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Jason D. O'Grady & David Morgenstern
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Time to ditch the optical drive, once and for all

By Jason D. O'Grady | September 16, 2009, 9:03am PDT

Summary

Once heralded as the second coming of data storage, the sun has finally set on the optical drive as an effective vehicle for data storage and delivery. Optical drives are simply too small and too slow to be practical. Single layer discs hold 4.7GB while double layer discs can hold 5.4GB.
Blu-Ray has more capacity, but [...]

Topics

Hard Drive, Apple Macintosh, Optical Drive, Blu-Ray, Personal Technology, DVD, Home Entertainment, Jason D. O'Grady

Blogger Info

Jason D. O'Grady

Biography

Jason D. O'Grady

Jason D. O'Grady

Jason D. O'Grady developed an affinity for Apple computers after using the original Lisa, and this affinity turned into a bona-fide obsession when he got the original 128 KB Macintosh in 1984.

He started writing one of the first Web sites about Apple (O'Grady's PowerPage) in 1995 and is considered to be one of the fathers of blogging. He has been a frequent speaker at the Macworld Expo conference and a member of the conference faculty. He also co-founded the first dedicated PowerBook User Group (PPUG) in the United States.

After winning a major legal battle with Apple in 2006, he set the precedent that independent journalists are entitled to the same protections under the First Amendment as members of the mainstream media.

O'Grady is the author of The Nexus One Pocket Guide, The Droid Pocket Guide, The Google Phone Pocket Guide, and The Garmin nuvi Pocket Guide (Peachpit Press), the author of Corporations That Changed the World: Apple Inc. (Greenwood Press), and a contributor to The Mac Bible (Peachpit Press). In addition, he has contributed to numerous Mac publications over the years, including MacWEEK, Macworld, and MacPower (Japan).

When he's not writing about Apple for ZDNet at The Apple Core, he enjoys spending time with his family in New Jersey.

David Morgenstern

Biography

David Morgenstern

David Morgenstern

David Morgenstern has covered the Mac market and other technology segments for 20 years. In the recent past, he founded Ziff-Davis' Storage Supersite, served as news editor for Ziff Davis Internet and held several executive editorial positions at eWEEK. In the 1990s, David was editor of Ziff Davis' award-winning MacWEEK news publication as well as its successor title, eMediaWEEKly, which focused on multiplatform professional content creation. His byline can be found online and in print publications including CreativePro.com, Peachpit Press' Mac Bible and Popular Photography.

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Once heralded as the second coming of data storage, the sun has finally set on the optical drive as an effective vehicle for data storage and delivery. Optical drives are simply too small and too slow to be practical. Single layer discs hold 4.7GB while double layer discs can hold 5.4GB.

Blu-Ray has more capacity, but its 25GB (single layer) and 50GB (double layer) doesn’t hold a candle to the capacity of even a medium-size hard drive, let alone the 500GB monsters that have dropped as low as $100.

Apple hasn’t released a Mac with a Blu-Ray drive, nor does Apple have support for Blu-Ray baked into Mac OS X. So even if you attach an external Blu-Ray drive to your Mac, you can only use if for reading and writing. You can’t play a BD movie, for example, on Mac OS X unless you install a virtual copy of Windows. If Apple released Blu-Ray drives in Macs tomorrow, a case could be made for keeping optical drives in MacBooks a little longer — for watching movies on a plane, for example.

At best the venerable optical drive is showing signs of age, at worst, it has one foot in the grave.

Apple needs to bury the optical drive next to the floppy drive, which Steve Jobs summarily killed with the announcement of the original bondi blue iMac in 1998. The future is to replace optical drive with flash media and downloads.

Snow Leopard should have been distributed on a flash drive and via BitTorrent.

I decided to take a leap of faith and installed an OptiBay hard drive (pictured above) from MCE Technologies in my MacBook Pro (late 2009) in place of the optical drive. Prices range from $189 for 250GB to $279 for a 7200RPM 500GB and the installation itself was easy. Just remove the bottom case, remove three screws, the optical drive and put the OptiBay in its place. Having a second hard drive in my MBP gives me gratuitous amounts of storage in place of an optical drive I barely used. From the OptiBay product page:

Now you can have unheard of capacities in laptop disk storage and space for everything you need to store… digital video, music, photos, etc. Two bootable hard drives inside your system provide a freedom and flexibility never before experienced in a Mac laptop… have one disk a scratch disk and the other your system/applications disk, RAID configurations, one disk Mac and the other PC, extra photo storage for digital photographers, extra music storage for digital DJ’s, and more.

If you’re worried about losing your optical drive, fear not. MCE includes an external optical drive enclosure for your removed SuperDrive so that you’ll still be able to load software and read and write CD/DVD discs to your heart’s content. Just pop your old optical drive into the enclosure, install two screws and you have a USB powered external SuperDrive. I’m keeping mine in my backback for a while, just in case.

