LG BP50NB40 Slim Portable Blu-Ray Writer & DVD Writer , 3D BLU-RAY DISC PLAYBACK & M-DISC Support , Black Colour

Got it as a way to to get my physical DVD/Blu-ray collection on to a NAS device so I could use Plex on the local network

Cons
Has the old USB Micro connection for its USB 2.0 These are not the most robust connector, Speed wise USB 2.0 is fine as the data speed of USB 2 is faster than the max read speed of any physical optical-mechanical drive.

The original Firmware is "Big Studio" Friendly as in there are only so many DVD Region changes available.

Pros
The firmware can be updated/changed. If you don't know how then you should not be attempting this.

With said Firmware it should be able to read UHD Blu-Rays...

This drive s...view more Got it as a way to to get my physical DVD/Blu-ray collection on to a NAS device so I could use Plex on the local network

Cons
Has the old USB Micro connection for its USB 2.0 These are not the most robust connector, Speed wise USB 2.0 is fine as the data speed of USB 2 is faster than the max read speed of any physical optical-mechanical drive.

The original Firmware is "Big Studio" Friendly as in there are only so many DVD Region changes available.

Pros
The firmware can be updated/changed. If you don't know how then you should not be attempting this.

With said Firmware it should be able to read UHD Blu-Rays...

This drive seems to work fine under Linux.

Works for Blu-rays and DVDs

Disclaimer
Have not written any media as I do not have any media to write to or plan to write/author anything at this stage.
large portions of this review have been removed before publishing so as to comply with the gist of NZ copyright law as to instruct how to do is kind of not favored by law where saying it can is not a problem.

By: RobertC866 05/11/22

Verified Owner

good, portable, fast, powerful, Expensive.

These are all the things I look for in a Blu Ray Read Writer, However one of the criteria was not fulfilled which was expensive, but that doesn't matter anyway.

This drive plays anything, DVDs, CDs, CD ROMs, DVD ROMs, HD DVD, Blu Ray, BDXLs. It doesn't even matter if it is regionless, it will just play it anyway.

The only disadvantage of this little thing is that it eats up 2 USB 2.0 Ports on my computer, but then again, what do you expect if you have to supply both power and Data to a computer thing with Servos in it.

Overall ----> GOOD good, portable, fast, powerful, Expensive.

These are all the things I look for in a Blu Ray Read Writer, However one of the criteria was not fulfilled which was expensive, but that doesn't matter anyway.

This drive plays anything, DVDs, CDs, CD ROMs, DVD ROMs, HD DVD, Blu Ray, BDXLs. It doesn't even matter if it is regionless, it will just play it anyway.

The only disadvantage of this little thing is that it eats up 2 USB 2.0 Ports on my computer, but then again, what do you expect if you have to supply both power and Data to a computer thing with Servos in it.

Overall ----> GOOD

Has given me the chance to watch disc media that has been region locked. good purchase. Has given me the chance to watch disc media that has been region locked. good purchase.

I still collect / buy physical media, Bluray, DVD, Games but I sold my old work station about two years ago and upgraded. My old PC had an LG Bluray Drive in it of which was the perfect workhorse. I was planning on purchasing an external drive for my new build anyway since my new case doesn't allow for a BD Drive to be mounted, plus I wanted my new build to have a clean aesthetic without the noticeable clunky BD Drive.

Read a lot of great reviews on this item, so I though why not jump at it, it's slim and stealthy looking which is what I was looking for in an external drive and it also needed to be silent whilst running.

Packaging:
Com...view more I still collect / buy physical media, Bluray, DVD, Games but I sold my old work station about two years ago and upgraded. My old PC had an LG Bluray Drive in it of which was the perfect workhorse. I was planning on purchasing an external drive for my new build anyway since my new case doesn't allow for a BD Drive to be mounted, plus I wanted my new build to have a clean aesthetic without the noticeable clunky BD Drive.

Read a lot of great reviews on this item, so I though why not jump at it, it's slim and stealthy looking which is what I was looking for in an external drive and it also needed to be silent whilst running.

Packaging:
Comes package really well inside it's tiny box which has nothing more than a picture of the unit and a few manufacturer details printed on the outside, I'm glad manufacturers are finally moving away from the ugly plastic clam shells and are keeping things environmentally friendly with recyclable materials. The drive was held snuggly by a couple of soft foam pads to prevent it from moving around during transit, inside the box has it's double ended USB power / data cable, a CD with bundled software and a small instructional leaflet.

Aesthetics:
The unit is typical of a stealth looking drive, you almost wont even notice it on your workstation because of it's slim design and dark color theme.

Powering and Data transfer:
It is recommended to use both USB connectors as one utilizes a single USB port to feed a sufficient amount of power to run it and the other for data transfer, buyer beware, using only one USB port would cripple it's performance and it may struggle to read or transfer data from your media disc especially Bluray disc's that hold more information.

