Hitachi-LG BP55 External Blu-Ray Drive, USB 2.0 Slim Portable Player/Rewriter for Laptop, Desktop PC, Windows 11 Compatible, with TV Connectivity, 3D Playback, 8x Read/Write Speed - Black

I bought this during the black Friday sale so it was cheaper than normal, but even at full price I think it would still be worth the money, considering that the cyberlink suite disc provided is more than £50 alone RRP. I had a bit of trouble installing it and getting my laptop to recognise the player, but that was because I already had a different version of cyberlink installed so it didn't know which one to use. Once I uninstalled the old one and installed the suite from the disc provided, it all worked just fine and didn't take long to set up. The player itself is lightweight, and while it's a bit noisy while it's initially reading a disc, once it's actually playing it's pretty quiet. Does work better with both USB slots plugged in, unless you've got a really high powered pc/laptop. Overall, definitely worth the price for anyone wanting a portable bluray player.

The drive seems to work fine, but is not silent. The software mentioned in some of the reviews was not included, so I will have to purchase software to play and write blue rays.

This Hitachi-LG BP55 Blu Ray RW drive is USB powered, slim (slightly longer than DVD RW version), quiet in operation, and compatible with most common types of optical disc (including CD-R/RW, DVD-R/RW, DVD-RAM, BD BDXL) hence 'Super-multi' branding. It is compatible with PC (including Linux) and MAC systems (the included software is Windows 10/11 only). As I have been using the previous DVD version since 2009, I know this is a good and reliable product I would recommend to and computer user.

Simple plug-and-play performance and read/write speeds are excellent, which was why I bought it. It did try to watch commercial Blu Rays - though that wasn't my aim, which is why it gets 5 stars - but as with all the external Blu Ray players it struggled. Couldn't get VLC or Cyberlink to work despite trying the workarounds suggested on the web. If you're after a way to watch Blu rays on your laptop this isn't the solution.

They don't make it clear that this item won't play DVDs just with the disc provided and plugging it into your USB port.If you just do that,and insert a disc nothing happens.You need additional software to make it work [paid-for-software to make it work well].

Drive itself impressive and cost reasonable but DIDN'T come with Blu-ray software (NOT mentioned in description and 'like new' grading states complete with ALL essential parts - software to play discs is essential if not part of operating system). Amazon need to improve descriptions and / or provide relevant software that plays Blu-ray etc. Customer service response poor. Wouldn't supply software or replace with new (gave discount but this couldn't be used against new item despite difference in price between less than discount offered). No complaints policy or how o complain on site despite extensive search just a take it or leave it approach.

Works as expected

A very tidy and well-engineered product. Simply plug in a Windows does its thing. Well packaged too, feels like a premium product. Would have liked this to have been a bit cheaper, but needed a drive and this ticked the boxes.