Macs to get Blu-ray?
Sometimes, information can be gleaned from the most unexpected sources. In the yet-to-be-released iTunes 8.2, Blu-ray was mentioned on the "About iTunes" splash screen.
For those not well-versed in the world of Apple computers, Mac machines currently do not support Blu-ray Discs. Though you can install a third-party optical drive in the Mac Pro, you'll still need to boot into Windows to read Blu-ray media. However, if iTunes is going to allow ripping from these discs, we might finally see Macs and MacBooks with fully integrated Blu-ray support and drives.
Back in October, Apple CEO Steve Jobs famously called Blu-Ray and its licensing process "a bag of hurt," implying that it was too expensive and too complicated at present for Apple to add Blu-Ray drives to Macs. Jobs, however, is notorious for downplaying certain technologies right up until the day Apple releases such a product, such as he did for years with video-playing iPods.
All this is just speculation for now. But if there is going to be any announcement of Blu-ray support it'll probably be at the upcoming Apple WWDC (Worldwide Developers Conference) held in San Francisco from June 8 to 12.
(Source: Crave Asia via 9to5Mac)
I don't see this as being any real improvement for any laptop or desktop really.
I do wonder how Apple will spin it though after dismissing the format previously.
Honestly, Blu-ray will succeed or fail with or without Apple. I think Apple execs are silly if they think that their support or lack thereof will make a difference in the success of Blu-ray.
Nevertheless, I am befuddled why Apple doesn't offer it as a CTO option for the Mac Pro. Some individuals editing HD video might want to burn their projects out on a Blu-ray disc and demo it on a real Blu-ray player. If someone is willing to pay Apple a healthy profit to add it to their Mac Pro, why would they want to refuse their money?
Finally, I have to say that the talk about competition from online streaming is a bit overrated. The bitrates are nowhere near Blu-ray and the selection of content on legal streaming services makes Blu-ray look impressive by comparison. I don't question that in the long run online streaming will eventually replace physical discs, but that doesn't mean that Blu-ray isn't worth including as a CTO option on Macs in the here and now.
Blu-ray is being adopted faster than DVD was from VHS. And prices are coming down now, with so many homes having HDTVs now, it's only going to be adopted faster than before. Numbers are way up. And with 8X Blu-ray burners not costing not much more than $200 there is a convergence of price and lack of infrastructure to support downloading HD movies that look anywhere near as good as Blu-ray to make the optical solution very viable.
With licensing now fixed, the "bag of hurt" Jobs was talking about is not over. So it makes perfect sense.
Besides, with Toast and my TiVO HD, I can now move HD video from my TiVo to my Mac Pro and burn Blu-ray discs of my favorite TV shows.
Guess not...
Apple TV could be another motivation. It would make sense to eventually offer Apple TV with a Blue-ray player, so people don't have to purchase two separate boxes. This would also presumably enable the streaming of Blue-ray movies to any device in the house via WiFi.
blu ray is here today, and we need it for more than one thing:
optical storage, i would still love to archive on optical over disc drives that could still fail
digital downloads are still not as near the quality as you think it is compared to 1080p video at 40+ megabits with 7.1 lossless sound.
movies are not like music, and not as portable as music... we want to actual disc.
digital downloads is good for one thing, rentals and thats it.
Nothing changed in the BD world lately.
Nice troll effort on your part though..
I'd be very interested in purchasing several 17 inch Windows laptops equipped with an 8 hour battery, a high-resolution 1920x1200 pixel LED-backlit display, and a 256gb solid state drive for $1000.
Can you buy these online or do you get them from your neighborhood fence? :)
"Can you buy these online or do you get them from your neighborhood fence? :)"
I believe you can go to Fry's, Best Buy, Office Depot, Staples, etc, etc, etc. They are commonplace.
I will agree for the most part on your comment when it comes to media content on dedicated players. But having it as cheap storage medium gives it a much longer life and relevance.
Cheap drives have become the new standard for backups. I even have one of those nifty upright USB docks for SATA drives that let you pop laptop or full size SATA drives in like ol' 8 Track tapes for quick and easy access. It's odd, but even HDD's have become removable media at this point.
Didn't they recently change the licensing for Blu-Ray to make it easier? That would change the "world of hurt" that Steve Jobs was talking about. It would make sense for them to finally get them.
If you need to play games and save money, more power to you - people are free to choose the platform they wish. I'll never understand why it is so important to save $700 on a machine while paying an extra $10-20 per movie, or spend $60 on a game that will not run after MS releases their next OS (or next version of direct-x)...
because there is not point to paying extra $700 to get NO games (that gets updated with every version, and not all games need to be bought); NOT much variety in terms of Good 3rd party applications that you can run; NO competing provides to give you any variety
less headaches = that's perspective: lot of people including me has no headaches with windows (just need to know a few things like uninstall/ prevent startup of crapware/ other programs) & people do find apple annoying to use
Through I do congratulate apple for the overall smoother user interface that they provide - for those who find it appealing (not me), for that price (not me), and the apps that they give preinstalled (some I actually like)
Seriously, you can take PC gaming and place it somewhere where the sun doesn't shine very much...
And yes, some people are blessed with either skill or luck when it comes to using Windows daily. While it is easy to merely claim that I'm an idiot for crashing windows, well, I've been crashing Windows ever since Win 3.0 (1990?). I've built & rebuilt at least half a dozen PCs from 1990 to 2004. I would like to think I understand basic maintenance. My PowerBook has been running without a wipe & reinstall since 2002. None of my PC systems since win95 could last over a year w/out a wipe & reload.
So yeah, all Mac lovers are idiots and all Window users are smart. Plus have you ever looked at the listing of 3rd part Mac software? Each week my RSS download feed shows 30-60 additions or updates. Many of those are freeware or demos, and some are even (gasp) games. Before I got a Mac, I figured I would be stuck with no apps to add. I was wrong.
why would this article even suggest "ripping" blue-ray? I like my theory a lot better.
P.S. Snow Leopard needs to come out fast!
This is how EVERYTHING in Apple-Land works.
- by kaWOWski May 13, 2009 6:34 AM PDT
- Blu Ray discs might well be the back-up format with the most longevity. Hard drives suffer from magnetic fade, http://tinyurl.com/odc8xn unless they are regularly read and written to (what a chore). Sony guarantees 1000X rewrites to it's XD-Cam cartridges which are basically Blu-Ray discs in a kind of DVD-RAM cartridge. Panasonic says that its 100GB Blu-ray discs will last a century http://tinyurl.com/ynwe2b.
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