Sony BWU-100A Blu-ray Burner

Manufacturer: Sony Part number: BWU-100A

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CNET Editor rating:
3.0 stars Good
Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 4 reviews

More product information:: Editors' review; User reviews; Specifications; Manufacturer info

Bottom Line:: The Sony BWU-100A Blu-ray burner is still priced out of range for most users, but if you have $700 to spare, it's a good choice for its range of media support and acceptable task speeds.

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CNET editors' review

Sony BWU-100A Blu-ray Burner

price range: $299.99

The Sony BWU-100A Blu-ray burner is still priced out of range for most users, but if you have $700 to spare, it's a good choice for its range of media support and acceptable task speeds.

The good: Supports all major optical-media types; non-Blu-ray task speeds are acceptable; extensive software package.

The bad: Still very expensive; IDE-only; slow to rip commercial Blu-ray discs; finicky with media brands.

The bottom line: The Sony BWU-100A Blu-ray burner is still priced out of range for most users, but if you have $700 to spare, it's a good choice for its range of media support and acceptable task speeds.

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The Sony BWU-100A offers every possible optical-media support except for HD DVD, of course. Its sleek, transparent-black faceplate would make it an attractive part of your living room media center's PC. Unfortunately, Blu-ray drives are still very expensive--this one costs $700. Though Blu-ray burner prices have and will continue to fall, they haven't fallen far enough for the average consumer. Keep in mind, too, that as prices fall, read and write speeds will continue to ramp up. The BWU-100A is a bit slower with its non-HD tasks when compared to a non-HD burner, but given all that this drive can do, we think it's not a bad trade-off. If you have the $700 to burn, the BWU-100A is a good choice.

Drive type: Internal Blu-ray multidrive
Supported media: BD-ROM, BD-RE (25GB and 50GB), BD-R (25GB and 50GB), DVD-ROM, DVD-RAM, DVD-Video, DVD+/-R DL, DVD+/-R, DVD+/-RW, CD-DA, CD-ROM, Video CD, Photo CD, CD Text, CD Extra, CD-R, and CD-RW
Max write speed: 2x BD-R, 4x DVD+/-R DL, 8x DVD+/-R(8x), 24x CD-R
Max rewrite speed: 2x BD-RE, 8x DVD+RW, 6x DVD-RW, 5x DVD-RAM, and 16x CD-RW
Maximum read speed: 2x BD-ROM, i8x DVD-ROM, and 32x CD-ROM
Buffer memory: 8MB
Dimensions: 5.75 inches wide by 7.48 inches deep by 1.63 inches tall
Notable design features: None
Connection options: IDE (ATA/ATAPI)
System requirements: Pentium IV 3.0+GHz, 512MB RAM, 30GB HDD
OSes supported: MS Windows 2000 Pro (SP4)/XP Home or Pro (SP2)/Vista (all)
Software included: CyberLink Blu-ray Software Suite, including PowerDVD, Power2Go, PowerProducer, PowerDirector, PowerDVD Copy, PowerBackup, PhotoNow, MediaShow, LabelPrint, and InstantBurn
Any additional features: Supports 8 or 12cm discs
Service and support: One-year limited warranty; toll-free phone support; live chat; e-mail to tech support; site includes FAQs, tutorials, and software/driver downloads.

In the CNET Labs, the Sony BWU-100A performed as expected of an early-generation product--with an IDE interface, no less. Keeping in mind that Blu-ray discs are large-capacity media, one must accept that its BD write and read times are quite long. Its performance with all other non-high-definition tasks was acceptable. Ripping an 8.46GB commercial DVD movie took 23 minutes, 15 seconds. Burning that image to a DVD+R DL took 26 minutes, 51 seconds. A 4.48GB mixed-data file took 10 minutes, 22 seconds to burn. Ripping a 746MB commercial CD took 4 minutes, 13 seconds. Burning the same CD image to a CD-R took 4 minutes, 37 seconds. Burning a BD-R with 23GB of mixed data files took 1 hour, 40 minutes, 11 seconds. The drive disappointed when ripping that same file: it took a pokey 5 hours, 2 minutes, 22 seconds. Compared to other dedicated DVD multidrives, the Sony BWU-100A is on the slow side, but considering all the drive is capable of, we think it's an acceptable sacrifice.

We did have a few gripes with this drive. It was a bit finicky when it came to compatible media brands. We had no problems when using Sony's recommended media brand (Verbatim), but it wouldn't recognize discs from RIData, a huge multivendor supplier.

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User reviews

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Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 4 reviews

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5 stars

Wait, wait & WAIT!

by warpete on December 6, 2006

Pros: Absolute stunning video quality

Cons: WILL NOT PLAY PRE-RECORDED Blu-Ray movies!

