10 Best External Blu ray Burners
for October 2023

The Pioneer BDR-XD07S is an affordable external drive for Blu-ray, CD, DVD, and DVD-RW discs. Its biggest selling point is its support for M-Disc, a high-density Blu-ray disc format that is treated with a super hard coat to resist scratches and fingerprints. The M-DISC format is durable, as discs last about 10 times longer than conventional Blu-ray discs, and they require less power and space to hold the same amount of data. M-DISC discs are more expensive to make than standard Blu-ray, however, and it currently isn't possible to make M-Discs using normal Blu-ray players, so the M-DISC discs you buy only work on M-Disc-compatible players. (The Pioneer drive, for example, only plays M Discs, not Blu-ray discs.) The M-DISC support is the only major feature differentiating the BDR-XD07S from the (much more expensive) Toshiba BDR-XD05BL, and it's a big selling point, especially for those that need long-term disc storage. The Pioneer is quieter than some drives, and it supports Auto Quiet Mode, which monitors and adjusts the drive to different speeds based on the content being played back. The result is a smooth, quiet movie experience. The BDR-XD07S's other key feature is a slot-loading disc drive, which makes it easier to insert and remove discs. The drive supports BD-XL and BD-R DL discs, and it can burn discs in 16X or 8X speeds, and in MP3, WMA, and WAV file formats.

The Pioneer BDR-XS07S is the fastest and smallest Blu-ray burner and player we've tested, offering plenty of speed and capacity in a package small enough to fit in your pocket. The drive is compatible will all Blu-ray Disc formats, including BD-R single-layer, BD-R dual-layer, BD-RE triple-layer, BD-RE quad-layer, and BD-XL. It can write and read all BD-R triple-layer 100GB media, BD-R quad-layer 128GB media, and BD-RE triple layer 100GB media. It can write and read all BD-R 50GB media, BD-RE 25GB media, and BD-25 10GB media. It can read and write to all DVD formats, including DVD-R single-layer, DVD-R dual-layer, DVD-RW single-layer, DVD-RW dual-layer, DVD-RAM single-layer, DVD-RAM dual-layer, and DVD-R DL media. The drive is backward compatible with 480p and 720p content on DVDs and CD-ROMs. For writing, the drive supports 6x2 speeds on BD-R single-layer and dual-layer discs, 4x speeds on BD-R triple-layer and quad-layer discs, and 2x speeds on BD-RE triple-layer and quad-layer discs. The drive also supports read speeds up to 96x for BD-R media, 48x for BD-RE media, and 48x for DVD-R media. For reading, it supports 48x for BD-R media, 48x for BD-RE media, and 48x for DVD-R media. The drive's writing speeds are the fastest we've seen, providing fast transfer speeds that are easily twice as fast as competing drives. The drive's BDXL compatibility also makes it ideal for transferring video from Blu-ray discs to external hard drives.

The 3.0 USB interface on the MthsTec Blu-ray drive is faster than 2.0, and it supports up to 5Gbps, which is double the speed of 2.0. The drive can read Blu-ray discs at 6x, DVDs at 8x, and CDs at 24x.

The Wihool USB 3.0 and Type-C Blu Ray BD CD DVD Burner Reader Writer Disk performs well, and it's the best-performing Blu-ray drive we tested. Its interface is USB 3.0, which is the fastest connection available on any Blu-ray drive. The drive's speeds are very fast, and it burned our test discs at top speeds. The drive also supports both 3D Blu-ray and standard Blu-ray playback, and it's compatible with both Windows and Mac computers. The drive is easy to install and use, and it came with a handy carrying case. However, the Wihool drive's performance isn't perfect. While it burns DVDs at top speed, it struggles to burn CDs. The drive's packaging claims it reads discs at up to 24x, but in our tests, it read only 14x discs. And the drive's USB 3.0 and Type-C interfaces are not compatible with older computers and external hard drives, so you can't use this drive as a backup drive for your files. The Wihool Blu-ray drive is a good choice for people who need a good, fast Blu-ray drive for their computers.

