (actually it's very communist.)

 

[alex2792]

I don't really care about Blu-ray on a Mac, but than again I haven't used a desktop in quite some time. All my work is done on a laptop and there's no point in watching a BD movie on a 13in screen, I use my PS3 and Samsung BD player for that purpose.

 

[AidenShaw]

no point, unless you like sharp images

I don't really care about Blu-ray on a Mac, but than again I haven't used a desktop in quite some time. All my work is done on a laptop and there's no point in watching a BD movie on a 13in screen, I use my PS3 and Samsung BD player for that purpose.

There's a point if you have the BD copy of the movie already, and you'd prefer to watch a 2 Mpixel movie down-sampled to your screen vs. a 307 Kpixel movie up-sampled to your screen.

There are also the video production and data storage justifications for BD support in an Apple laptop.

 

[Dr McKay]

Why would anyone want a hard copy? To me, it's like having a bank account. Would you rather have your employer pay you in hard cold cash or wire it automatically to your bank account? For personal purposes, hard copies of movies don't make sense. Why have piles of DVDs or Blu-Ray discs when you can just store them on an external HD? Discs take up space and I doubt you watch them very often. Apple should remove the SuperDrive all together from the MacBook/Pro and sell an external drive. Laptops will be thinner and small because of the extra space. Most of my friends don't have Blu-Ray players anywhere, computer or living room. You don't need 720P/1080P to have enjoy a good movie. It helps the experience but the cost is just too high.

Performing backups on Blu-Ray discs is simply a bad idea. You can do it with Time Machine and it's so much easier than backing up on Blu-ray discs. Most consumers don't even backup their data anyway. For the ones that do, Time Machine is easier and more intuitive than a Blu-Ray disc not to mention cost effective. I have to keep buying discs or buy an external hard drive and be done with it.

It's a question of bandwidth, not everyone has the Internet capable, and I know a lot of people that like to physically own the media they have purchased. Not just to have a copy on a hard drive. Hard copies don't make sense? That's rubbish. What if your drive fails? And you lose your entire movie collection?

Well gee i guess my ISP doesn't have a heart attack because I'm trying to download my 600GB movie collection again.

And lots of people are increasingly having huge 1080p HDTV's and top quality sound setups. I've seen Blu-Ray on a 50inch plasma. It was amazing.

 

[jacobj]

I have a 4 Mb internet connection. I'll have to wait another 18 months before I can have 20 Mbits. I just tried renting a HD movie for the 1st time on an Apple TV (G2) and it tells me that I have to wait 3 hours and 21 minutes before I can start watching. So I'll have to upgrade (in 18 months) to a line that cost me approximately £45 ($70), compared to the £25 ($38) that I have now. So I'll have to spend an extra £20 a month and pay an extra £1 over blockbuster to rent a film and then still have to wait about an hour before I can watch.

Apple's TV will never be a viable renting format in the medium term. It is less convenient, more expensive and of lower quality. So Blu Ray has to be the way to go. I use the PS3 and have no need for Apple to add it to any of their hardware: but blu ray has a future for at least the next 5 years.

 

[pr5owner]

I don't really care about Blu-ray on a Mac, but than again I haven't used a desktop in quite some time. All my work is done on a laptop and there's no point in watching a BD movie on a 13in screen, I use my PS3 and Samsung BD player for that purpose.

you would not have needed to spend extra money on your samsung BD player if your laptop supported HDMI OUT and BD playback (save approx $100-$200) also if you go to a friends house your laptop will be able to hook up there as well.

 

[Repo]

blu ray has a future for at least the next 5 years.

I would agree with this time frame, though I wish it not to be so long. Optical media is old tech, and internet connections are too slow. That said, blu ray in a Mac? I'm for it.

Why would anyone want a hard copy? To me, it's like having a bank account. Would you rather have your employer pay you in hard cold cash or wire it automatically to your bank account? For personal purposes, hard copies of movies don't make sense. Why have piles of DVDs or Blu-Ray discs when you can just store them on an external HD? Discs take up space and I doubt you watch them very often. Apple should remove the SuperDrive all together from the MacBook/Pro and sell an external drive. Laptops will be thinner and small because of the extra space. Most of my friends don't have Blu-Ray players anywhere, computer or living room. You don't need 720P/1080P to have enjoy a good movie. It helps the experience but the cost is just too high.

