Pioneer - 8x External USB 3.0 Quad-Layer Blu-ray Disc DL DVD±RW/CD-RW Drive - Silver Model: BDR-XD05S SKU: 8174608 User rating, 4.5 out of 5 stars with 1078 reviews. Pioneer External Blu-ray BDR-XD05S Slim Portable USB 3.0 BD/DVD/CD Wri Buy Online with Best Price. Express delivery to Bahrain, Manama, Riffa, Muharraq. BDR-XD05S BDR-XD05B. Drive Utility for Mac OS X 10.6～macOS Mojave 10.14. All Pioneer 10X DVD-ROM drives now conform to the RPC mode 2 standard,as set down. BDR-XD05S BDR-XD05B BDR-XD05W BDR-XD05CB BDR-XD05TB BDR-XD05TS. Drive Utility for Mac OS X 10.6～macOS Mojave 10.14: Model: Utility: File: Compatible with Mac OS drive. All Pioneer 10X DVD-ROM drives now conform to the RPC mode 2 standard,as set down by the DVD Forum as mandatory for all manufacturers of DVD-ROM drives produced after.
The Pioneer BDR-XD05S is one of the smallest and most sold external Blu-Ray drives! Besides that, it’s also compatible with both Mac and Windows operating systems. Which makes it a great external drive for all platforms. And you can also use it to burn your own Blu-Ray discs. So we decided to check it out for ourselves and create this review.
Technical Specification
- Dimensions: 133×133×15 mm / 5.2×5.2×0.6″
- Blu-Ray Writing Speed: Up to 6x BD-R
- DVD Writing Speed: Up to 8x DVD+RW
- CD Writing Speed: Up to 24x CD-RW
- Compatibility: Windows and Mac operating systems
In The Box
- Pioneer BDR-XD05S external Blu-Ray drive
- MicroUSB 3.0 B to USB 3.0 Y cable
Design
As I mentioned at the start, the BDR-XD05S is one of the smallest and lightest external Blu-Ray drives. It have a dimension of 133×133×15 mm / 5.2×5.2×0.6″, which is really thin. The overall design is also pretty compact. Unlike most external drives, Pioneer hasn’t given this one an ejectable disc tray. Instead there is an “open” button which lifts up the cover when you press it. It reminds me of the old portable CD players back in the 2000’s. Which does work really well and is the reason why the BDR-XD05 is so thin.
The external Blu-Ray drive itself is fully made out of average quality plastic. There’s really nothing special about it. The back of the drive has a MicroUSB 3.0 type B port which is used to power the drive. It doesn’t require an extra AC power source so it works straight from your laptop or PC’s USB port. And you get the USB cable with the drive as well. In fact, it’s a Y cable. Which has both USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 plugs. The reason for that is you need to use both of the plugs if you aren’t using a USB 3.0 port. Otherwise, the 3.0 has enough power to run the drive on it’s own.
Overall the build quality is pretty good. My only issue is with the material quality. The top cover feels kind of cheap and the silver color doesn’t help at hiding that. But that’s my opinion and personal taste. You can also get a black version which is sold under BDR-XD05B. The black color hides the cosmetic flaws better in my opinion so you can also check that out. Everything else is exactly the same though.
Performance
Both the Pioneer BDR-XD05S and BDR-XD05B can write and read Blu-Ray drives at a speed up to 6x. Which is pretty average to be fair. There are faster options available as well but those also cost more. So it comes down to the budget. It’s still fine though and you won’t notice it when actually watching a Blu-Ray movie. Besides that, you can also use it for DVD’s and CD’s as well.
While it’s not the fastest external Blu-Ray drive on the market, it does come with some unique features. Those include PowerRead, PureRead and Auto Quiet mode. My most favorite one out of those three is the Auto Quiet mode. And it does work to an extent. Which does also mean that the write and read speed can be limited. In which case you might need to disable it. Which also means that the drive can get quite noisy. All of the features can be both disabled and enabled via Pioneers Drive Utility program. You can download the Drive Utility program off Pioneer. It’s available for free.
