You only need a read-only drive. The faster the drive reads, the pricier it will be. The best way to use it is to rip your blu-ray disc using MakeMkv (free in beta) into an .mkv file. The software allows you to omit extras, pick audio tracks and subtitles, etc. The result is LOSSLESS.
You can play the resulting file via VLC or get a free meda center such as Plex or Xbox.