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redshovel

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Nov 19, 2007
516
111
A real mixed bag of views it seems. Havent really made up my mind yet - suppose the first day my MBP didnt have a optical drive I would need it for something and curse the MBP for not having it.
I cant get the thought out of my head but that the reason Apple does not offer a Blu Ray drive (even an over priced option to have one) at this stage is that they simply have no intent embracing the technology because they think its already a dying format.
 

mikes70mustang

macrumors 68000
Nov 14, 2008
1,591
0
US
A real mixed bag of views it seems. Havent really made up my mind yet - suppose the first day my MBP didnt have a optical drive I would need it for something and curse the MBP for not having it.
I cant get the thought out of my head but that the reason Apple does not offer a Blu Ray drive (even an over priced option to have one) at this stage is that they simply have no intent embracing the technology because they think its already a dying format.

Its no dying, they just know, if they put blueray in then they will have to charge 10000000000 for their pros. O and the fact that they don't give what people want. They give what they think people want. supply and demand doesn't apply in california apparently
 

redshovel

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Nov 19, 2007
516
111
Ok if an blu ray drive was standard on the MBP they would have to charge more - and they dont want to give people what they want. That is still short of explaining to me, on a business level, why they still do not offer the option of a blu ray drive even at a silly price because I know for a fact that many people would pay for it. We have already paid more than would should have for a MBP - just because its Apple.
I honestly think apple will never fit blu ray to any MBP as it feels its a dying technology and indeed get in the way of what it wants customers to do - that is - buy movies on itunes.
 

thejadedmonkey

macrumors G3
May 28, 2005
9,183
3,343
Pennsylvania
I wouldn't miss it much... but when I would miss it, I'd be ready to kill. Having a DVD burner has saved my *** a few times, and I would never trade it away to shed 1/10th of an inch or a few grams of weight.
 

Dwalls90

macrumors 603
Feb 5, 2009
5,427
4,413
I would much rather have no integrated Optical drive, and just buy an external superdrive. That way .. you could have one when needed (rarely, for me), but not always.
 

zedsdead

macrumors 68040
Jun 20, 2007
3,403
1,147
I say get rid of it and replace it with an external, like the Air's superdrive. That space could be better used for another hard drive.
 

Lone Deranger

macrumors 68000
Apr 23, 2006
1,895
2,138
Tokyo, Japan
Get rid of it and adopt SD(XC) cards as the next generation of off-line media storage. They're fast, tiny, virtually infinitely rewriteable, silent, have the potential for huge capacity (far beyond BluRay) and have no moving parts so there's no wear and tear, or excessive heat generation. Think of all the space that's saved inside the MBP, iMac and MacMini's housings. :eek:
Optical media is so passé. Come on Apple, innovate! :)
 

bembol

macrumors 65816
Jul 29, 2006
1,058
51
10 years ago, no but today I have no use for them in Notebook's. I used to have the old White MacBook and never used it and haven't touched the Drive on my new 13" Pro. I used to say I wouldn't but a MacBook/Pro until Apple puts a Blu-ray Disc Drive but things changed and now realized the Battery/Cost is not worth it.

The MacBook Air is exactly what I wanted but wished it was priced $500 less, like the current 13" Pro.

Even the Netbook's work for me, I tried Toshiba's NB205 (can't remember the model) and it was a PITA just setting it up, didn't want to know how it performed so I returned it the next day. I have XP Pro SP3 on my 24" AL iMac but I only use it to upgrade my BlackBerry Bold.

I couldn't wait if/when will Apple release a Netbook, so this is why I picked up the 13" Pro.
 

OrangeSVTguy

macrumors 601
Sep 16, 2007
4,127
69
Northeastern Ohio
I wonder if thumb drives are cheaper or roughly same price to produce than optical media? All software will probably be eventually downloaded or included on a USB thumb drive. Flash is getting so cheap the more and more it's being produced, look at LCDs.
 

Heb1228

macrumors 68020
Feb 3, 2004
2,217
1
Virginia Beach, VA
My MBP is my main computer. I do video and audio so the ability to burn DVDs and CDs is essential. I have an external burner when I'm home but when I'm away I still need the capability. Plus if I just need something quick at home, its more trouble to attach the external.

