New Macbook Pros soon. Maybe.
- Thread starter Candlelight
- Start date
There would be no HDCP issues because Apple controls the entire hardware chain. Pretty sure that all Apple hardware for the past two years has been HDCP compliant anyway and it would be rather shocking if that wasn't the case, to be honest.
As for disc drives, the Pro models are supposed to be targeted at power users and, well, professionals. While the importance of physical discs is certainly on a slow downswing for many people, removing it from the Pro would put a lot of its potential audience off.
Such as?
Security breach. Hardware failure at the data center. Portability (not everyone is on broadband).
Ultimately, my data should remain my data, and while I use online backups in the event that my apartment burns down or whatever, I would never, ever use an online storage method as my only way of protecting data.
Indeed, burned CDs which can be "finalized" to prevent further writing are the primary means of unclass-to-classified data transfer between networks at my work. And even finalized, once a CD goes into the drive of a classified machine, it may not leave the secure area again. Any form of electronic transfer just isn't an option.
And not to sound all tinfoil-hatty, but you never know who or what has access to the files you store in the interwebs.
Do you really want your financial records or you niche German p0rn to be floating around on cloud nine?
Do you really want your financial records or you niche German p0rn to be floating around on cloud nine?
Some things are meant to be shared with others.
All of which could be done with an external drive.
If the next laptop I buy has an internal optical disk (a big if) I'm certain I'll be paying someone to remove it and put it in an external enclosure.
I'll need a DVD drive for a long time. I'm done needing it on the road, though.
I haven't seen a single defense of optical disks on this thread that can't be solved by my solution.
I would be extremely shocked if that happened.
And I spend a lot of time thinking about this stuff.
Can't think why you'd be shocked. Apple have made those kind of decisions before; floppy disks, serial ports, etc.
If you get a MacBook Air, you can also get an external optical drive and hook it up whenever you happen to need one.
^ I don't know. I *think* you have to use Apple's drive because it's made specifically for the Air.
Deciding that a technology is on the way out is not the kind of decision you're talking about at all. No longer offering floppy disc drives ≠ only allowing software purchased via an online store.
As to the Air, I have no direct experience with the Air, but I have many a no-name external drive connected to the Macs in my office and they all use the same operating system as the Air, so I'm pretty sure most USB external drives will work.
^ That's a neat trick you have of telling me what I mean, you must be so proud.
I don't see the difference between someone suggesting to me what hardware I don't require anymore and (if it were to happen) forcing me to buy software via an appstore. Both are obnoxious, where's the difference?
I don't see the difference between someone suggesting to me what hardware I don't require anymore and (if it were to happen) forcing me to buy software via an appstore. Both are obnoxious, where's the difference?
Well sure, but you can say that for any component. Why have a large HDD, just put 16gb of flash in there and cart around an external HDD. Why have a built in keyboard, just buy a tablet with an external keyboard!
As I said before, the Pro models are targeted at power users and professionals. Buying a laptop in the first place means that you need portability (which external drives are not) and while I have no doubt that eventually optical drives will drop out of everyones hardware, now is not the time to be doing so from the Pro, at least not all sizes. It's certainly possible that Apple would do this, but it would be the wrong decision for them to make at this time in my opinion.
The biggest argument in this thread to externalize the optical drive seems to be "I don't/won't use it much anymore and therefore this is true for everyone." That's not a good argument. The Air, of course, is a different model targeted at a different market and thus has different design goals.
Not so much what you mean, but what the words you're trying to use mean.
Did you rant and rave when you discovered you could no longer buy a rotary telephone in any given Wal*Mart as well? Did you then conclude that there would soon be a law requiring you to only purchase telephones from Wal*Mart based on that occurrence?
^ Well when I installed OSX on my Dell netbook it would have been a lot less time consuming with an optical drive. I spent a lot of time mostly doing this
So let me get this straight, you're mad that Apple is offering an online app store because your Dell doesn't have an optical drive?
Yes... there's definitely no reason for the rest of us not to reach the same conclusions you have about their nefarious intentions for this new store.
Again. Wow, aren't we condescending.
I've never been in a Walmart. I have not ranted and raved. At no point did I say Apple will force people to use their AppStore, only that I wouldn't be surprised if that turned out to be the case.
^ Well when I installed OSX on my Dell netbook it would have been a lot less time consuming with an optical drive. I spent a lot of time mostly doing this
So let me get this straight, you're mad that Apple is offering an online app store because your Dell doesn't have an optical drive?
More noise...
If you actually read the comments then you'd perhaps notice I was talking about the idea that an optical drive has no use these days.