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You are here: MacNN Forums > Hardware - Troubleshooting and Discussion > Consumer Hardware & Components > Is there a Blu-Ray Burner for my Apple Computer?

Is there a Blu-Ray Burner for my Apple Computer?
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AppleGirl1990
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Aug 22, 2008, 07:43 AM
 
Blu-Ray won the war! Great. I went out and got a Canon HD video camera. Recorded some great footage onto a mini-dv cassette. Imported it into iMovie. Edited it. Imported it into iDVD. Now, here is my question:

How do i get my edited Blu-Ray video footage off my computer an onto blu-ray discs to play in my parents blu-ray player? HELP!
( Last edited by AppleGirl1990; Aug 22, 2008 at 09:04 AM. )
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Aug 22, 2008, 08:43 AM
 
Pretty much any external Blu-ray drive should work with your Mac.

However, iDVD doesn't work with Blu-ray. And last I checked, DVD Studio Pro doesn't work with Blu-ray either (but I haven't checked lately). (The ironic part is DVD Studio Pro works perfectly with HD DVD.)
     
AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Aug 22, 2008, 09:51 AM
 
Apple is normally a trend setter, so i'm super surprised they havne't enabled iDVD to burn to external blu-ray burners YET~!
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Arkham_c
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Aug 22, 2008, 09:56 AM
 
There's a lot of DRM cruft that comes along with supporting Blu-ray authoring. I'm sort of surprised that Apple hasn't moved faster on it, but I think it's partly because they want to push their customers toward digital download instead of Blue-ray.
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Aug 22, 2008, 11:01 AM
 
Originally Posted by Arkham_c View Post
There's a lot of DRM cruft that comes along with supporting Blu-ray authoring. I'm sort of surprised that Apple hasn't moved faster on it, but I think it's partly because they want to push their customers toward digital download instead of Blue-ray.
Not sure about that. It's not as if digital downloads help you author your HD wedding video to disc.

I suspect they were 1) Waiting for a real winner, and 2) Trying to wrap their heads around the supposedly draconian DRM requirements.
     
amazing
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Aug 22, 2008, 12:20 PM
 
Toast will burn blu-ray, and you should assemble an external firewire burner. Go to newegg.com and search for blu-ray burners and firewire cases (which will also have usb 2.0)
     
AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Aug 23, 2008, 08:49 AM
 
The comments i've seen posted online are that either a) Toast should work or b) an external blu-ray burner might work. The problem is that nobody has tried it. "Should" and "might" aren't going to get me to purchase either toast or an external blu-ray burner.

I guess i'm waiting to hear from Apple that this is what they recommend or support. Or that someone has tried it and it does work.

Out of the millions of Mac users in this forum....nobody has tried it. Plus, i'm not entirely sure how to do get my iMovie/iDVD Menu's that i make into Toast. But lets save that for another day.
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Aug 23, 2008, 09:21 AM
 
Word is Blue-ray support is expected in Mac OS 10.5.6
     
reader50
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Aug 23, 2008, 12:20 PM
 
Toast requires a $20 plugin to author Blu-ray disks. Roxio has assorted search results for Blu-ray.
     
AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Aug 23, 2008, 01:17 PM
 
Since 10.5.5 hasn't even been released, looks like we'll be waiting a good 5 months before blu-ray support (if true).

Oh Apple God, I pray that you deliver to us loyal users said blu-ray support.
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drnkn_stylz
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Aug 30, 2008, 01:06 PM
 
Any BR burner will be recognized by the OS when plugged in. You do not need drivers for a USB/Firewire optical drive. The only part that will matter is the software used to burn the media, and we know Toast will do it.
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AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Aug 31, 2008, 11:20 PM
 
Have you tried, or are you speaking in theory?

Also, if i create a movie and i want to burn it (using blu-ray).....I assume I can't just copy it to a blu-ray disc using Toast. Rather, it has to be formated so that a blu-ray player can read it as a movie. So what do you use for that?
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nikstar101
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Sep 1, 2008, 08:02 AM
 
From what i understand you can use Toast to burn HD movies to Blu-Ray, which will play on standard Blu-Ray players. But you need the extra plug-in sold by Roxio.

If you go to their website and find the page on Toast 9 it tells you what you can and cannot do.

Also xlr8yourmac.com has a drive compatibility database that users completed regarding blu-ray drives.
     
drnkn_stylz
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Sep 2, 2008, 05:38 PM
 
No I have not tried personally. Any problems you are experiencing would be related to software limitations.

