Program to play Blu Ray Disc?

jakesnake · 6 May 2011 at 19:53

wot programs do you guys use to play Blu Ray movies on your PC ?

wots the best free 1 ?

vanandjuanunited · 6 May 2011 at 19:55

No free ones I know of but try the powerdvd trial

stulid · 6 May 2011 at 19:56

VLC?*

*THE "?" dictates I don't know if it does or doesn't.

sk82jack · 6 May 2011 at 20:02

didn't you get software with the drive?

jakesnake · 6 May 2011 at 20:02

tryed VLC, didnt work for me.

i think i got powerdvd with the blu ray player i bought, ive misplaced it tho.

Makhaira · 6 May 2011 at 20:08

There is no free Bluray playback software at the moment.

Your options are:

- PowerDVD
- VLC + AnyDVD (although VLC only plays some Blurays)
- Arcsoft TotalMediaTheatre
- WinDVD

kristmace · 6 May 2011 at 20:21

You usually get a cut down version of PowerDVD or WinDVD with the player. Restricts you to 2 channel sound, but it works.

AndyClough · 6 May 2011 at 21:00

I use PowerDVD that came with my drive, works just fine

cmndr_andi · 6 May 2011 at 21:03

Also, if you use the powerDVD that came with the drive you can upgrade to the full current version of PowerDVD 10(or 11) ultra for a reduced price from within the software itself (when it's installed). This will give you all the options (mainly surround sound support).

Personally I quite like powerDVD as it integrates well with Windows Media Centre (the ultra version at least).

gilljoy · 6 May 2011 at 22:10

From what I've heard there working on an updated version of VLC with Blu-ray playback

alex24 · 6 May 2011 at 22:13

gilljoy said:
From what I've heard there working on an updated version of VLC with Blu-ray playback

Where'd you hear that?

I used to use PowerDVD but I needed a newer version as the bundled one with my drive was too old (7.3 would you believe). Looked into pricing, gobsmacked! So just bought a standalone Blu ray player (Toshiba BDX2100) and am over the moon with it! Much better image quality and less fuss.

Orcvader · 6 May 2011 at 22:49

PowerDVD seems to be the best so far, but personally I still don't feel comfortable with it. Just use a BD player or PS3

.

blackn3r · 6 May 2011 at 23:55

Hi!

Windows 7? Try these options. I cannot confirm they work because i dont have the hardware to support it but fingers crosed

Good luck and remember to report back

AndyClough · 7 May 2011 at 00:07

cmndr_andi said:
Also, if you use the powerDVD that came with the drive you can upgrade to the full current version of PowerDVD 10(or 11) ultra for a reduced price from within the software itself (when it's installed). This will give you all the options (mainly surround sound support).

Personally I quite like powerDVD as it integrates well with Windows Media Centre (the ultra version at least).

Just checked that out....

£39.99!!!

:eek:

cmndr_andi · 7 May 2011 at 00:11

AndyClough said:
Just checked that out....

£39.99!!!

Yea, though it's a fair bit better than $99.99 for a full version if you need the features.

topdog@OC · 7 May 2011 at 11:36

alexhull24 said:
Where'd you hear that?

I used to use PowerDVD but I needed a newer version as the bundled one with my drive was too old (7.3 would you believe). Looked into pricing, gobsmacked! So just bought a standalone Blu ray player (Toshiba BDX2100) and am over the moon with it! Much better image quality and less fuss.

Yes I would believe... 7.3 ultra is still one of the best powerdvd releases there was

Just a pain in the arse to get installed in Windows 7 (but I still have some HD-DVD format titles so it was worth the effort). I'll need something else for 3D playback soon though.

TheGedi · 7 May 2011 at 11:41

Arcsoft Total Media Theatre i couldn't stand the PowerDVD that came with my Drive.

topdog@OC · 7 May 2011 at 11:43

That's (Arcsoft Total Media) what I'm leaning towards for my 3D software

Then I can have it installed alongside PDVD7.3 and be able to play everything.

alex24 · 7 May 2011 at 13:44

topdog@OC said:
Yes I would believe... 7.3 ultra is still one of the best powerdvd releases there was Just a pain in the arse to get installed in Windows 7 (but I still have some HD-DVD format titles so it was worth the effort). I'll need something else for 3D playback soon though.

I agree it's less bloated. However, performance isn't as good as newer versions (you need a better spec GPU for 7.3) and the image quality is not as good as version 9 onwards from my experience. Not as sharp. The standalone player wins out in pretty much every regard. Time to sell my HD-DVDs I think.

blackn3r · 7 May 2011 at 13:58

have you tried my link above for possible solutions?