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

Why the hate for optical drives?

Martyimac

Martyimac

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Aug 19, 2009
2,492
1,730
S. AZ.
I see a lot of folks saying they are disappointed that :apple: continues to use Optical drives. My question is why?
What happens when you can only get a program you want on an optical drive (DVD or CD). How about doing personal file backups on optical like itunes or iphoto backups? What do you use to do your backups if you don't have an optical drive?

This is a serious question, I don't know of a viable alternative and need educating, or at least other options.
 
Martyimac said:
What happens when you can only get a program you want on an optical drive (DVD or CD).
Click to expand...

You either buy a digital download version, wait for them to offer the program on an alternative medium, or use an external drive.

How about doing personal file backups on optical like itunes or iphoto backups?
Click to expand...

What about them? Without an optical drive you can still backup to a cloud site or to an external drive of some sort.

What do you use to do your backups if you don't have an optical drive?
Click to expand...

Cloud, flash drive, external hard drive, or to an optical disc via an external burner.
 
Most programs can now be acquired online and purchased on line. Adobe's CS series for example: you can download the demo, then register/purchase it.

Online backup services are also increasing in popularity and availability. CrashPlan can cost you as low as $6 a month for unlimited backup in the cloud for unlimited computers. That's less than the cost of 5 physical BD discs a month that don't give you differential backup.

Time machine is free, and a local drive with a TB is much less than $100.
 
External drives would more than suffice for most people that only need to use it a few times a year at most. On the other hand, the ('internal') optical drive takes up a lot of space, space that also could be used for other things, like better battery performance, a better cooling system such that a better CPU and GPU can be used, etc.
 
Martyimac said:
What happens when you can only get a program you want on an optical drive (DVD or CD).
Click to expand...

Is there such software anymore? Nearly all software can be downloaded nowadays. Only big suites like Final Cut are only distributed through optical media but you could get an external drive for that purpose.

How about doing personal file backups on optical like itunes or iphoto backups? What do you use to do your backups if you don't have an optical drive?
Click to expand...

External hard drive.
 
Most of what I would say has been said above.... I guess I would like to add to it by saying that the space they take up for little use.... would be much better served for something else like a 2nd Hard Drive.... which serves much more value to most people.
 
For backups, I use a 500GB WD external hard drive and for programs that are on a CD... I would use an external CD drive or find a way to wirelessly connect another PC's or my iMac's CD drive to my (future) MBP.

But rarely do I ever use my CD drive, so I plan on replacing it when a second hard drive when I get my MBP.
 
As far as the what do you do part. This is what I do as far as backups.

Current copy on computer, time machine backups, I also have a secondary backup drive that I don't keep connected to my computer and do backups on periodically.

As download speeds get faster, cameras take larger pictures, etc.. It's not realistic to backup the amount of data I have to a 8GB disk.

As far as optical drives. I can't remember the last program that "needed" to be installed from disk, even OS. Still I purchase music and movies in disc format so I'm not ready for optical drives to go away yet. How else can I get them into my itunes?
 
In terms of square area, they are larger than the battery itself. However, they are also the one of the more dense objects in a laptop. Larger batteries ad weight more than any other component in a laptop.
 
I have a MBA and bought the external optical to go with it. But I have used their CD/DVD sharing and it works very well, whenever I want to watch a DVD on my MBA I just piggyback of the DVD drive in my Vaio with no issues. The other thing I've noticed, and this may just be with me, but almost every laptop Ive ever owner has had problems with the optical drive from it not being able to read some discs after a few years to completely not working altogether.
 
Because it's internal, and Apple is forcing us to have it. Imagine all the beautiful things that could take its place instead.
Buy an external optical drive, cheapest I've seen is around $20~, and use it to your hearts content.
 
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8C148 Safari/6533.18.5)

Agreed, optical media is a bit redundant in laptops - these days! Blu rays gave their use on big tvs but DVD drives are really defunct agree with having ssd and hdd in optibay instead and I got plent idle int DVD drives I could use as external. Ps apple DVD not workin with extn is nor prob for me as I never watch DVDs on my laptop
 
I need the optical drive. I record a lot of music majors and grad students applying to summer programs, grad programs, etc. and many of the prescreenings require either a DVD or a CD to showcase ability, so I'm always using the optical drive.

Granted, I am an exception. Most people do not have a need for the drive. Personally I would hate to see it go, but I can logically understand if they disappear in the near future.

PS

Also some people video tape guest lectures, recitals, and concerts, and want a nicely put together DVD of the event. I do that as well.
 
Question what external optical drives are you guys running. Anything to look for when picking one up. Question can I enclose my internal one and make an external usb drive. Or my friends 2008 macbook has a broken optical drive. Could I sell it to him as a direct replacement?
 
I've used an optical drive maybe once or twice in two years.

I would much rather a second hard drive in Raid 0 for more speed or more room for extra RAM.
 
Martyimac said:
I see a lot of folks saying they are disappointed that :apple: continues to use Optical drives. My question is why?
What happens when you can only get a program you want on an optical drive (DVD or CD). How about doing personal file backups on optical like itunes or iphoto backups? What do you use to do your backups if you don't have an optical drive?

This is a serious question, I don't know of a viable alternative and need educating, or at least other options.
Click to expand...

They take up a ridiculous amount of space within a laptop. The space can be used for some many other things... Ideally an "L" shaped battery for longer operating times.

I haven't used the drive in my laptop in like 5 years. Honestly.
 
namtaB said:
The other thing I've noticed, and this may just be with me, but almost every laptop Ive ever owner has had problems with the optical drive from it not being able to read some discs after a few years to completely not working altogether.
Click to expand...

So true. Mine broke two years ago and I've used an external DVD Drive once maybe twice in those two years.

I really don't need it onboard.
 
1. You can't install Windows without a DVD drive, nor can you boot into Windows via drive sharing.
2. Ripping of music CD's, though less prevalent nowadays, still is popular.
3. Ripping DVD's.
4. Ripping Blu-Ray via external HDD
5. PC and Mac games are mostly on DVD's.
6. Adobe's Master Collection is always on DVD sets.
7. Recovery boot disks like Knoppix
8. Burning CD's and DVD's.
9. Watching DVD's rented from Redbox, or for watching hard copies of DVD's that was bought for a TV.
10. Software developers and programmers use CD's to distribute necessary drivers, kexts and programs.
11. Movies on DVD's and CD's save hard drive space.
 
To be able watch movies is important for me. Do you think in the future movies would be sold/rented in flash drives or something else through USB or Thunderbolt ports?
 
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