A USB device is a USB device and will work on any computer. Hence the name Universal Serial Bus. Using the media (in this case Blu-Ray) will only work if the programs being used support it. As we know now, Roxio is one of those companies that do. iMovie has been renamed from the older verion iMovie HD, so it does work with HD content. Modfying your own HD movies and creating your own DVDs I cannot comment on as I have no actually done this. However, Blu Ray is compatible with Macs as a media format and burnable optical drive. Beyond that I would not be able to help.
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AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Mar 6, 2009, 08:30 AM
 
Lots of time has passed, Apple has released new iMac's and MacPro's. The current OS is 10.5.6. But has anything changed regarding Blu-Ray?

Here is my question again: I have high definition video in iMovie09. I want to burn this video footage to a blu-ray disc so that the movie plays on a blu-ray player. How can i achieve this goal? Is there a blu-ray burner for the Mac which will allow me to burn HD movies? Also, what software must i use?

I know that Toast will allow me to burn data to blu-ray discs, but movies have to be formatted in a certain way (i think) so that they play properly in players.

Anyone know the answers to these questions?
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angelmb
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Mar 6, 2009, 11:47 AM
 
Originally Posted by AppleGirl1990 View Post
Here is my question again: I have high definition video in iMovie09. I want to burn this video footage to a blu-ray disc so that the movie plays on a blu-ray player. How can i achieve this goal?
You may want to read this…

See, the world is moving to hi-def camcorders. And iMovie '09 works great with hi-def camcorders. But what if you want to show your edited movie on a high-definition TV?

You can't!
     
AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Mar 6, 2009, 03:28 PM
 
The article is below, but surely that can't be right. There must be a way to get my HD movie onto a blu-ray disc! I do feel trapped.

"See, the world is moving to hi-def camcorders. And iMovie '09 works great with hi-def camcorders. But what if you want to show your edited movie on a high-definition TV?

You can't!

You can upload it to YouTube (at diminished quality), export it to a DVD (at diminished quality), or send it to your Apple TV, iPhone or iPod (at diminished quality).

In the days of olde iMovie, you could export the results back to your tape camcorder. You'd preserve 100 percent quality, you'd free up the space on your hard drive, ready for the next editing project, and you'd have a simple way to play the movies on your HDTV.

Apple, however, is convinced that tape camcorders are dead, and it seems determined to pound nails into that coffin. The company expects you to store all of your video, now and forever, on hard drives. (The 100 MiniDV tapes currently in my cabinet, for example, would require about 1.5 terabytes of hard drive space--double that if I want a backup.)

No Macs have Blu-ray burners, and iMovie lacks an Export to Tape command, so your high-def masterpieces are pretty much trapped forever on your Mac. (Sure, you could post them online, but only if they're short, and only if everyone in your potential audience has very high-speed Internet.)"
( Last edited by AppleGirl1990; Mar 7, 2009 at 09:55 AM. )
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Mar 6, 2009, 04:01 PM
 
Well, I am not a video guy by any means, but David Pogue is a trusty source, always has been, since the old days when he worked for MacWorld… when the magazine was worthy.
     
AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Mar 27, 2009, 07:33 AM
 
I'm going nutz over this no blu-ray thing. ahhhhh
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Person Man
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Mar 31, 2009, 12:17 PM
 
Originally Posted by AppleGirl1990 View Post
I'm going nutz over this no blu-ray thing. ahhhhh
Apple apparently does not like the current licensing terms (see Steve Jobs' "bag of hurt" comment) at present. Rumor has it that the licensing terms are being revised to be less onerous. But for now, you have to get a third party drive to get any Blu-Ray capability.

There is the MCE Blu-Ray Recordable Drive.

Without any special software you can burn Blu-Ray data discs. But you want movies. Since Apple is not licensing Blu-Ray capabilities yet they do not offer any authoring solutions. But you can get the Toast Blu-Ray plug in which is for burning Blu-Ray video discs (you don't need the plug in if all you want is to burn data discs with Toast).

If you want more than just basic Blu-Ray video burning you can apparently use Adobe Encore CS4 which works with Adobe Premiere and even with Final Cut Pro.

You can even use the Toast Plug in without a Blu-Ray drive and burn HD video to a standard DVD that will play in a standalone Blu-Ray player, according to the Toast Plug In web page.

