Windows 8 decreasing optical disc drive penetration in laptops

DigiTimes heard from Taiwanese optical disc drive (ODD) makers that their sales are sliding as fewer notebooks now come with an ODD. On one hand laptop makers ditch the optical drive to be able to create more compact laptops, and on the other hand laptop makers sacrifice the ODD to compensate for the extra $50-60 for a touchscreen on Windows 8 laptops.

The site heard that at present roughly 60 percent of laptops still have an ODD, but the number is expected to shrink even further in the coming months.

The sources pointed that the vendors' pursuit of thin and light industrial designs has reduced notebook ODD adoption rates from 70% originally to only 60% and Windows 8's appearance is expected to accelerate the decline.

Consumers in the US and Europe used to be the major groups favoring notebooks with built-in ODDs, but the trend has changed, the sources noted.
However, notebooks, especially those with 15-inch displays and above, selling to emerging markets, mostly still have an ODD, allowing ODD makers to continue to make a living in the harsh environment.