Blu Ray in Laptop - Worth it?

[Hobgoblinpie]

I am buying a laptop soon, and one of the customisation options is between these:

 

1. DVD & CD read & write

2. Blu-Ray read-only, DVD & CD read & write

3. Blu-Ray, DVD & CD read & write

 

The 2nd option adds £90 to the price, while the 3rd option adds £200 (I'm not really concerned about the price). So, I have two questions, all opinions are wanted:

 

1. Is buying a Blu-Ray drive now worth it in the long run (as I wont be updating for around 3 years).

2. I have a PS3, which obviously can play Blu-Ray movies, and when i go off to University, it will be going with me. So is the Blu-Ray read only drive worth it instead of the Blu-Ray read & write.

 

I wont be using Blu-Ray for archival purposes, mostly just to watch DVDs, so this seems to negate any reason to go for the writer.

 

All opinions are appreciated.

[Sbrideau]

Do whatever feels right, but if you have a PS3 to play the blu ray movies, then I don't see any reason you'd go with it on the computer unless you're going to actually burn blu-ray discs.

 

Then again, as long as it's not a Dell computer, you should be good.

[Hobgoblinpie]

Then again, as long as it's not a Dell computer, you should be good.

 

It's not a Dell, but I just wanted to ask, what is wrong with them? (I apologise in advance for the noob question).

[indy500fan]

It depends on if you plan on watching movies on your laptop or not. If yes, go for at least the BR-ROM, if not then the DVD will be fine.

 

I'd wait on getting a BR-RW until prices of blank media go down, just get the burner for your desktop then.

[Hobgoblinpie]

It depends on if you plan on watching movies on your laptop or not. If yes, go for at least the BR-ROM, if not then the DVD will be fine.

 

I'd wait on getting a BR-RW until prices of blank media go down, just get the burner for your desktop then.

 

I'm buying this laptop as a replacement for my Desktop, as I cannot take it with me to Uni (well, I can, it just wouldn't be very convenient). I will probably have my PS3 with me at some point (but i doubt I'd take it with me straight away). I also do not have any blu-ray movies yet, but I can see the price of Blu-ray movies is lowering, and they may be a viable alternative. Thanks for the help.

[Sbrideau]

Then again, as long as it's not a Dell computer, you should be good.

 

It's not a Dell, but I just wanted to ask, what is wrong with them? (I apologise in advance for the noob question).

What is wrong with them, is that they put cheap parts in their computers and then when someone get's a Dell, it will break within a few months, and I've seen that happen with every recent Dells I've seen.

[Sy_Accursed]

Then again, as long as it's not a Dell computer, you should be good.

 

It's not a Dell, but I just wanted to ask, what is wrong with them? (I apologise in advance for the noob question).

What is wrong with them, is that they put cheap parts in their computers and then when someone get's a Dell, it will break within a few months, and I've seen that happen with every recent Dells I've seen.

Dells went through a bad aptch when the original owner sold it but hes back now and they have greatly improved.

[Laura]

Then again, as long as it's not a Dell computer, you should be good.

 

It's not a Dell, but I just wanted to ask, what is wrong with them? (I apologise in advance for the noob question).

What is wrong with them, is that they put cheap parts in their computers and then when someone get's a Dell, it will break within a few months, and I've seen that happen with every recent Dells I've seen.

Dells went through a bad aptch when the original owner sold it but hes back now and they have greatly improved.

It's still quite absurd for one to have to contact an attorney general to get a refund on (several) defective units. I told them I was never going to recommend their products again after such experiences with their frustrating customer service. Mind you, this was all under Mr. Dell's watch.

 

Then again, I'm sure almost everyone here knows my story by now.

[lordkafei]

I'd for sure get the read only Blu-Ray drive. Who knows when you'll be on the road or a plane and wanting to watch something? And it should suffice for all your old DVDs.

 

I am not as enthusiastic about a Blu-Ray burner. Would you trust it for backup purposes? Planning to record HDTV streams and wanting to burn them?

[Sy_Accursed]

Blu-Rays are great for watching movies etc.

But I wuldnt bother with a burner yet; theres not much you can legally end up with on your system thats so big it warrants a blu-ray disc. Other than perhaps an absolutely massive music library, but even then multiple dvds wuld suffice

[lordkafei]

Blu-Rays are great for watching movies etc.

But I wuldnt bother with a burner yet; theres not much you can legally end up with on your system thats so big it warrants a blu-ray disc. Other than perhaps an absolutely massive music library, but even then multiple dvds wuld suffice

 

Well, some people like to record TV shows & movies OTA & author their own discs. DVD media is not practical for doing that with HDTV.

 

Most movies I capture in HD are between 20 & 30 GB in size.

[Laura]

If you have a laptop with a resolution lower than 1920x1080 then I wouldn't bother with a blu-ray player.

 

Even then, I'd stick to movies on the HDD to maximize battery life.

[Hobgoblinpie]

The screen is a 15.6" 1920x1080 screen, so it should be optimal (in the sense that it can max out the resolution, not that the screen is an optimal size).

 

The only thing that i would use the Burner for would be archiving Photographs from my Digital SLR, but, I'm leaving that behind when I go to Uni, and I still haven't used up the equivalent of 1 blu-ray disc, which would make it pointless. I have two external hard drives currently (one is nearly full, the other is basically a second back-up or important information). I barely watch TV anyway, so recording HDTV streams is pretty much pointless for me.

 

Anyway, thank you all for your replies, You have helped immensely. I've decided against the Blu-ray drive as the battery life when watching DVDs (let alone Blu-ray discs) is barely enough to watch a feature length film (1 hour 40 mins battery life). So yeah, thanks for all your help :)