We also need something to boot from in case of hard drive corruption or failure, or to install new versions of the OS. I know you can do it from a hard drive, but for non-tech savvy users that's asking a little much.

They are still too useful for many people to get rid of them.
 

crazyrog17

macrumors regular
Jan 13, 2009
193
2
Michigan
I personally don't use mine at all unless I'm at home. When I'm home, there are four other computers with perfectly capable optical drives that I could share. Even then, at home, I'll use it once a month at most.

If apple made a 15" MacBook Air with Ethernet, Three USB Ports, an ExpressCard 34 Slot and A/V Out, I'd go into debt to get it.
 

rick3000

macrumors 6502a
May 6, 2008
646
269
West Coast
It costs a company like Apple, that buys DVD's in bulk to ship Snow Leopard on about $0.12 a disc, probably less. I doubt they could get 8GB flash drives for that price. Ditching optical media won't be an option in my opinion for a few more years. They need to start standardizing a new format before they abandon an old, proven format.

I wonder if thumb drives are cheaper or roughly same price to produce than optical media? All software will probably be eventually downloaded or included on a USB thumb drive. Flash is getting so cheap the more and more it's being produced, look at LCDs.
 

barkomatic

macrumors 601
Aug 8, 2008
4,521
2,826
Manhattan
Ok if an blu ray drive was standard on the MBP they would have to charge more - and they dont want to give people what they want. That is still short of explaining to me, on a business level, why they still do not offer the option of a blu ray drive even at a silly price because I know for a fact that many people would pay for it. We have already paid more than would should have for a MBP - just because its Apple.
I honestly think apple will never fit blu ray to any MBP as it feels its a dying technology and indeed get in the way of what it wants customers to do - that is - buy movies on itunes.

No, they wouldn't need to charge more. Blu-ray is found on the cheapest PC laptops--it is hardly an expensive extra to add.

Also, blu ray is NOT a dying technology. In fact sales are up 91%

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10288294-1.html

I think its fine for the optical drive to be eliminated on laptops which are designed for frequent travel. However, I seriously doubt the optical drives on desktop replacement laptops -- like the 15 and 17 inch MBP's are going anywhere soon. They *will* eventually be eliminated for sure--but I'm going to guess not for about 3 years perhaps.
 

fireman13

macrumors 6502
Aug 12, 2008
272
21
Florida Panhandle
Why dont you just get a fireproof safe?

ummm it is fire proof. But being a fireman I know first hand how well these so called fireproof safes really are. I tell you what, you stand in a building with temperatures reaching 1200 degrees and tell me what withstands it. I've watched steel bend and then reshape just because the temp changed a few degrees. I've also had homeowners come up to me and tell me all their precious memories were in those fire proof safes and all I could find was the handle that went to it. This is why I would grab the safe right after I grab the kids.

Sorry, I just read my post, I'm not trying to jump down your throat. It just came out that way. I get a little frustrated because I see this every day and only the really expensive safes survive really intense fires.
 

Trinity

macrumors regular
Sep 10, 2005
129
0
Barcelona - CAT
How I would play Toca Race Driver then? It needs the DVD in the drive...
In any case, Apple will remove it soon as they did with floppy drives and that will generate a new market of external units at good price.
 

advan031

macrumors 6502
Aug 16, 2008
431
78
Yes, I would miss it greatly and would not buy a new MBP if it didn't come with an optical drive. Why in the world would you want to carry it as an extra accessory for those moments you need it on the go:confused:

I still enjoy buying CDs so I can rip them in Apple Lossless and also rip dvds then stream to my PS3.
 

nuckinfutz

macrumors 603
Jul 3, 2002
5,539
406
Middle Earth
Yes, I would miss it greatly and would not buy a new MBP if it didn't come with an optical drive. Why in the world would you want to carry it as an extra accessory for those moments you need it on the go:confused:

I still enjoy buying CDs so I can rip them in Apple Lossless and also rip dvds then stream to my PS3.

I'm confused by your post. If you carry a Superdrive as an extra accessory you still have it when you need it on the go. I don't understand why your posts suggests that external drives are mutually exclusive with using them on the go.
 
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