Performing backups on Blu-Ray discs is simply a bad idea. You can do it with Time Machine and it's so much easier than backing up on Blu-ray discs. Most consumers don't even backup their data anyway. For the ones that do, Time Machine is easier and more intuitive than a Blu-Ray disc not to mention cost effective. I have to keep buying discs or buy an external hard drive and be done with it.

One of the most rational posts I've read. The only thing we differ on, is that I actually would like a hard copy when it comes to movies. External only superdrives would be great, but get blu ray support. Do you need blu ray to enjoy a movie? No, but a lot of movies are now only offering certain bonus and other features on their blu ray releases. Steve is holding us back.

 

[Hal Itosis]

I wonder what the response would be (both in sales and the angst among the Apple fans on MacRumours) if Apple added the "Apple TV Pro" with a BD-ROM drive....

Why should readers of this thread care (or even need to know) what you "wonder" about?

I'd bet that they would "fly off the shelves" "like hotcakes". And the Apple fans would sing hosanna to the turtlenecked "genius" for his innovation.

Again, speculating about some hypothetical situation furthers this discussion how?

As has been indicated previously, no one is against BD. Most users simply are not as concerned about it. Else, they have a BD player in the living room, and that's how they enjoy it. No dire need to have it included in their computer. That's probably most folks. Seriously, for them it's no BFD.

ps: I realize that the term "Apple TV Pro" is ludicrous, but most of the time when Apple attaches the modifier "Pro" to a product it's ludicrous.
_____________

Edit:

pps: Actually, "Mini Mac Pro" would make more sense - a BD drive in an IOS device would make the overlord's head explode. Or maybe call it the "Mini Mac Pro HTPC Edition", although that seems like a name that Microsoft might use.

Man, how bored must you be... sitting around making up that stuff.

 

[AidenShaw]

Again, speculating about some hypothetical situation furthers this discussion how?

It is a discussion, and your post does very, very little to contribute to it.

You do, however, seem to enjoy pushing the forum rules by attacking other members.

 

[xbjllb]

That's probably most folks. Seriously, for them it's no BFD.)

Yep. That's why you're still here, posting away. Because it's no BFD to you.

Right.

 

[iEdd]

Speaking of being somewhere, but not caring, why is Apple Inc. still on the BDA Board of Directors?

 

[KnightWRX]

One of the most rational posts I've read. The only thing we differ on, is that I actually would like a hard copy when it comes to movies. External only superdrives would be great, but get blu ray support. Do you need blu ray to enjoy a movie? No, but a lot of movies are now only offering certain bonus and other features on their blu ray releases. Steve is holding us back.

Forget the special features, unless you rip your own Blu-ray movies and preserve the quality (which is quite impossible unless you're not re-encoding anything), you cannot get the same quality in video and audio anywhere else to store on that hard drive.

Also, having a hard copy is nice. Backups are a good thing, hard drives are not long term storage media. If you lose the hard drive, you lose a lot of data. If I drop a disc or scratch it, I lose only a subset of my movie collection.

Optical media is here to stay for quite a few good years. Blu-ray is on an uphill, DVD still sells big numbers. It'll be 2020 before we even start thinking of phasing out this stuff, unless something even better comes along.

 

[Hal Itosis]

Yep. That's why you're still here, posting away.

Um, check <this link> to see who's "posting away" here.

It is a discussion, and your post does very, very little to contribute to it.

You do, however, seem to enjoy pushing the forum rules by attacking other members.

Yes but, if one carefully studies the content of what you "shared" in that post back there (i.e., nothing but a bunch of digs at Apple and Apple users), then it's almost as if you were asking for it.

 

[Repo]

Forget the special features, unless you rip your own Blu-ray movies and preserve the quality (which is quite impossible unless you're not re-encoding anything), you cannot get the same quality in video and audio anywhere else to store on that hard drive.

That was my point though, just because a movie looks good doesn't make it entertaining.

Also, having a hard copy is nice. Backups are a good thing, hard drives are not long term storage media. If you lose the hard drive, you lose a lot of data. If I drop a disc or scratch it, I lose only a subset of my movie collection.

Since most consumers who backup do it regularly, doing so on blu ray would be time consuming and a waste of money. Technology moves too fast, hard drive backups are the way to go. When it comes to purchasing and storing movies, however, I want a hard copy.

Optical media is here to stay for quite a few good years. Blu-ray is on an uphill, DVD still sells big numbers. It'll be 2020 before we even start thinking of phasing out this stuff, unless something even better comes along.

Optical media may be here to stay, but it's no secret we have the technology to make blu ray obsolete. Sony though, has enough companies under their thumb that it could take a while. In the end, it's us that lose.

