Q: No DVD drive in new iMac ???

Fred Jorge wrote:

The issues you describe, the reasons for Apple changing the design, Apple should have dropped the price. Fewer components, simpler design, lower failure.

Using fewer components doesn't necessarily result in a cheaper to manufacture product. To achieve those apparently simple designs, Apple uses a lot of parts custom built to its specifications & ones screened to tighter tolerances than other computer makers use. (Apple is unique among the major vendors in having a long history of collaborating with component makers on chip designs & considerable in house expertise on CPU design.)

Apple also uses advanced manufacturing techniques no other vendor does, like friction-stir welding that make the new iMac cases so strong & vibration resistant & plasma deposition to bond thin, durable anti-reflective coatings to the screens.

None of this stuff is cheap to develop or implement. It isn't the kind of thing that shows up on spec sheets but it has real benefits, even for users that don't realize how they combine to make a significantly better product.

But if you would rather forgo all that & go with something cheaper, it is your choice. There are plenty of PC vendors that basically just use off-the-shelf parts & cheaper, less advanced manufacturing techniques to choose from.

R C-R wrote:

Fred Jorge wrote:

The issues you describe, the reasons for Apple changing the design, Apple should have dropped the price. Fewer components, simpler design, lower failure.

Using fewer components doesn't necessarily result in a cheaper to manufacture product. To achieve those apparently simple designs, Apple uses a lot of parts custom built to its specifications & ones screened to tighter tolerances than other computer makers use. (Apple is unique among the major vendors in having a long history of collaborating with component makers on chip designs & considerable in house expertise on CPU design.)

 

Apple also uses advanced manufacturing techniques no other vendor does, like friction-stir welding that make the new iMac cases so strong & vibration resistant & plasma deposition to bond thin, durable anti-reflective coatings to the screens.

Is that different than the less expensive previous model?

Fred Jorge wrote:

Is that different than the less expensive previous model?

The welding & coatings are new, as is the gapless screen mount, IPS display, dual mics, & a few other refinements. And of course, the base models come with twice the memory of previous ones, which partially offsets the increased price.

I dont see what the problem is here!!

It is super simple, just buy a super speed optical drive... that way youll be able to read dvds and cds.

As for the firewire devices, just buy a thunderbolt to firewire adapter.

i dont understand you guys!

I agree that removing the DVD drive from iMac was a pretty bad move. Form over function is not the way to go. Saying you can get an external drive surely defeats the purpose of buying a tidy fully integrated machine. If only Apple had left some choice in their range but no they feel they can decide when something is obsolete well before most other people feel that way. I will continue to buy CDs that I will then put into my iTunes (like to get the cover and all information which comes in a CD package but not from digital files downloaded for the same price from the iTunes Store, which reminds me of Apple ditching Coverflow in iTunes). I also like to make DVDs for my students at the end of each year and burn DVDs of Trips I've made. Nearly everyone still has a DVD player in their home and although streaming and downloading video is gaining ground the DVD & CD & Blue Ray will still have a place for years to come. Please let people have some choice Apple and bring the DVD and iDVD program back as a possible choice in your range od desktop all in one computers. It really isn't important to me how thin you can make the screen of the iMac.

So what do I do when my current iMac needs replacing. Well an all in one Windows machine with a Blueray burner would seem to be my only choice if I don't want my desk cluttered with peripherals that Apple won't put in their "All in One" machines anymore.

Sorry to see that you'll have to get a Windows machine, good luck.

i know others like myself who work in IT some in high positions who think the new imac without an optical drive is a bad idea i looks nice but, and apple have made some pore disisions of late. (loosing there lead in the iPhone market i read today in the news) the removel of the optical drive is moving away from the original concept of the iMac, what next no hard drive oh thats even closer to being just a moniter .

i like Apple and much prefer them to PC's and windows as i have enough of there problems.

we will just have to see if the opticxal drive makes a return. i shall wait and see and carry on with my 2009.

brianfromsurbiton wrote:

 

i know others like myself who work in IT some in high positions who think the new imac without an optical drive is a bad idea i looks nice but, and apple have made some pore disisions of late. (loosing there lead in the iPhone market i read today in the news)

As Apple are the only manufacturer of iPhones that is clearly impossible.

sorry that should have read SMART Phone a slip of words

You posted that Apple are:

(loosing there lead in the iPhone market i read today in the news)

And of course that is 100% incorrect.

Apple have the largest share of the SmartPhone market, 39% (as of 3/31/13) this is up 2.7% over Dec 2012

Far from losing their lead they are increasing it.

I live in the UK so this is meaningless to me.

This is purely a section in a financial section of a news paper in the UK today about worldwide sales and other up and comming SMART Phones, and investers not my words.

We shall see, everything is so volatile worldwide now anything could happen.

I’m happy with Apple. so its just being unhappy they have dropped the Optical drive as its put me off replacing my iMac which i was going to do, i wont spend on a change at the moment, i shall see what they do over the next few year.

i just wanted more speed for CAD but i can cope with what i have for now.

I’m happy with Apple. so its just being unhappy they have dropped the Optical drive as its put me off replacing my iMac which i was going to do, i wont spend on a change at the moment, i shall see what they do over the next few year.

Our organization was in a similar situation.  We have switched to the computer below.   After using this computer you couldn't give me an iMac.  (Has 2 built-in optical drives,  you can upgrade to Blu-Ray drives as well! )

http://www.apple.com/macpro/

Thank you very much for your answer but here in the UK they advertise it now but at the moment there are no price options just details of what they do on their web site.

I have looked on the US site and they give a price.

It is for my own use at home for personal CAD drawing and some office documents, and my photoes with aperture and not for company usage, so i wanted a faster machine. I would have to save for a pro and Justify it at home, I can see your point it is a good option as it has more versatility. I like the iMac as it takes up little space. I personally cannot understand why you would drop an optical drive in a computer when the rest of the world uses one other than trying to make you purchase things over the Internet or there is no space in your new design to accommodate it.

Yes I agree with others you can bye an optical drive yes you can bye a PC i do not want a PC that is not the point I want an apple operating system not windows or anything else. Its a shame they have dropped an optical drive from the design, I cannot see it from where I sit in front of the screen at home with it against the wall and not in the middle of the room so its slim design dose not hold any water for me personaly as an argument it really cool but I want to work with the thing, and after the initil wow! thats what you want the thing for "to work on", not just to look at.

Anyway I will have to see what the future holds perhaps I will go down the pro route.

Many thanks again i shouldent think that anything i say will change the world as i'm only one.

All I can say I love mac but they did have lously dvd drives and I bet all the dvd drive company's are laughing all the way to the bank. What the heck is wrong with you Apple get the dvd drive improved and back in the mac,we don't care about thin we just want our drive back in it. Buying external drives are just more machines hanging around. I love mac because it's a great looking machine and easy to use. I have a lap top sony given to me by family and hate how you have cdrives and all the buying firewalls, It's just to hard to figure it all out. MAC GET BACK IN THE GAME OF DVD DRIVES BACK IN YOUR COMPUTER BEFORE YOU LOSE CUSTOMERS TO THE STUPID PC WORLD........

And I am so happy that it has been removed, so where do we go from here?