Immediately after formatting the OptiBay 500GB HDD (a speedy Seagate Momentus 7200.4 mechanism) the first thing I did was move my music (100GB) and photo (30GB) libraries to my new found storage. Next I moved a 40GB VMWare virtual machine to the second hard drive for a combined savings of about 170GB. Whew! My SSD finally has some breathing room and I don’t have to constantly use Disk Inventory X to save space.

For people used to large mobile hard drives, a second HDD may not exactly be compelling. However, if you’ve made the jump to using an SSD as your boot drive, a second hard drive in place of the optical drive is a practically a necessity. SSDs can instantly double the performance of your Mac but they cost significantly more than HDDs. The great news is you don’t have to sacrifice capacity in exchange for raw speed. You can have the best of both worlds with an SSD and an OptiBay HDD installed in your MacBook Pro.

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Jason D. O'Grady is a journalist and author specializing in mobile technology. He has published six books on Apple and mobile gadgets and his PowerPage blog has been publishing for over 15 years.

Disclosure

Jason D. O'Grady

Jason O'Grady is the creator and editor of O'Grady's PowerPage, which has been publishing mobile technology news since 1995. He maintains an advertising relationship with the following legacy advertisers on the PowerPage:

  • Amazon Associates
  • Google Adsense
  • Tekserve
  • Weaknees

Advertising on the PowerPage is brokered by a third-party agency (BackBeat Media) and he recuses himself from these negotiations. Jason also provides consulting services for AirTight Networks.

Biography

Jason D. O'Grady

Jason D. O'Grady developed an affinity for Apple computers after using the original Lisa, and this affinity turned into a bona-fide obsession when he got the original 128 KB Macintosh in 1984.

He started writing one of the first Web sites about Apple (O'Grady's PowerPage) in 1995 and is considered to be one of the fathers of blogging. He has been a frequent speaker at the Macworld Expo conference and a member of the conference faculty. He also co-founded the first dedicated PowerBook User Group (PPUG) in the United States.

After winning a major legal battle with Apple in 2006, he set the precedent that independent journalists are entitled to the same protections under the First Amendment as members of the mainstream media.

O'Grady is the author of The Nexus One Pocket Guide, The Droid Pocket Guide, The Google Phone Pocket Guide, and The Garmin nuvi Pocket Guide (Peachpit Press), the author of Corporations That Changed the World: Apple Inc. (Greenwood Press), and a contributor to The Mac Bible (Peachpit Press). In addition, he has contributed to numerous Mac publications over the years, including MacWEEK, Macworld, and MacPower (Japan).

When he's not writing about Apple for ZDNet at The Apple Core, he enjoys spending time with his family in New Jersey.

More from “The Apple Core”

Talkback Most Recent of 104 Talkback(s)

  • I agree
    usb flash drive would be better

    But, why are you asking the question about the Beatles?
    ZDNet Gravatar
    davebarnes
    09/16/2009 09:20 AM
  • Minor Correction
    DL DVDs hold 8.4GB and not 5.4

    In regards to the article I think Optical Media is a media that is slowly phasing out but the cost of the media for most purposes is still very cheap. A 8.4GB blank disc is under $1 where an 8GB Flash Drive is closer to $15 based off retail pricing. Even in bulk for large companies to use that as a method of software distribution is not cost effective. Most software and video games can be distributed on DVD media which is cheap and easy to produce and very reliable outside of getting scratched or broken. Hopefully someday SSD and Flash Drive technology will be very very cheap and abundant but until that time I think you will see optical media live on for a while.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    bobiroc
    09/16/2009 09:28 AM
  • And what about archiving? How long will the SSD hold the information?
    CD/DVD's are said to hold the data for over a hundred years. Can the same be said about SSD? This is information that should have been included in the original blog entry.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    No More Microsoft Software Ever!
    09/16/2009 12:05 PM
  • That is a good question
    Also SSD and Flash Memory are more fragile and data loss is more likely to happen. Like Hard Drives, SSD and Flash Drives are affected by magnetic fields. I have heard reports of people losing data on such things by going through certain scanners and such. Now Disc Media can be scratched which I guess can be the same thing but if kept in a case it is more durable. But the whole thing comes down to cost. For back ups and storage Hard Drives, SSD, and Flash drives are a very good choice, but for software distribution not so much.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    bobiroc
    09/16/2009 01:12 PM
  • CD/DVD storage longevity specs are dubious
    While there are claims that a CDR or DVDR can be stored safely for a hundred years, I have found that many CDs and DVDs I have used for archival storage are already exhibiting read errors less than 5 years after burning. The disks were stored upright in jewel cases in a rack. Many still are fine, but about 10% have exhibited partial or total read failure.

