Blu-ray software for Mac

June 4, 2014 7:13 PM

I'm looking for software to read Blu-ray discs on a Mac.

I recently acquired a Mac mini and decided to get this Pioneer Blu-ray optical drive instead of Apple's Superdrive. But the Mac can't read Blu-ray without appropriate software.

I'd like to be able to make full use of the BD capabilities of the drive.
Does anyone know of good BD software for Mac?

Google searches have led me to Mac Blu-ray Player. Have any of you used it? Are there other options I have missed?

Thanks in advance.

posted by nickthetourist to Computers & Internet (7 answers total)

You can play Blu-rays on a Mac for free with VideoLAN.
posted by I EAT TAPAS at 7:24 PM on June 4, 2014 [1 favorite]

Best answer: VideoLAN will play (some of) the M2TS that make a Blu-ray, but it will not read any of the advanced authoring features, and few of the basic ones. I work in the industry, and when I wanted to do something similar I broke down and got Windows 7, Boot Camp, and WinDVD 12.
posted by infinitewindow at 7:29 PM on June 4, 2014 [1 favorite]

If you go with the plan offered by InfiniteWindow, consider adding "AnyDVD HD". It breaks all known forms of copy protection and removes all region coding, so you can play and/or rip any BD.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 8:11 PM on June 4, 2014

Try VideoLAN. It's not perfect but it works well enough.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 8:23 PM on June 4, 2014

Response by poster: infinitewindow - that may be the best option since I do have a Win7 license I could transfer over.

I'm still curious about software I could run in OS X, however.

I just tried VideoLAN; doesn't seem to work.
posted by nickthetourist at 10:03 PM on June 4, 2014

The other suggestions present are all good options; you could also try MPlayer builds for OS X (MPlayer for OS X, MPlayer OS X Advanced spring to mind), or if all else fails, go with that Mac Blu-Ray Player program -- I bought my copy along with an OWC / MacSales Blu-Ray drive that seems to have done the trick quite nicely.

For anything other than straight-ahead viewing - like ripping and storing video files - I found a combination of Handbrake and MakeMKV worked really well. Ripped the whole of the Battlestar Galactica BRs, didn't even bother compressing it, and ended up with about a half terabyte's worth of digital files that lasted for about a month when I lost the drive holding them to a move (damn you vibrations!).
posted by northtwilight at 10:15 PM on June 4, 2014

Best answer: VideoLAN alone isn't enough — you will also need to install two files (decryption library and key components) for VideoLAN to read Blu-Ray:

http://vlc-bluray.whoknowsmy.name/

Once installed, VideoLAN should be able to read these discs.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 11:49 PM on June 4, 2014 [4 favorites]