HTPC question

[Sinbad]

So, I'm getting myself one of these HP Microserver jobbies to set up with OpenELEC and all that good stuff.
Just one question: If I slap in a bluray optical drive, will it be able to play those as well?

Thanks!

[snugglez64]

I should think so...

[ToxicBunny]

Yup...

Me personally though, I've got 2 ML110's sitting in a rack at home, will be augmented with 2 Microservers later this year (purely due to drive number restrictions) and I've just placed an order for an Apple TV3... that will become my XBMC frontend.

I don't ever actually watch physical blurays, and if I need to I have a PS3 for that.

[Sinbad]

Yup...

Me personally though, I've got 2 ML110's sitting in a rack at home, will be augmented with 2 Microservers later this year (purely due to drive number restrictions) and I've just placed an order for an Apple TV3... that will become my XBMC frontend.

I don't ever actually watch physical blurays, and if I need to I have a PS3 for that.

My PS3 is region A which is a bit of a PITA when renting a movie for the kids to watch :/

[Beachless]

I would check the specific drive for support before just buying it for a linux machine though.

I've heard that the blue ray drive drivers still need some work before most are supported.

[Sinbad]

I would check the specific drive for support before just buying it for a linux machine though.

I've heard that the blue ray drive drivers still need some work before most are supported.

I'm more worried about DRM/encryption/etc ...

[Mr_Bee]

My PS3 is region A which is a bit of a PITA when renting a movie for the kids to watch :/

Maybe you can watch more than you thought:

From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blu-ray_Disc#Region_codes

Some current estimates suggest 70% of available [movie] Blu-ray Discs from the major studios are region-code-free and can therefore be played on any Blu-ray Disc player, in any region.[123]

Movie studios have different region coding policies. Among major U.S. studios, Paramount Pictures and Universal Studios have released all of their titles region-free.[124][125] Sony Pictures and Warner Bros. have released most of their titles region-free.[126][127][128] Lionsgate and Walt Disney Pictures have released a mix of region-free and region-coded titles.[129][130] 20th Century Fox and MGM have released most of their titles region-coded.[131][132]

[Sinbad]

Maybe you can watch more than you thought:

From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blu-ray_Disc#Region_codes

Some current estimates suggest 70% of available [movie] Blu-ray Discs from the major studios are region-code-free and can therefore be played on any Blu-ray Disc player, in any region.[123]

Yes I have seen that a lot of the BDs in the video shop are multiregion - but there have been several that are Region B only.

[Mr_Bee]

Yes I have seen that a lot of the BDs in the video shop are multiregion - but there have been several that are Region B only.

I've just edited with more info on which "brands" to look for - see my previous post.

[Sinbad]

I've just edited with more info on which "brands" to look for - see my previous post.

Thanks.
Unfortunately, it doesn't help telling a 5 year old "no you can't have that movie cos the studios are a bunch of money-grubbing control freaks" :/

[ToxicBunny]

Thanks.
Unfortunately, it doesn't help telling a 5 year old "no you can't have that movie cos the studios are a bunch of money-grubbing control freaks" :/

You could try though... but you'll probably get the temper tantrum...

[akescpt]

My PS3 is region A which is a bit of a PITA when renting a movie for the kids to watch :/

kids couldnt care any less about the quality. an AVI will do nicely for them...just as long as they can watch it over and over and over and then again over!!

[Sinbad]

kids couldnt care any less about the quality. an AVI will do nicely for them...just as long as they can watch it over and over and over and then again over!!

lol true...

Just aiming for maximum functionality is all.

[russellO]

So, I'm getting myself one of these HP Microserver jobbies to set up with OpenELEC and all that good stuff.
Just one question: If I slap in a bluray optical drive, will it be able to play those as well?

Thanks!

I have the N40L MicroServer and it's awesome but I use it as a server not a HTPC.

Just a point to note with Blu-Ray and XBMC (I think all Linux HTPC distros?):

"However, XBMC does not naturally support original Blu-ray playback. By Blu-ray here I mean commercial blu-ray discs which are copy-protected. In fact no other than authorized BD players should be able to play commercial blu-ray discs. This is not an issue of codec; it’s about the copy-protections. Besides, XBMC need C/C++ open source software libraries for all of these things to fully support Blu-ray playback. However, there is not yet any C/C++ open source software out there yet capable of fully playing back Blu-ray. In order to play blu-ray with XBMC, you have to crack the BD copy protections including AACS (up to MKBv17), BD+, region code restrictions, etc. Now let’s see what can be done to make Blu-ray and XBMC work well and how to enjoy Blu-ray movies from your TV by accessing media in your XBMC media center. Note that you must have a BD drive in the first place to support blu-ray playback."

http://www.pavtube.com/guide/blu-ray-playback-xbmc.html

EDIT: This could help you out with XBMC if you go the Windows route - http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1678139