So, to answer your question: Yes, it is possible to create high definition Blu-Ray video discs on the Mac, but it requires a third-party drive and third party software to do so.
     
AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Apr 1, 2009, 09:32 PM
 
Is there a special way to get the HD movie i have from iMovie to Toast?
When i export my iMovie, what do i select as far as the type of file..settings..format?
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kikkoman
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Apr 3, 2009, 11:24 AM
 
This Macworld article might have some helpful information.

http://www.macworld.com/article/1395...l_storage.html
     
Person Man
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Apr 3, 2009, 01:11 PM
 
Originally Posted by kikkoman View Post
This Macworld article might have some helpful information.

http://www.macworld.com/article/1395...l_storage.html
That article doesn't answer her question, which is how to get the video from iMovie to Toast so it can be burned to the disc via the plug-in.
     
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Apr 4, 2009, 12:16 AM
 
Apple Girl,

You have the exact same questions as do I. I have a Canon AH X1s and am on the verge of buying a desktop quad core Power Mac. Yet, a little voice asks me if I wold be wiser waiting 6 months until Apple computers come with blu ray drives with them so that I can burn the HD content without the necessity of a third party drive or software. The new towers look tasty, but I wold be sorely ripped off if, in a few months, these came with a blu ray drive that cold write my movies directly off of FCP.

So, your advice? Or anyone else's advice? I have seen the comments by Jobs about the licensing problems but now that it has been simplified, I suspect these drives are just a few months away.

Thanks,

Shamboola
     
AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Apr 4, 2009, 02:32 PM
 
My advice is that you purchase that Quad Core machine now. If and when Apple enables its software (iMovie, iDVD & FCP) to support blu-ray, you can then purchase a 3rd party external burner. The blu-ray technology is relatively new and the burner that will come with a new MacPro will certainly be slow (6x) and an external can be easily upgraded as the technology advances. Also, it might be another year before a new MacPro machine is announced.

So purchase today, get the immediate joy joy of the machine and when the time is right, you pounce on a external burner.
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AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Apr 4, 2009, 02:41 PM
 
To further comment on what Person Man is saying.....

Movies have to be layered/formatted or whatever in a certain way to play in a blu-ray player and DVD player.

You can't drag/drop and then burn a .mov or mpg file to a standard DVD and expect it to play in a DVD player. iDVD takes the movie and formats/layers it in a way so that it's able to be read by a DVD player.

The same thing goes for blu-ray. You can't drag a .mov or .mpg or any other file to Toast and burn it and then expect a blu-ray player to read it.

Right?
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revMedia
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Apr 4, 2009, 05:07 PM
 
You CAN author Blueray in Toast via their plug-in. You just drop the video into toast, and it takes care of the formatting.
     
AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Apr 5, 2009, 07:58 AM
 
revMedia, have you actually tried ?
or are you saying it "should" work ?

If you have done it, what did you do about creating the DVD menu?
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AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Apr 9, 2009, 07:59 AM
 
Just saw this link to a new blu-ray burner.
http://www.mcetech.com/blu-ray/

You will note that it says, "Encore CS3 enhances your workflow by outputting to Blu-ray discs, even if you're editing with Apple's Final Cut Studio or Avid's professional editing tools."

Does this mean that Apple FInal Cut Studio can't output to Blu-ray discs? If FCP can't, then iMovie certainly wouldn't be able to.

It also goes on to say: "As of now, playback of Blu-ray movies is not yet available under Mac OS X. There is simply no software yet that will do that. This situation will likely change very quickly. You can, however, with the software provided, playback commercial Blu-ray movies on your Mac Pro with Apple's Boot Camp running Windows XP or Vista. You will need to make sure to download the latest graphics drivers from either Nvidia or ATI, depending on your graphics card, in order to ensure smooth playback of high definition Blu-ray movies as you've never seen them before on your Mac."

Regarding playpack of blu-ray movies....If i edit my movie in iMovie and i'm somehow able to Toast it to blu-ray disc, then once finished, i can't view on my computer using the blu-ray burner i used to burn it? Kinda weird that the burner doesn't act as a reader as well...right?
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anthology123
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Apr 9, 2009, 11:52 AM
 
This is not a sarcastic response, but you can actually play standard DVDs on your parent's blu-ray player, you are not limited to Blu-ray discs only. So you can create a movie in 720p and burn it to a Standard DVD disk, even DVD DL if needed. 720p resolution does not look awful, not as good as 1080p, but are your folks that nitpicky about home movies? If so, what can I say? Blu-ray blanks are expensive right now, you might want to wait for the price to drop. In another year, the technology will be so much cheaper, why buy the highest margin stuff now just for one movie?
     
AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Apr 9, 2009, 04:44 PM
 
I am aware that you can downgrade quality and burn a blu-ray movie to standard dvd.
but why on god's earth would i want to do that. that defeates the purpose of having HD footage.

Sabotage y don't u.
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anthology123
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Apr 9, 2009, 06:05 PM
 
Sure I understand that completely, but if you need to do something now, right this second, and money is not a problem, then by all means, there are plenty of external DVD solutions, just don't expect one from Apple right now. I'm just offering you an option if you need to do something and you can't get a Blu-ray burner and the right software in time.

Here's a great Blu-ray burner that works with Toast:

http://www.mcetech.com/blu-ray/
     
AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Apr 10, 2009, 03:01 PM
 
I am a little confused because in this month's MacWorld magazine (page 61), it talks about Adobe's Premiere Pro CS4 having the ability to support blu-ray production (something that Apple's DVD Studio Pro 4 doesn't).

Why is Apple allowing Adobe to get a leg up on them?
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anthology123
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Apr 10, 2009, 04:28 PM
 
I would say Apple is a little more careful on what bandwagon to jump on. This was certainly the case when DVD burners first came out, they banked on DVD-RAM to be the one, and in the end it was DVD-R. But not being first is not a problem with Apple anymore. When the iPod first arrived, it was 2 years late to the media player market and that did not seem to affect them in the end. As usual, 3rd party companies come out with solutions, and Apple can compare and come up with a better use experience later.
     
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Apr 12, 2009, 01:01 PM
 
R.I.P Steve Jobs
     
AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Apr 15, 2009, 09:55 PM
 
I just wish Apple would come out and tell it's loyal customers it's plan for blu-ray.
Give us an estimated date we can expect it.
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Apr 15, 2009, 11:51 PM
 
Originally Posted by AppleGirl1990 View Post
I just wish Apple would come out and tell it's loyal customers it's plan for blu-ray.
Its almost certain its going to happen.

-t
     
AppleGirl1990  (op)
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Apr 29, 2009, 11:19 AM
 
YES YES YES!!!!

"More significant may be a pre-release version of iTunes 8.2, which warns that it will now verify if an iPhone is authorized for use with the v3.0 beta firmware. The Gracenote legal disclaimer has meanwhile been changed to make reference to DVD and Blu-ray metadata, which could suggest future hardware support. One advantage PCs maintain over Macs is ready playback of Blu-ray movies, in some cases through drives included by default. Apple has expressed a reluctance to expand optical media support"
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Apr 29, 2009, 11:22 AM
 
I'm curious, how do gracenote support DVD and Blu-Ray? I assume its tags, but to me that implies ripping, which I don't see iTunes doing.
     
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May 26, 2009, 02:22 AM
 
Originally Posted by Shamboola View Post
Yet, a little voice asks me if I wold be wiser waiting 6 months until Apple computers come with blu ray drives with them so that I can burn the HD content without the necessity of a third party drive or software. The new towers look tasty, but I wold be sorely ripped off if, in a few months, these came with a blu ray drive that cold write my movies directly off of FCP.
Don't wait if this is all that you are waiting for. All you would have to do is buy an internal BluRay Drive and put it in one of the drive bays. The MacPro is so easy to upgarde like that! Other World Computing will more than likely be able to help you find an appropriate model that will work, but it will probably be either a Sony Drive or Pioneer.

The first thing well see if BluRay Playback in Snow Leopard. The next thing we'll see is the Pro Apps updated (maybe at the same time) so that FCP and DVD Studio will be able to author the DVD's. The last thing we'll see and Maybe have to wait for the next iLife is iDVD upated to author BluRay. Maybe Apple will be generous and offer that as a simple update. After all it doesn't really need a face lift but the option to support that format.

I also want an option to export MORE than one movie from iMovie '09 to iDVD!
     
warnergt
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May 27, 2009, 01:27 PM
 
You can get an internal Blu-ray burner to put in your Mac Pro for about $200.
See PIONEER BDR-203BKS

I use Adobe Encore (comes with Adobe Premiere) to burn Blu-Ray discs.
I still use the old iMovie HD for editing (easiest and best software there is).

