Sony External Blu-ray Disc Writer BDX-S500U

One for wannabe Spielbergs


Gadget Review: Sony External Blu-ray Disc Writer BDX-S500U

by Hazwan Norly

10:05 AM Mar 01, 2011

IF YOU'RE the kind who loves shooting home videos of everything from your child's first steps to your annual company dinner and dance, and find burning them into DVDs or Blu-rays are a much more organised way of archiving them or letting others view your clips, then you might want to consider getting the external Sony Portable Blu-ray Disc (BD) Writer BDX-S500U ($399).

This compact and lightweight BD writer measures 136.5x19x146.5mm and weighs 300g, which is about the size and weight of a small box of chocolates. It would fit easily into a small bag, though you'll also have to take into account the USB 2.0 cable to connect to your computer and the AC adaptor and power cable.

The AC adaptor and power cable are a bit of a bother, especially since it's a two-pin plug so you'll need to lug along a socket adaptor, too. I would have preferred it if the writer could tap my computer's power via the USB cable alone, though a separate power adaptor at least guarantees a more stable power source compared to other BD writers.

Back to the good bits. The BDX-S500U has rubber feet which prevents it from sliding around when put on flat surfaces. These, coupled with its matte surface, make it a little easier to hold onto.

Since most computers come with a built-in disc drive and given how expensive BDs are, you might wonder who would need such a BD writer. But if you're in the habit of burning home videos on discs - or a few copies, to give out to all your relatives over Chinese New Year - its speed might be the clincher.

It writes single BD-R media up to 6X speeds and dual BD-R media up to 4X speeds. It can record up to 50GB of data for random access storage and backup up to 220 minutes of high-definition 24Mbps MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 video on a BD-R/RE 50GB disc. I did a full 25GB disc recording and it only took me 20 minutes.

The Sony Portable BD Writer BDX-S500U works on Windows XP, Vista and 7 but not on the Mac OS X, unfortunately.



This review is only available online.

Source: www.todayonline.com