Is this the end of CD/DVD computers for Apple? Will this be dropped on all the other models?

That's interesting. I see their reasoning, though. I don't think optical drives will be eliminated from iMacs, Pros, or MBPros soon. And, as stated, if you really, really need an optical drive, you can get Apple's or a third party external.

While I understand eliminating it for space, but seems like premature. I still rent DVD's or play my older DVD's.

What about those that use one to watch TV on or whatever.

Or use iMovie to make movies to DVD...oops, no DVD burner!

You'd have to get the external superdrive for $80.

Okay, I must be out of the loop. This one blindsided me, I had no idea a new Mini was coming out. I just had someone order one yesterday from MacMall. Arrrgghh. Well I called today and they said we can send it back N/C but what a hassle.

If they ordered it yesterday, did it ship yet? Why not just cancel the order?

No optical media in Mac Minis or MacBook Airs. Just read that Apple is initiating a mass discontinuation of boxed software. I guess they are saving money by selling everything on the Mac App Store.

Well it seems now that MacMall has dropped the price of the old Mini by another $100 today, $539 now. The customer decided to keep the old one on order and is going to call them to get the extra $100 off. They only use it for email, internet, iPhoto and iTunes. They do burn CD's so they did need an optical, that would have been an extra charge with the new one for the external. So instead of $680 for the new one, they'd only be paying $540 to go with last years model. For what they use it for the older model is more than enough.

Seems like the Apple push for this (iCloud) <- means you don't need no freaking optical drives

Premature , is a big fat YES.
However Apple did that with the floppy drive too. While PC's still came with 5.2 floppy or something like that ?

You are right I watch movies from my optical drive on my MBP a lot.This should not eliminate this feature.

Won't be missed by me.

Humm

Does some games still require you to pop in the CD to play ? ?

I know age of empires still does but my version is about 5 years old.

Anyway if games still do require CD's - than the gamers certainly would not buy a Mini.

An external will work, or another mac with DVD/CD sharing. If the disc needs to be in to run the game then the external is probably the solution. That brings the cost right around the old price of the mini.

Right
So what the point for the new Mini anyway Besides the real serious gamers buy PC's - well I mean build their own PC.

Pffft. Make an image of the cd and mount to play. No cd ever needed.

A lot of people still use this drive to listen and view movies.To me it is very convenient.

I don't believe that anyone considers the Mini to be a gaming machine in the first place.

It could be though

Yes, it could.

Thats my point

You need an optical drive to make the disc image to begin with, goofball!!! ;p

LOL.. no duh. You can transfer the image from elsewhere, doofus! :p

If you only have the Mini, where would you transfer the image from? Oh I know, you COULD drive a car through the storefront window at your local Apple store and steal an external optical drive. Nothing like an Apple smash-and-grab job, eh?!

W/e Giz....




That was the best scenario you could come up with??
/insert rollseyes gif here


You could make an image at work.. or any other computer. My point was that you don't NEED a game cd to be physically in the drive. If that was the ONLY reason you would get an optical drive you could make an image elsewhere and save yourself the money.

Hello?

Right JD

The point is that you should be able to do anything , more so backwards with your new (single) Mac Mini computer. Without having to buy external crap

NOT
have too , go to work , go to a friends house or any other means than to have to be able to do it on your brand new Mini.

Well JD.. that's the way Apple made it it. Live with it.
The FACTS are that there is no optical .. so you DO have to buy an external.
End story.

And external super drives can be had on the cheap these days.

Remember all those fancy colored external floppy drives? Welcome to 2.0

New games for the Mac won't be requiring discs, really old PPC games won't even run in Lion. The rest that you have/play now can be turned into disk images. And to answer Giz's Q …if you already have the game and are playing it, you already have another computer with an optical drive (unless it crapped out). Just gotta be smart enough to not buy an old game that requires the disc in the drive. With the Mac App Store and Steam, your bases should be covered.

Worst case scenario …gotta get that external.

I didn't know that games didn't need that anymore, I don't game. With huge internal HDs, and the massive amount of data the newer games probably demand on call, it makes sense that they would store the data on the HD. I used to recommend running with a disc image mounted if the game let it instead of burning up the optical drive.

Besides, who are we to try and second guess a man with a company that has 65 billion in the bank.

Yeah.. that was how I got my edge in the old days.. a disc image.. and a virtual disc holding the game....

Heck.. I've been playing Call of Duty for years and it doesn't require the disc after the first time. Their servers hold the data. They lose it every once in a while and you have to reinsert disc... or else the game on your machine stores it and feeds it to the server. Not sure which.

Oh, they copy the data to your HD …the disc is their DRM. :\

Roger. They just need to physically verify it once.