I tried Toast for burning Blu-ray discs. It kept hanging on me.
     
msuper69
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May 27, 2009, 03:43 PM
 
Until the price of Blu-ray discs comes way down, Blu-ray write support is academic.

I'd like the ability to play Blu-ray movies though.
     
warnergt
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May 27, 2009, 09:02 PM
 
The price already is way down. I've seen Blu-ray media for $3.00 per disc.

By the way, here is a Blu-ray writer for $159.99.

There are no excuses for not making Blu-ray discs.
     
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Jun 6, 2009, 10:21 PM
 
Originally Posted by Person Man View Post
Apple apparently does not like the current licensing terms (see Steve Jobs' "bag of hurt" comment) at present. Rumor has it that the licensing terms are being revised to be less onerous. But for now, you have to get a third party drive to get any Blu-Ray capability.

There is the MCE Blu-Ray Recordable Drive.

Without any special software you can burn Blu-Ray data discs. But you want movies. Since Apple is not licensing Blu-Ray capabilities yet they do not offer any authoring solutions. But you can get the Toast Blu-Ray plug in which is for burning Blu-Ray video discs (you don't need the plug in if all you want is to burn data discs with Toast).

If you want more than just basic Blu-Ray video burning you can apparently use Adobe Encore CS4 which works with Adobe Premiere and even with Final Cut Pro.

You can even use the Toast Plug in without a Blu-Ray drive and burn HD video to a standard DVD that will play in a standalone Blu-Ray player, according to the Toast Plug In web page.

So, to answer your question: Yes, it is possible to create high definition Blu-Ray video discs on the Mac, but it requires a third-party drive and third party software to do so.
Anyone have this setup? Time to start putting my HD video's on blu ray so looking for a workable solution.
2010 Mac Mini, 32GB iPod Touch, 2 Apple TV (1)
Home built 12 core 2.93 Westmere PC (almost half the cost of MP) Win7 64.
     
warnergt
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Jun 7, 2009, 10:25 AM
 
My working solution is a Sony BWU-200S SATA Blu-ray writer in my Mac Pro
with Adobe Encore (still using CS3).

By the way, while Toast can write Blu-ray data to DVDs, many Blu-ray players
(most notably, the Sony Playstation 3) cannot read the data off of DVDs fast
enough to play the video without major dropouts. Don't even bother trying
to write your Blu-ray videos to DVD; go directly to Blu-ray media.
     
bearcatrp
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Jun 9, 2009, 12:33 PM
 
The sony costs over 400 new but its sata, the mce bluray cost under 300 but eide. Does the sony come with all the cables? Any problems hooking it up or OS X recognizing it? Might have to grab the sony. Sony has a refurb at this time.
2010 Mac Mini, 32GB iPod Touch, 2 Apple TV (1)
Home built 12 core 2.93 Westmere PC (almost half the cost of MP) Win7 64.
     
warnergt
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Jun 9, 2009, 02:15 PM
 
Where does it say that the MCE drive is EIDE?
I doubt it. It is most likely SATA. I'm not sure a Mac Pro will support an EIDE drive.

Also, there are even cheaper SATA Blu-ray writers available.

I just posted what works for me. I'm not going to remove my Sony drive because a cheaper
one has become available. Today, I would go with that $160 LG drive.

I forget if the Sony drive came with the cables. It uses standard SATA cables. The cables are no
big deal. The hardest part was finding the connector where the cable plugs in; it was obscured.
I had to pull the Mac Pro apart a bit to find it.

Mac OS X recognized the drive instantly. No drivers were necessary.
     
bearcatrp
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Jun 16, 2009, 02:50 AM
 
Read the specifications on there site and it shows eide.
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warnergt
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Jun 16, 2009, 07:56 AM
 
Got a link? I see no reference to EIDE.
     
bearcatrp
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Jun 16, 2009, 05:30 PM
 
MCE 8x Blu-ray Disc Internal Recordable Drive: MCE Technologies Online Store

This is for the 2008 mac pro.

Just verified its the same for the 2009 model too. Not sure why its cheaper for the 2009 model.
( Last edited by bearcatrp; Jun 16, 2009 at 05:32 PM. Reason: added a line.)
2010 Mac Mini, 32GB iPod Touch, 2 Apple TV (1)
Home built 12 core 2.93 Westmere PC (almost half the cost of MP) Win7 64.
     
 
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