Summary: This is another case of a powerful giant (Sony) overpowering the little guys (consumers). This Blu-Ray player costs over $700.00 but will NOT allow you to watch a Commercially ...

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Summary: This is another case of a powerful giant (Sony) overpowering the little guys (consumers). This Blu-Ray player costs over $700.00 but will NOT allow you to watch a Commercially made Blu-Ray movie (such as Talladega Nights)! Sony states that additional hardware and/or software is needed in order to be able to watch commerically released movies, but I can find NO information on what is needed or how much money is involved. Also, the faceplate is too large to fit many PC's! This unit is FANTASTIC if you have an HD video camera, no doubt about it, but what's the point? I suggest that you wait another few weeks or months and another company will release a unit with full capabilities-----for less money.
Updated
sony now has a solution which can be found at: http://sony.storagesupport.com/BDupgrade/

There is also a small program to verify if your system is capable of what is required, plus a connectivity chart showing the hook-up requirements. I do praise Sony for addressing this issue and can easily raise my rating to a nine (9) out of 10. The visual quality is out-of-this-world and now Sony has a solution to allow viewing commercially produced content----with a little modifications on the user's part. By the way, Sony is providing these upgrades for FREE!!!

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5 out of 7 users found this user opinion helpful.
5 stars

BD-R's & BD-RE's won't play on Sony's Blu-Ray Player

by michaeldaviddennis on June 24, 2007

Pros: Will write and play a variety of disc types.

Cons: BD-R's & BD-RE's won't play on Sony's Blu-Ray Player

Summary: The first one I bought would not work at all. The second one works, but the BD discs written on the drive WILL NOT play on Sony's own BD-S300 ...

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Summary: The first one I bought would not work at all. The second one works, but the BD discs written on the drive WILL NOT play on Sony's own BD-S300 player. After four calls to Sony tech support (& two wrong answers) I finally got a level 2 tech who spoke English, and confirmed the incompatability. He said Sony is "aware" of the issue, and he expects a fix - perhaps in July.

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3 out of 4 users found this user opinion helpful.
7 stars

la la la la la

by right-here3 on December 9, 2007

Pros: depends if you need one.

Cons: nothing really expect price and no reason to have it

Summary: good if you have a purpose for it go ahead and get one.

Summary: good if you have a purpose for it go ahead and get one.
8 stars

editor rips movies off?

by deiogn on July 25, 2007

Pros: its blue ray and not hddvd

Cons: to expensive

Summary: why would they want to allow people to rip movies fast from them? how is that a con? next time buy your movies mr editor person.

Summary: why would they want to allow people to rip movies fast from them? how is that a con? next time buy your movies mr editor person.

1 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.

Showing opinion 1 to 4 out of 4

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Specifications

Manufacturer: Sony
Part number: BWU-100A

General
Device Type BD-RE drive
Enclosure Type Internal
Interface IDE
Width 5.2 in
Depth 7 in
Height 1.6 in
Weight 3.5 lbs
Optical Storage
Type BD-RE - 5.25" x 1/2H
Read Speed 32x (CD) / 8x (DVD) / 2x (BD)
Write Speed 24x (CD) / 8x (DVD?R) / 4x (DVD?R DL) / 2x (BD-R)
Rewrite Speed 16x (CD) / 6x (DVD-RW) / 8x (DVD+RW) / 5x (DVD-RAM) / 2x (BD-RE)
Supported Recording Modes Multisession
Supported CD Formats CD-DA (audio), Video CD, CD Text, CD-ROM, Photo CD, CD-ROM XA, DVD-Video, CD Extra
Supported Media Types BD-RE DL, CD-RW, BD-ROM DL, DVD-RW, DVD-RAM, BD-R DL, BD-RE, DVD-R, DVD+R, BD-ROM, DVD-R DL, CD-ROM, DVD+R DL, CD-R, DVD+RW, DVD-ROM, BD-R
Media Load Type Tray
Buffer Size 8 MB
Storage Removable
Type None
Storage Controller
Type None
Expansion / Connectivity
Interfaces 1 x
Compatible Bays 1

Storage CD / DVD
Type BD-RE 5.25" x 1/2H
CD / DVD type BD-RE
Storage CD / DVD:Form Factor 5.25" x 1/2H
Power
Type None
Software / System Requirements
Software Included CyberLink PowerProducer, CyberLink PowerDirector, CyberLink Power2Go, Cyberlink PowerDVD, CyberLink PowerBackup
Min Processor Type 800 MHz
System Requirements Details Pentium III - RAM 256 MB
Manufacturer Warranty
Service & Support 1 year warranty
Service & Support Details Limited warranty - 1 year

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Sony BWU-100A Blu-ray Burner

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