Buffalo BR-X1216U3 Unveiled [Buffalo releases external Blu-Ray burner, powered by USB 3.0, 12x speed]

Buffalo recently released their HD-HU3, the first USB 3.0 external HDD, and now they’re keeping it up by releasing the first USB 3.0 external Blu-Ray burner. So far, its only being released in Japan but will come with a ton of features, including 12X write speeds and a USB 3.0 connection.

Even if your PC doesn’t have USB 3.0, you can use this thing with your old USB 2.0 ports (unlike their external HDD, it doesn’t come with a USB 3.0 controller card), except you’ll take a speed hit down to 7X (USB 3.0’s max transfer rate of 5 GB/s vs. USB 2.0’s of only 480 MB/s). You could even use it in a pinch as a Blu-Ray player (for your PC) as it includes playback features and will upscale the video (remember that not all early Blu-Ray burners featured playback).

As for the software, it’ll come with a full suite of CyberLink DVD software, including PowerDVD9, PowerDirector, and PowerProducer (Blu-Ray editions, all of them). The price will set you back $448. While it isn’t out in the US or Europe (yet), it would be a handy gadget to have if you ever needed to burn a Blu-Ray disc.