Installation and OS compatibility:
The unit presented no issues with installation and was immediately detected upon plugging it into two free USB 3 ports on my Windows 11 PC, yes, this unit will run on a Windows 11 PC with the latest 22H2 update build version 22622.601 installed. User awareness, be sure you have x2 USB (either USB 2 or USB 3) ports free like I previously mentioned, this requires x2 USB ports to run at it's full potential.

Use and performance:
Ejection button is very responsive and the disc mounts securely into place, the tray slides in and out freely and locks securely into it's closed position, the supplied software disc spun up almost immediately upon closure of the disc tray which presented a few typical clicks and whines as the disc spun up. The unit presented no issues reading or playing back data, DVD's and Bluray discs although I haven't yet written or burned any media to disc (as I don't have any blank disc's) but I'll try that out at a later time. The drive is really quiet, I couldn't hear it working which is a good thing, there was no heat detected coming off of the tiny unit and the USB cables provided must have been doing extremely well with feeding power to it as unit didn't seem to fluctuate during playback of any media.

The bundled software included on the CD disc is Cyberlink Media Suit 15, I wont go into what apps were included as I most likely wont be using any of them since I have my own personal preferences already installed on my PC anyway.

Now for the downside which isn't really a downside but just me being nitpicky... For those who have a huge work station and have their PC's sitting under their desktop, you would need to have your PC close enough to manage a suitable or permanent spot for it to sit as the cables for this unit are not that long that they can be conveniently routed cleanly from USB ports at the rear of your PC, perhaps I would recommend that you'd use a couple of USB extension cables or a USB hub extension to have placement options.

Other than the short cable, I'm very happy with the unit as it will more than likely be used simply to backup my physical media library to my PC and nothing more. Would I recommend this unit? more than likely yes to those who are looking for a slim, quite external drive for either using with their desktop workstations or mobile laptops.

By: Tere 08/10/22

Verified Owner

Yes we have found this Blu-Ray player to be great as we now can play our disc's that we were unable to play on our standard Blu-Ray played as they were region blocked it worked just as hoped Yes we have found this Blu-Ray player to be great as we now can play our disc's that we were unable to play on our standard Blu-Ray played as they were region blocked it worked just as hoped

I have many discs, accumulated over many years. My latest computer has no disc drive. I could get one put in, or I could buy this product or another like it. I've found LG products to be good value, so I bought this. It does what it is supposed to without fuss. Installation? Just plug it in. No worries whatever. I have many discs, accumulated over many years. My latest computer has no disc drive. I could get one put in, or I could buy this product or another like it. I've found LG products to be good value, so I bought this. It does what it is supposed to without fuss. Installation? Just plug it in. No worries whatever.

Small, fast, quiet. Perfect! Small, fast, quiet. Perfect!

Have used as normal drive to read DVDs but not for Blu Ray disks yet.
Working great Have used as normal drive to read DVDs but not for Blu Ray disks yet.
Working great

Originally wanted an internal player/writer but I am glad I purchased this one instead. Compact and does everything. Originally wanted an internal player/writer but I am glad I purchased this one instead. Compact and does everything.

A good optical drive at a great price. Perfect. A good optical drive at a great price. Perfect.

Unless you have been living under a rock. you have probably seen all the Tik Toks and YouTube shorts going around about using MakeMKV and Plex/Jellyfin media servers. Bought this drive to digitalize my DVD collection, and works a treat with MakeMKV and my entire collection. Great that it worked out of the box without needing to download firmware or library updates* to be able to create backups.
Gone are the days of $80 5 1/4" DVD/Bulu Ray drives so this is a great alternative.
Note: The Power DVD collection that came with the drive is needed to be installed to update your pc with the correct database of libraries for backing up most media....view more Unless you have been living under a rock. you have probably seen all the Tik Toks and YouTube shorts going around about using MakeMKV and Plex/Jellyfin media servers. Bought this drive to digitalize my DVD collection, and works a treat with MakeMKV and my entire collection. Great that it worked out of the box without needing to download firmware or library updates* to be able to create backups.
Gone are the days of $80 5 1/4" DVD/Bulu Ray drives so this is a great alternative.
Note: The Power DVD collection that came with the drive is needed to be installed to update your pc with the correct database of libraries for backing up most media.

Only negative is it is still a micro–USB Connection, the requires a double usb port. But that's been the acceptable standard for most external cd/DVD/blu ray drives for years. Just surprising that a drive manufactured in April 2025 hasn't been updated to USB C yet.

By: LoganC68 23/08/25

Verified Owner

After finding many devices that were more expensive than this, decided to try the cheapest option I found online which was this one. really prompt delivery and such an easy set up - literally just plug and play. Is pretty quiet so when watching movies from disc there is very little background noise and has played a number of discs from different regions for me.
I am very pleased with this product and have already recommended it to a few people who have recently bought laptops with no optical drive. After finding many devices that were more expensive than this, decided to try the cheapest option I found online which was this one. really prompt delivery and such an easy set up - literally just plug and play. Is pretty quiet so when watching movies from disc there is very little background noise and has played a number of discs from different regions for me.
I am very pleased with this product and have already recommended it to a few people who have recently bought laptops with no optical drive.