Apple declares last MacBook Pro with an optical drive obsolete

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Apple’s move to declare its last MacBook Pro with a built‑in optical drive “obsolete” is prompting wider reflection on how computing and media consumption have changed. Commenters weigh the trade-offs between slim, dongle-dependent hardware and older machines with optical drives, audio jacks, and user‑replaceable parts, as well as the implications for long-term data storage on discs versus hard drives, tape, or cloud services. The shift away from physical media toward streaming and subscriptions is also criticized for eroding ownership and reliable access to films, games, and music.

Optical Drives on Macs

  • Many see the removal of built‑in optical drives as reasonable; external USB drives are cheap and rarely needed.
  • Others value integrated drives for convenience (e.g., watching DVDs on a laptop in “portable” situations) and dislike juggling external hardware.
  • The last optical‑drive MBPs are remembered as unusually repair‑ and upgrade‑friendly (swappable RAM, SSD in place of optical bay).

Headphone Jack and Ports

  • Strong sentiment that removing the 3.5mm jack from phones/iPads was a mistake, even though MacBook Pros still have it.
  • USB‑C audio is seen by some as a logical unification; critics argue it created e‑waste and forced proprietary or Bluetooth accessories.
  • People complain about needing dongles and about not being able to charge and use wired audio/data simultaneously; calls for phones to have two ports.

Archival Storage & Media Longevity

  • Several report long‑lived CD/DVD media versus failed HDDs and USB sticks; Blu‑ray (especially M‑DISC) is praised for long‑term archival despite high cost/GB.
  • Counterarguments: Blu‑ray resilience is often overstated, relies on good media and quality testing, and still has manufacturing and QC issues.
  • Debate over cost: optical is more expensive per GB than HDD/tape but may be better for small, very important datasets; tape is seen as economical at large scales but harder to maintain long‑term.
  • General agreement that backup is a system (multiple copies, integrity checks, possibly cloud), not a single medium.

Streaming vs Physical Media & Ownership

  • Some hail streaming as a “golden age” of access, with on‑demand viewing and little reason to own discs.
  • Others are increasingly frustrated: fragmentation across services, rising subscription costs, rights shuffling, region limits, and shows/movies being pulled or written off.
  • Physical media is valued as durable, non‑revocable access, especially for niche or older content that never makes it to streaming or later disappears.

Dongles, External Drives, and Repairs

  • External optical drives (including specific Blu‑ray models) are recommended as practical replacements, but dongle requirements and power quirks (e.g., Apple SuperDrive) annoy users.
  • Nostalgia for older, repairable/upgradable Macs contrasts with complaints about modern soldered RAM/SSDs and non‑repairable Apple Silicon laptops.