Q: No DVD drive in new iMac ???

Yes... it is unusual. But it happens. The thing is, this is stuff you would have to struggle to make up, but we experience it in real life. If you give up you lose the job, if you inovate you keep working. Ever had to put on rappelling gear to get a wedding shot? True, MacBooks don't come with them in, but it is easy to replace the DVD with a BluRay, or it was in the 17" until they discontinued it. The HP ProBook gives an i7 processor at 2.2 GHz with 8 gig ram and a 750 gig hard drive… + BluRay for only $1K. I really like the Mac OS and FCP X, but Apple is not being real gracious to it's video pros when it comes to hardware and the way they handle software. Maybe Ubuntu will be the next pro platform. Lightwave will be released for it at NAB this year and they are heavily courting Adobe. The OS has way less overhead than Mac OS and runs fast. And the attitude of Ubuntu is "hey… tell us what you need and we will try to get it done."

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Forced obsolecence is never a good idea. Removing the DVD drive from the iMac is not the same as when the ZIP's and Floppys were removed. No way I'll buy an iMac without an optical drive. It's just not practical, especially since where I live, no high speed internet is available, just my sorry Verizon MiFi. So, no uploading to Cloud nor downloading movies to watch, except through Dish on demand. Optical Drive for me is a MUST. Thanks for your BONEHEAD move, Apple. Seems to be a LOT of those lately.

cwmmjm wrote:

 

Forced obsolecence is never a good idea. Removing the DVD drive from the iMac is not the same as when the ZIP's and Floppys were removed. No way I'll buy an iMac without an optical drive. It's just not practical, especially since where I live, no high speed internet is available, just my sorry Verizon MiFi. So, no uploading to Cloud nor downloading movies to watch, except through Dish on demand. Optical Drive for me is a MUST. Thanks for your BONEHEAD move, Apple. Seems to be a LOT of those lately.

That's a shame, having to switch to a PC s***s, good luck.

I just bought the external.

All over something that can be had for $30... And used with more than one computer. Breaks... trash it.

I think I paid $19 for it, when it breaks I'll get another, it's a lunch, no more.

I was taken....

cwmmjm wrote:

No way I'll buy an iMac without an optical drive.

So buy an external one. If you intend to keep using iMacs & DVD's that's your only choice.

And as others have mentioned, you aren't locked into buying an Apple one. You can buy a cheap slot loading one about the same as the ones in most AIO's or go for a more expensive & reliable tray loading one. You can even get a Blu-Ray player or burner.

I agree....  I wonder how many people like me will not buy an imac now b/c Apple does not offer them with dvd/cd drives anymore?  One on my friends has the imac with the included/interna dvd drive.  I really like it.  I do not like the external drive ude to having a small desk in a small office.  Apple, if you will offer an imac again with the dvd/cd drive built in, I will buy it.

Sincerely,

Scot

sbholliday wrote:

 

I agree....  I wonder how many people like me will not buy an imac now b/c Apple does not offer them with dvd/cd drives anymore?  One on my friends has the imac with the included/interna dvd drive.  I really like it.  I do not like the external drive ude to having a small desk in a small office.  Apple, if you will offer an imac again with the dvd/cd drive built in, I will buy it.

 

Sincerely,

 

Scot

So you'll be using Windows machines from now on, seems a shame you chose to do that but .....

Csound1 wrote:

 

sbholliday wrote:

 

I agree....  I wonder how many people like me will not buy an imac now b/c Apple does not offer them with dvd/cd drives anymore?  One on my friends has the imac with the included/interna dvd drive.  I really like it.  I do not like the external drive ude to having a small desk in a small office.  Apple, if you will offer an imac again with the dvd/cd drive built in, I will buy it.

 

Sincerely,

 

Scot

So you'll be using Windows machines from now on, seems a shame you chose to do that but .....

I'll either hang onto my iMac a lot longer, or contemplate going for a Mac Pro instead next time. I don't change my machines very often anyway. I don't have the money to do that.

I've got a Panasonic DVD Recorder/Writer. With it I burn stuff to DVD-RAM. With DVD-RAM discs I can add chapters and stuff in the Panasonic, edit out Commercials and other junk reclaiming the space they used. I can then record more onto the disc. I can repeat this procedure until no space is left on the disc. Yes, one can do this with DVD-RW too, but one can't reclaim the space used by the edits.

What I then like to do, when I happy with the DVD-RAM disc, is to put in my iMac's internal drive with a blank DVD-R in my LG Super Multi Blue Rewriter and clone the DVD-RAM to the DVD-R. I can then erase the DVD-RAM and use it again and the DVD-R has had the maximum space used.  Yes, I'm a bit of a miser in this sort of thing. ;-)

I tend to archive photos and other things on the DVD-RAM discs too. Not sure about Blue-ray discs for this purpose but if they are, that would be great for me too.

As for the lack of a DVD in the new iMacs, I've not decided whether or not it's a good thing or a bad thing.  Clearly however Apple have chosen to down market the iMac to the level of kids and housewives who are only interested in online gossiping and are nevertheless able to afford an iPhone.

I think Apple want to remove the DVD drive simply to make the iMac appear as being more of a sideways acquisition from an iPad/iPhone/iPod rather than as an upgrade path to a proper computer for more serious users. iPad/iPhone users are probably more numerous than we serious computer users (we are after all only 5 or 10 percent of the total PC market as I've been told time and time again);. They already only have the iCloud and probably won't even know what a DVD drive is, so they aren't going to miss the device. 

I like the iCloud but of course it does have it's drawbacks. For one it's only 5 gb. 500gb then I might be more interested. Secondly, they make all the noises about it being secure and such. Then you hear what happened with Sony PS3 and read items such as in The New Scientist, "Lost in the cloud: How safe are your online possessions?" -

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21729101.900-lost-in-the-cloud-how-safe-ar e-your-online-possessions.html?

Then there is what happens to all your data if you can't afford to keep up the payments?  One loses it presumably?

I think Apple want to remove the DVD drive simply to make the iMac appear as being more of a sideways acquisition from an iPad/iPhone/iPod rather than as an upgrade path to a proper computer for more serious users.

DVD is old technology, it will be gone from all computers soon, except old cheap ones.

I like the iCloud but of course it does have it's drawbacks. For one it's only 5 gb. 500gb then I might be more interested. Secondly, they make all the noises about it being secure and such. Then you hear what happened with Sony PS3 and read items such as in The New Scientist, "Lost in the cloud: How safe are your online possessions?" -

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21729101.900-lost-in-the-cloud-how-safe-ar e-your-online-possessions.html?

 

Then there is what happens to all your data if you can't afford to keep up the payments?  One loses it presumably?

If you can't make the payments you should ot use the service.

Csound1 wrote:

 

 

If you can't make the payments you should ot use the service.

But what if you have?  All your eggs are in the iCloud basket.  What do you do about it?

El Deanio wrote:

 

Csound1 wrote:

 

 

If you can't make the payments you should ot use the service.

 

But what if you have?  All your eggs are in the iCloud basket.  What do you do about it?

Move the files somewhere else, this is not complicated.

Where?  Can't use HDD; full up; or DVD or Blu ray. "...old technology, it will be gone from all computers soon," right?