Also like I mentioned before, the BDR-XD05 drive can be used on both Windows and Mac OS. On mac, you can use Finder to read and write Blu-Ray drives. However both operating systems require an additional program if you plan on watching Blu-Ray movies. Unfortunately that isn’t included with the BDR-XD05S version. I have seen some BDR-XD05B combos that also have CyberLink Software included. Those cost a bit more from what I have seen so you might want to check those as well if you don’t have a Blu-Ray player.
Conclusion
The Pioneer BDR-XD05S is the lightest external Blu-Ray drive you can buy at the moment. The clamshell design makes it easy to use and there’s not many moving parts on it that could break. Overall it can do everything and works just fine, so it’s a really nice basic external Blu-Ray drive for home use!
In the war for high definition videos, Blu-ray is the clear winner of the present times. So to enjoy the high-quality movies you may need to buy a new drive to upgrade your system.
Blu ray drivesare generally built to read CD and DVD drives as well so it can actually serve multiple purposes for you. There are a few other factors to check while buying a drive so that you get exactly what you need.
If you don’t mind your budget you can choose a drive that can not only play but read and write to Blu- ray media as well.
The speed of a Blu-ray drive is important and depending on the media type you plan to run on it, check the speed of the drive before purchasing one.
You can choose an internal or external drive depending on your existing system and its configuration.
This slim and light Blu-ray drive will amaze you with its fast and silent performance and is the perfect companion for a variety of users.
In This Article
- 2 Unique Features:
Introduction:
The Pioneer Electronics USA Slim External Blu Ray Drive BDR-XD05S is light and fast and built in a very compact size. The size makes it perfect to use as an external drive and it can play DVDs and CD s as well. I tested it with some old DVDs with some scratches on them and this unit had no problems in reading them. As an added advantage, it can write to BDXL discs as well making it quite versatile. We can now take a closer look at the features of this unit in this Pioneer bdr-xd05s review and check what its specialties are.
Unique Features:
Compatibility
This drive is quite useful when it comes to playing a variety of discs. If you are upgrading and worried about your old DVD collection, there is no need to worry as this unit can play and burn DVDs and CDs as well. It also supports the latest BDXL discs which make it quite future proof.
Speed
The fact is that this drive may look small and compact but it makes no compromise with writing speed. It is capable of delivering 6×2 speeds for BDR single layer and dual-layer discs. For the triple and quad-layer discs, it can give up to 4x writing speeds.
Smooth playback
Now, you do not need to worry about playing scratched discs or those with fingerprints after reading this Pioneer Bdr-xd05s review, as the Pioneer Electronics USA Slim External Blu-ray Drive BDR-XD05S has PowerRead feature. This feature will enable the driver to move to the next better section of the disc if it gets obstructed. Thus a smooth playback of your favorite movie is ensured.
Check Blu-Ray Player with Wi-Fi Sony Bdp-Bx370 Review,Great features
This unit is equipped with an auto quiet mode that can monitor and adjust its speed automatically, thereby providing the user with a quieter viewing and listening experience. It also has a USB 3 interface which helps to save in power consumption.
Key Specifications:
- Dimension:2 x 5.2 x 0.6 inches
- Product Weight: 2 ounces.
- Data buffer: 4 MB.
- Operating system support: Mac, Windows.
- Colour:
- Light and compact
- BDXL compatible
- USB 3 interface.
- powered feature.
- Value for money.
- Software not included.
- Blu-ray writing speed is slower.
Bottom line:
Pioneer Bdr Xd05s Drive Utility For Mac Pro
With its advanced features and great performance, the Pioneer Electronics USA Slim External Blu-ray Drive BDR-XD05S can be a very practical choice for anyone looking for an external drive.
This fast and compact model also impresses with its backward compatibility as well as futuristic features, all coming at a reasonable price.
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So if you are looking for an external Blu-ray drive, this can very well be the right model to choose as stated in this Pioneer Bdr-xd05s review.