    The other issue is hardware, as we have seen with other obsolete storage media, what happens when no one makes or has a device that can read the old media? Does anyone have a device that can still read 5" floppies? How is that bernoulli box you bought in 1995 doing, does it still work? Remember zip and jazz drives? Still using those? Good luck!
    ZDNet Gravatar
    ThePrairiePrankster
    09/16/2009 01:40 PM
  • Commercial CDs are different
    Commercially manufactured CDs and DVDs use a completely different technology than data CD-Rs and DVD-Rs. They stamp tiny pits into metal plates, and those do last much longer than the ones you "burn" with lasers at home or work. CD-Rs and DVD-Rs use a layer of colored dye whose color is altered by the heat of the laser in your burner. Dyes fade. That's why data you burn may not be readable after 5 years, but my commercial CD's from back in the vinyl days still play just fine (mostly). The main problem with commercial CDs and DVDs is corrosion of the aluminum platter which contains the stamped pits.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    photog7
    09/17/2009 09:17 AM
  • I noticed the same thing
    Thanks for adding clarity to the issue. Have a great day! happy
    ZDNet Gravatar
    ThePrairiePrankster
    09/17/2009 10:34 AM
  • I have burned CDs from 98
    They still work fine. I do know you have to keep them in good shape though. They don't stand up to minor buffs and scratch as well as commercial CD does.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    voska1
    09/17/2009 12:13 PM
  • It also depends on the quality of media used
    Not all CD-Rs or DVD-Rs are the same.

    You also have to take care of them storage-wise. I store mine in slim-line jewel cases. Not in those exposed CD wallets that are (or were) so popular.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Wintel BSOD
    09/17/2009 05:22 PM
  • Floppy drives
    Yes I still have a drive that can read 5.25" floppies.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    msdamico@...
    09/17/2009 09:19 AM
  • Cool! happy
    You are one of the few, and I am glad you do...have a great day!
    ZDNet Gravatar
    ThePrairiePrankster
    09/17/2009 10:33 AM
  • not a proper comparison
    First off:

    http://www.google.com/products?q=5+1+4+floppy+drive&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=j2uySoeVHIPSlAfv6YCBDw&sa=X&oi=product_result_group&ct=title&resnum=1
    5 1/4" floppy drives still exist, and if you really need one, you can get one. 3 1/2" floppy drives are still being sold brand new on Newegg and even retail at Staples and Microcenter. Zip drives are still floating around as well.

    But more than that, floppy and ZIP disks were exclusively a data storage medium. It's the vast minority of people who have data EXCLUSIVELY on a floppy disk anymore; odds are that at SOME point they copied it to a hard drive, and the file has either hopped from PC to PC over time, or is still rotting away on a 15-year-old Seagate hard drive (which has an IDE interface and as such can attach to some modern motherboards or use an external enclosure). One must ask how important a file that hasn't been touched in 15 years would be if it's still sitting on a floppy disk or old hard drive. If they're still actively using the file, then it's either on a newer storage medium or they still have a floppy disk drive in service.

    What makes CDs and DVDs different was that they are both a data storage medium and a content medium. If you want to play vinyl, you can still buy a turntable today. If you want to play a VHS tape, you can buy a VCR today. Heck, if you want one, you can still find a Betamax player (http://www.fullcompass.com/product/245241.html). Being as CDs have been around for over 25 years, and content formats that are 25 years old still have reading apparatuses available for purchase, and the fact that both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray players both play audio CDs (and the burners burn them as well), I'm pretty confident that in 2034 you'll be able to rescue data off of a CD-R (assuming the disc's data is still intact, but that's going to be an issue for virtually any storage medium short of stone or metal engraving presently used).

    Digital content doesn't store well in comparison with 'analog' media in the sense that hieroglyphics are still legible (if not easily read), and even with some wear and tear it's still possible to read them after ~5,000 years. Digital data is significantly less forgiving in that regard, but that's a problem for virtually any encoded media.

    Joey
    ZDNet Gravatar
    voyager529
    09/17/2009 10:33 AM
  • I agree with you for the most part
    I do have CDR that are unreadable now and will likely be unreadable in 2034. Other than, right on! Have a great day! happy
    ZDNet Gravatar
    ThePrairiePrankster
    09/17/2009 10:36 AM
  • I do!
    I have a 5.25"/3.5" usb drive, I keep a lot of
    things like that around for nostalgia sake. Like
    my 8 track player, even though I only have two 8
    tracks. Although I've still yet to find an 8"
    drive that still works... I've thought about
    trying to build one... while I do have a zip drive
    I never got into them, I used CDR through that
    fad, and I never considered jazz more than a fad
    either...
    ZDNet Gravatar
    shadfurman
    09/17/2009 07:28 PM
  • How about....
    because of cost? A DVD still costs a lot less than a 4 GB flash drive. Oh, I forgot. Mac users don't care about cost.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    RocketEater
    09/16/2009 09:33 AM
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