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Another MBP Blu-Ray drive, playback software available yet?

Adokimus

Adokimus

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jun 2, 2007
842
3
Boston, MA
So far I was only aware of fastmac offering a Blu-Ray RW drive for the 17" MBP at $1,000. Apparently powerbook medic has one as well for $900:

http://www.powerbookmedic.com/Blu-R...Load-Burner-Drive-p-17116.html#detailedimages

I think I would shell out the cash for one once it gets to around $700 or less, but is there any mac software that can playback blu-ray movies yet? For some reason I thought that someone said there was now. Either way, I would rather the next MBP had this as a BTO option, but I'll do what I have to.

As for my reasoning, I travel a lot (though not far) and would like a portable way to view blu-ray movies from netflix, so that I can actually use the subscription without having to wait until I am home.

Thanks!



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Why would you pay $700 for a bluray burner? If you really want you can just get a eSATA powered external.
 
alphaod said:
Why would you pay $700 for a bluray burner? If you really want you can just get a eSATA powered external.
Click to expand...

Yeah, you're right that it probably isn't worth it for more than $400, but the external solution wouldn't work for my purposes.

Either way, does anyone have an answer to my software question?
 
There are lots of smart people on this forum. Why doesn't somebody make some Blu Ray playback software?! They'd strike it rich!
 
Meh...I just really don't understand the need for HD drives in notebook computers. When you are watching a movie on such a small screen to begin with, you really won't notice the difference all that much, compared to a large 47-60" television set.
 
Well zorn, alot of people have there macbooks hooked up to high res monitors, and plus HD is the way of the future! who doesnt like crisp movies!
 
Zorn said:
Meh...I just really don't understand the need for HD drives in notebook computers. When you are watching a movie on such a small screen to begin with, you really won't notice the difference all that much, compared to a large 47-60" television set.
Click to expand...

Its also a matter of compatibility. I would love to be able to take my copy of Planet Earth on a trip with me without having to fight with the flight attendants about setting up my 47-60" HDTV and Blu -ay player in the aisle.
 
pkoch1 said:
Its also a matter of compatibility. I would love to be able to take my copy of Planet Earth on a trip with me without having to fight with the flight attendants about setting up my 47-60" HDTV and Blu -ay player in the aisle.
Click to expand...

I've HandBraked (not sure if that's a word) my DVDs of Planet Earth (the Best Ever) that I bought at Costco and now they are MP4's for my iPhone. They are mesmerizing during my commute to and from campus.

I play them on my Blu-Ray/HD player at home (though they are DVDs). :p:cool:
 
SFStateStudent said:
I've HandBraked (not sure if that's a word) my DVDs of Planet Earth (the Best Ever) that I bought at Costco and now they are MP4's for my iPhone. They are mesmerizing during my commute to and from campus.

I play them on my Blu-Ray/HD player at home (though they are DVDs). :p:cool:
Click to expand...

Just rub it in why don't you? :p I just dont want to have to buy a DVD copy of every Blu Ray or HDDVD movie I buy. I'm thinking of getting a blu ray reader for my mac and running (gasp) Windows so i can rip and convert it so I'll be able to play on my TV, mac, and iPhone. Oh, Windows. Why can you rip and play blu ray while my poor little OSX cannot?! I swear the man or woman (whether it be some 13 year old in his parents basement, or the Jobsman himself) who first makes some blu ray software for osx, will strike it rich!
 
Blu Ray rip thru VirtualBox?

So im getting my Blu Ray burner tomorrow. I plan on using it thru VirtualBox w/ Vista, AnyDvd HD, Cyberlink BD edition suite, and AVGO Media Recorder to record directly to .h264 720p aac. Anyone know of an easier way?
 
IMO the advantages of Blu-Ray vs DVD on a 15.4 inch screen are going to be verrrrrrrrry hard to notice. Especially on the new MBPs which aren't even 1080p screens. Blu-Ray differences are hard enough to notice on 50 inch screens, in which case the screen is making most the difference rather than the blu-ray. Studios still aren't really mastering movies for blu-ray rather porting them to blu-ray which results in only a minimal advantage.

Having said all that I almost didnt switch to a Mac because I have amassed a sizable blu-ray collection for my PS3. It'd be sweet if someone came out with an internal drive for the MBPs thats not 1000 bucks.
 
re: Blu-Ray Playback?

I plan on playing these thru my atv thru boxee. So there is a pretty big difference in quality. I would like them to end up about the size of an iTunes HD movie.
 
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bigdb11 said:
IMO the advantages of Blu-Ray vs DVD on a 15.4 inch screen are going to be verrrrrrrrry hard to notice. Especially on the new MBPs which aren't even 1080p screens. Blu-Ray differences are hard enough to notice on 50 inch screens, in which case the screen is making most the difference rather than the blu-ray. Studios still aren't really mastering movies for blu-ray rather porting them to blu-ray which results in only a minimal advantage.

Having said all that I almost didnt switch to a Mac because I have amassed a sizable blu-ray collection for my PS3. It'd be sweet if someone came out with an internal drive for the MBPs thats not 1000 bucks.
Click to expand...

I completely disagree. You're right about the new mbp's not being 1920x1080, but they are 1440x900 so it will play at that resolution. I've watched hd trailers on my mbp and they look a whole lot better than DVD's do. Think about it, if you're stretching 1920x1080 across a 50" screen and it looks great, why would having a lower resolution on a smaller screen not look good? The screen is only 15.4" which means each pixel is even closer to the other pixel making it even clearer. I've got a 42" plasma and hd trailers look better on my unibody mbp. There is also a huge difference between DVD and blu-ray quality. Some people aren't able to tell the difference for whatever reason but that is probably a sign of bad eyesight because it is instantly noticeable to myself and the majority.

Watch a DVD on a mbp then go to apple.com/trailers and find and hd trailer. Check out Madagascar 2 trailer in hd.
 
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