This one's a bit of a no brainer: Apple's going to have to ship a next-gen disc drive at some point this decade, and Macworld 2008 is as good a place as any. Apple also has a friendly history with Sony, has Blu-ray happy Disney in its pocket and is
on the Blu-ray consortium, so the Blu-ray format seems a bit of a shoo-in. Analyst Shaw Wu thought he'd made the prediction all the same, and while his track record isn't close to immaculate, we'd say he's got a pretty safe bet here. However, Shaw does say that there's a small possibility of Apple picking a hybrid drive just to stay clear of the format wars. Rumors of the drives come alongside word of a major
overhaul of the Mac Pro internals, so it seems like the timing is right, but we'll really never know until Steve takes the stage and starts clicking us through the keynote. Wu also has word of a "
MacBook mini" or "MacBook slim,"
iTunes rentals, some sort of "external HDD storage / dock / streaming device that can work with MacBook mini as well as Airport Extreme," and an Apple TV upgrade down the road to allow for more web content and perhaps a TV tuner. Shaw doesn't play the rumor game super conservative, but it sure is a lot more fun this way.
posted January 3rd 2008 11:13AM
@th4tkid Want.
please!!!!
I really don't get you people; Engadget people and the commenting people! Dell is one of the many companies that support Windows Products and they are one of the first to adopt Blu-ray drives as an option with their newly sold PCs, and yet you don't make a huge deal about it and post 3 (and much more to come) articles already about this whole thing!
Why is it so important all of a sudden that Apple is adopting Blu-ray? Wouldn't it be a better story that Dell (who is a Microsoft supporter) is actually adopting Blu-ray? I mean Dell is still until now outselling Apple in PC sales, which gives it a good, balanced opportunity in news posts at Engadget!
Guys, seriously, I'm not pissed or trying to defend Dell or even Apple, but seriously, Why do you guys at Engadget always make it a big deal when Apple does something that many other companies already have done for a long time?
What makes me amazed is the fact that Engadget's pages are going to be filled with "Apple, Blu-ray" articles! I just wish that they make a big deal for other companies who are adopting Blu-ray or HD-DVD or maybe not adopting both!
Let the movie studios choose sides; computer companies NEVER should. The format wars are not their playground.
All computers made should now offer either a hybrid drive (the smartest choice - because most people who want these drives would want the flexibility, which of course, makes the most sense), or at least offer both drives separately as options.
A hybrid drive is the wisest choice.
Well, only time will tell what Apple will do. It would make most sense for Apple to go Blu-ray and not support HD-DVD at all. I think it's a waste of investment to also include HD-DVD. I'm not saying that because I don't like HD-DVD - as I think the technologies between the two are fairly equal - but because that's the reality. If people need support for HD-DVD, then they can probably go buy an external HD-DVD drive. Why does Apple have to? Obviously the Blu-ray addition is going to be optional and cost an extra couple hundred dollars. But making it hybrid would increase that price considerably. I really don't see the point. I heard 10.5.2 is going to be a very significant update. Perhaps it will include many drivers and support for both players. I don't know, but we'll see.