My PC is an XP desktop. I'd like to dabble with WP8 development, so that rules it out. That apart, it needs replacing for all sorts of other reasons. I'm in the market for a Win8 Pro 64-bit ultrabook (ideally) or lightweight laptop. Mobility seems to be where everything's going now. Some good folk here have already suggest some very fine options, but they're the best part of ?1,000 and I'm reluctant to spend that much at the moment.
I've noticed cheaper alternatives, but they don't have optical drives. That struck me as a bit of an omission. However, friends told me that this is becoming the norm, as we're downloading and streaming stuff via WiFi now. Fair enough, but what if you've got a large DVD collection and you still want to watch it on your new device? Plug in a player to your new device? That sort of defeats mobility to me. Rip the DVD to your new device? How good would that be, if you could successfully?
I know that the iPad and Surface don't have them, and people manage. So, what's the feeling on the forums? Are optical drives necessary or unnecessary now? I'd appreciate your views.
I've noticed cheaper alternatives, but they don't have optical drives. That struck me as a bit of an omission. However, friends told me that this is becoming the norm, as we're downloading and streaming stuff via WiFi now. Fair enough, but what if you've got a large DVD collection and you still want to watch it on your new device? Plug in a player to your new device? That sort of defeats mobility to me. Rip the DVD to your new device? How good would that be, if you could successfully?
I know that the iPad and Surface don't have them, and people manage. So, what's the feeling on the forums? Are optical drives necessary or unnecessary now? I'd appreciate your views.