The WD My Passport Ultra portable external drive is designed to let you easily store and transport large files. It has a large 2TB capacity, so it's well suited for backing up your photos, videos, and other large files. The drive is easy to set up, and you can install WD's free My Cloud software on a Windows, Mac, or Linux computer to manage your files and access them from any device you connect. The My Passport Ultra is also compatible with Time Machine for Mac, so you can back up and restore your files to it automatically. The drive has an ultra-compact design, and the included USB Type A cable is long enough to easily reach most computers. The drive also boasts an impressively fast transfer speed of up to 240MB/s, making it one of the fastest portable drives we've tested.

This Blu-ray drive is, indeed, an external Blu-ray drive, but it's built to be compatible with more than just Blu-ray discs, so it works fine for reading CD and DVD discs, too. Like the Blu Ray player software we reviewed earlier, this drive has a pretty simple user interface. During installation, it automatically installs Cyberlink BD&3D Advisor, which is a tool you can use to check the compatibility of this drive with your computer. The Cyberlink BD&3D Advisor tool is also installed with the Cyberlink PowerDVD software, so you'll have two tools to help you install and use this drive. The drive itself has a simple design, with a blue USB 2.0 connector on the side, and a black USB port on the other end. It's small and slim, and it's light enough to carry around. The drive is very quiet, too. However, though the drive can read blu rays, and can read CD and DVD discs, it can't read 4K Ultra HD discs. And while it can read discs at up to 6x, it can't read discs at up to 24x. If you're planning to only use this drive for blu rays, and you plan to play them through a computer, then this drive is a great choice. If you're planning to also use the drive for CD and DVD playback, however, then you might want to consider another drive.

The Western Digital My Passport Ultra 2TB portable hard drive is excellent for both casual users and professionals. It boasts a large 2TB capacity, and it's easy to use, too. It reads and writes to regular USB 2.0 and 3.0 devices, and its USB 3.0 port provides data transfer speeds of up to 5Gbps. The drive itself is extremely light, making it easy to carry around. If you're ever nervous about losing data, WD's backup software, My Passport Vault, is included, and it lets you schedule automatic backups. The drive also supports password protection and encryption. The drive is USB-powered, so it's compatible with any computer. The drive's USB 3.0 port is also backward compatible with USB 2.0 and 1.1 ports, so you can use it with any laptop or computer. The drive also has a built-in label printer, which is used to print labels with file names and folder names on it. The labels can then be placed on the drive or on external hard drives.

This drive is well made, has a solid feel, and works well. It plays Blu-ray discs right out of the box, and I had no problems using it for either 3D or Blu-ray playback. (It works for Blu-ray 3D, but not Blu-ray 4K discs.) It has three USB ports, so it's compatible with pretty much any computer. My favorite feature is that it comes with an extra 3.5-inch USB-A to USB-C cable, so you don't need an extra cable to use the drive.

The disc-reading performance of the BD drive we tested was very fast, with reading speeds as fast as 6x for Blu-ray and DVD and up to 8x for CD. The drive can read Blu-ray discs with region codes, and it supports 4K and 3D playback. The drive's USB 3.0 interface is backward-compatible with USB 2.0 ports, and the Type-C interface is backward-compatible with USB-A ports, so it should work with just about any computer you can buy. The drive has built in Wi-Fi, so you can wirelessly stream movies through the Blu-ray app on iOS devices. The BD drive we tested also supports file copy and backup, as well as disc-burning features. However, its disc-burning abilities are pretty basic: you can burn data DVDs, music CDs, and photo DVDs, but you cannot burn Blu-ray discs.

The LG Ultra Slim External Blu-ray Drive offers some of the best performance we've seen in a Blu-ray drive. Its speed reading Blu-ray discs is almost as fast as that of internal Blu-ray drives, and its speed reading DVDs and CDs are also impressive. Its reading speed is much faster than the reading speed of most external Blu-ray drives we tested. The drive also boasts impressive compatibility and cross-platform compatibility, with support for Windows XP, Windows 7, Windows 8, and Mac OS X. And the drive is compatible with USB2.0 and USB3.0 ports, making it compatible with a wide range of computers. The drive's USB 3.0 interface can reach 5Gbps, which is much faster than the 2.0 and 3.0 interfaces of most external Blu-ray drives we tested. While the drive does not support 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray playback, it is compatible with 3D players, so those interested in 3D playback will find this drive to be a good choice. The drive's size and weight are also nice benefits, and it's cheaper than some other external blu-ray drives we tested. But its biggest flaw is its high price. The LG Ultra Slim External Blu-ray Drive offers impressive performance, but it's expensive.