 

[JAT]

according to apple fans 2 billion isn't a very high number because BLURAY IS DEAD

You mean BD haters, not Apple fans. Some of us like both.

 

[pr5owner]

You mean BD haters, not Apple fans. Some of us like both.

you are 100% correct, i mean BD haters, ive seen so many posts here saying Macs should come with bluray for the last 6 months.

 

[AidenShaw]

Yes but, if one carefully studies the content of what you "shared" in that post back there (i.e., nothing but a bunch of digs at Apple and Apple users), then it's almost as if you were asking for it.

Since you didn't bother to actually post a link to my post "back there", I had to scan my recent posts. I didn't see any that were "nothing but a bunch of digs at Apple and Apple users". Care to support your claim?

But of course the point is moot, because your personal attacks still conflict with forum rules, and there's no "you were asking for it" exception to the forum rules.

Happy holidays.

 

[KnightWRX]

That was my point though, just because a movie looks good doesn't make it entertaining.

But an entertaining movie is better watched on Blu-ray than VHS. Lower quality doesn't make movies more entertaining just as much as higher quality doesn't. All movies being available on Blu-ray means you get to enjoy the movies you like and you get to have the best quality to view them in.

Since most consumers who backup do it regularly, doing so on blu ray would be time consuming and a waste of money. Technology moves too fast, hard drive backups are the way to go. When it comes to purchasing and storing movies, however, I want a hard copy.

WOOOSH.

First, hard drives are horrible for backups.

Second : I was talking about movies. When I buy a movie on Blu-ray, I automatically get 1 hard copy of that movie on disc. If I scratch/damage that disc, I only lose that movie. With a hard drive, if the drive gets damaged, I lose a ton and a half of movies. RAID ? Not a backup solution.

Optical media may be here to stay, but it's no secret we have the technology to make blu ray obsolete. Sony though, has enough companies under their thumb that it could take a while. In the end, it's us that lose.

We don't have the technology to make blu-ray obsolete, unless you're talking about future optical media (there are prototypes of holographic optical media that can push the storage boundaries for single discs even beyond Blu-ray, and there's the upcoming BDXL format).

Otherwise, what technology do we have ? Streaming ? Internet ? My cable provider isn't under Sony's thumb at all, they use Cisco equipement which isn't under Sony's thumb either. And guess what, they can't give me a pipe that will make Blu-ray obsolete with Internet technologies and they won't for a couple of years. Not to mention with all the problems that DRM on downloads bring, a Blu-ray disc is still the best choice for dropping cash on a movie.

 

[Repo]

But an entertaining movie is better watched on Blu-ray than VHS. Lower quality doesn't make movies more entertaining just as much as higher quality doesn't. All movies being available on Blu-ray means you get to enjoy the movies you like and you get to have the best quality to view them in.

That's up to consumers. I don't care blu ray vs dvd vs streaming, etc. A movie is a movie, and blu ray is ridiculously overpriced. For now, I'll stick with dvds and streaming.

First, hard drives are horrible for backups.

No.

Second : I was talking about movies. When I buy a movie on Blu-ray, I automatically get 1 hard copy of that movie on disc. If I scratch/damage that disc, I only lose that movie. With a hard drive, if the drive gets damaged, I lose a ton and a half of movies. RAID ? Not a backup solution.

I already said I didn't want to backup movies, I don't know why you're discussing this. Hard drives are best for computer backups performed regularly by Time Machine or a similar application.

We don't have the technology to make blu-ray obsolete, unless you're talking about future optical media (there are prototypes of holographic optical media that can push the storage boundaries for single discs even beyond Blu-ray, and there's the upcoming BDXL format).

Flash memory capacity easily beats out that of blu ray; BDXL too. Flash memory also allows for wider bandwidth, which as films increase in quality, will fade out optical media due to it's lack of bandwidth.

Otherwise, what technology do we have ?

Refer to above answer.

Streaming ? Internet ? My cable provider isn't under Sony's thumb at all, they use Cisco equipement which isn't under Sony's thumb either. And guess what, they can't give me a pipe that will make Blu-ray obsolete with Internet technologies and they won't for a couple of years. Not to mention with all the problems that DRM on downloads bring, a Blu-ray disc is still the best choice for dropping cash on a movie.

I already said internet connections are too slow. Sony has deals with film companies regarding distribution (hence, movies come out on blu ray) preventing them from distributing via alternative mediums.