Modern computers easily read those video files that only ten professional machines for film industry workers could play back ten years ago. Now the Full HD video format will not surprise anyone. It's no secret that such files "weigh" prohibitively much. If you collect a collection, then no hard drive is enough. The same applies to modern music and image formats. Quality has improved, but size has also increased. What if there is nowhere to store this stuff on a computer, but I don’t want to get rid of it? There is only one answer: pay attention to Blu-ray drives for burning discs.
Why do this?
The fact is that no more than 4.5 gigabytes of information (8.5 gigabytes per two-layer) can fit on a regular DVD. How many such discs will be needed to record a film of maximum quality lasting two hours? And on a blu-ray disc, 25 gigabytes of information easily fit. For two-layer ones - all 50. Using simple calculations, you can understand how much money you can save by simply switching to Blu-ray drives.
It used to be a writing drive of this level was worth a lot of money. Yes, and drives of this type at the beginning of the two thousandth were of high cost. But now their price is comparable to DVD. So, it's time to transfer your entire collection to Blu-ray discs. But for this you need a very good writer. For a poor-quality product can screw up 50 gigabytes of information you need. How to choose a quality Blu-ray drive for your computer? We’ll talk about this after analyzing several popular models.
ASUS BW-16D1HT Black
This drive is the brainchild of Korean company ASUS. And it is produced in the Middle Kingdom. He does not have any special characteristics. Write-read speeds are standard for devices of this level. This budget device can satisfy most users, since the number of errors during recording is minimal. But you should not rely on mean statistics. Especially from the manufacturer. These guys love to cheat sometimes. ASUS Blu-ray Writers are compatible with many devices. But they do not really deserve trust. Especially if you focus on reviews about them.
Nevertheless, many acquire these drives only because it is "cheap and cheerful." Nobody thinks about quality. However, after the drive locks up a couple of disks, a completely different song will begin. Everyone will rush to scold the company's engineers and their Chinese factories. What do you want? They themselves saw that they took. Although the BW line has not yet tarnished itself. Apparently, this is the most successful series from the manufacturer.
LG BH16NS40 Black
This manufacturer has the worst reputation. Its drives of any rulers stamp errors during recording, like hot cakes. Almost all owners of this misfortune strongly do not recommend purchasing Blu-ray drives from this manufacturer. As a reading device they have nothing yet. But they don’t know how to write. And it is not known what this is connected with. The rest of the equipment from this company does not have such problems. Probably the matter is in the drives themselves. The company's engineers are trying in every possible way to eliminate the malfunctions, but so far they have been doing poorly.
The drive in question, meanwhile, has impressive recording speeds and easily copes with dual-layer discs. For all its flaws, LG Blu-ray drives sometimes behave appropriately. However, you still should not buy them. It can cost you a lot. Although they are very cheap. This cannot be taken away from them. But it’s better to go broke a little on a better product than to tear your hair out after you lose a lot of important information.
Pioneer BDR-S06XLB
This drive has an impressive amount of benefits. But the most valuable thing about him is that he writes error-free Blu-ray discs. This is not surprising, because the Pioneer company is a pioneer in the field of optical technologies. An important role is played by the fact that many of its products are made in Japan. And this is a completely different level of quality. If you are lucky, you will find yourself a Japanese drive. Read / write speeds are quite acceptable for budget devices. In addition, these Blu-ray drives can easily cope with two-layer discs.
Everyone who bought drives from Pioneer, are in a wild delight, because these devices write discs clearly and without problems. If there is negative feedback about products from other manufacturers, then there is no such information about Pioneers. These are almost the only trouble-free drives. By the way, the Pioneer Blu-ray drive is sold almost everywhere. The main thing is not to run into a fake. And for this you need to require a quality certificate from the seller.
Laptop solutions
Many laptops and ultrabooks are now equipped with drives of this type "in the factory." But what if you have an old laptop with a regular DVD writer? An external Blu-ray drive will help here. It connects to the laptop via the USB port and writes discs in the same way as the standard “cutter”. But there is one caveat: due to the fact that USB bandwidth is much less than that of the same SATA bus, the read speed of disks decreases. But something has to be sacrificed. But such devices can be used as a Blu-ray player.
Companies such as the familiar Pioneer, Sony, Samsung, and ASUS rule the ball in the portable Blu-ray drive market. These manufacturers create the very best external drives. Which one to choose is up to you. But here it is strongly recommended to purchase something from the "Pioneers". They inspire somehow more confidence.
Reviews
As already mentioned, reviews vary by manufacturer. Take, for example, ASUS products. There is a balance between negative and positive reviews. This means that the products of this company can be used, but with caution. Many owners note a good reading speed, but immediately note that sometimes there are errors when writing. This happens with all products. But reviews about LG drives are more negative. Those who had the imprudence to acquire them now do not know what to do, because there are a lot of mistakes. And do not hand over the warranty.
It is very rare that a product does not earn a single negative review. Pioneer drives belong to this type of device. Anyone who has purchased a “cutter” for this company cannot be happy with a successful purchase. These comrades sing odes to the drives of the Pioneers. And this means that the products of this manufacturer are trustworthy.
Conclusion
Choosing a writer for your computer or laptop is a pretty tricky business. There are many factors to consider. But first of all, you need to pay attention to the manufacturer. Blu-ray drives from LG, for example, are definitely not worth taking. They often "mold" recording errors. Why do you need damaged wheels? Nice device from ASUS. But the undisputed leader here is Pioneer. She produces the highest quality devices.