The Plextor PL-LB950UE Blu-ray burner has been available to Europeans for a few months, but now it’s coming to the US for $239.99. It comes in your choice of either USB 3.0 or eSATA connectivity, has a 12x write speed, which is twice as quick as the previous version and the ability to burn up to 50GB of data on a dual-layer disc.

The drive also handles 3D playback and has a low vibration system to make sure that it runs quieter and it is LightScribe enabled.

Plextor has a brand new external Blu-ray writer that feels the need for speed. It’s the PX-LB950UE. It offers a 12x write speed for single-layer Blu-ray media and 8x for double layer. Plextor has also included USB 3.0 and eSATA connectivity.

In-device labeling technology will help you produce professional-looking discs, while also offering burn accuracy, quality and stability thanks to a low vibration system and 8MB buffer. It can record up to 50GB of data to one double-layer disc at an 8x write speed. It will hit Europe later this month for around GBP179 (US$286).

Fox and George Lucas didn’t even give a release date for the arrival of Star Wars on Blu-ray at CES, but now we have some info. Amazon has updated its preorder ship dates to September 27th. It has 30 hours of special features and I’m guessing that none of them show Han firing first.

No official word other than that. They come in full Complete Saga form or either trilogy set by itself. Jar Jar says, “Mesa so happy!” Lucas says “Mesa make money!”.

Blu-ray recorders with integrated hard drives are no big deal, but Panasonic is offering something different in their DMR-BR30 that was announced for the Japanese market. It features a slot for swappable hard drives. The idea must be to mimic VHS cassettes. It’s not a bad idea really.

The problem is that you won’t be able to swap just any hard drive. You’ll need to buy Panasonic’s DY-HDD500 500GB hard drives for $240 each. It connects via a USB connection and is only supported in this recorder. Users will be able to copy videos from Blu-ray discs or DVDs to the hard drive or vice versa. But only if you have that hard drive.

LG’s BD690 has become the first Blu-ray player to get Wi-Fi Direct certification, allowing it to stream direct communication to other Wi-Fi devices without any middle-devices. There are no details on shipping or pricing just yet, but hopefully it will arrive soon.

The BD690 is expected to be able to stream Netflix, Vudu, and DLNA network content, as well as playing DivX HD 1080p content. Color us extremely interested.

Sharp’s latest 3D Blu-ray player is the BD-HP90, which is said to be the slimmest in the world. This player measures just 35mm thin and you can use it vertically or horizontally. As far as connectivity, you get a USB port, an HDMI interface, Ethernet and AQUOS Link.

It will do it’s duty with 3D Blu-ray discs, just be aware that it doesn’t support BDXL. The BD-HP90 should hit Japanese markets on November 20th for $495.

You can count on most notebooks and computers not having a Blu-ray drive today, though the Blu-ray drive is getting to be more common. With USB 3.0 ports now showing up on more computers we are seeing more gadgets specifically for these ports surface as well. Buffalo has announced a new USB 3.0 Blu-ray drive that can write media and play it.

The drive is called the USB 3.0 Blu-ray drive, it can burn BDR discs at up to 12 x speed, and it is capable of writing to CDs and DVDs as well. The drive connects to the USB 3.0 port for best performance, but it is also capable of working with the USB 2.0 port as well.

Toshiba has expanded its line of Blu-ray players with the new BDX3000. It’s the company’s first 3D-capable Blu-ray disc player. The BDX3000 delivers Full HD Blu-ray 3D playback with a suite of streaming content and comprehensive audio support.

You can combine this Blu-ray player with Toshiba’s all-new WX800 Cinema Series 3D LED HDTV and a pair of Toshiba 3D glasses. Some other features include DynaLight control and ClearFrame 240Hz technology. The BDX3000 also supports Wi-Fi and Ethernet for wireless access to streaming movies, shows and music.

IFA 2010 has brought us quite a bit of gear. You can also add the Yamaha DivX Plus HD Blu-ray player initiative to the list. They feature 1080p HD video compression with the help of a MKV container that’s incorporated in these Blu-ray players.

These are not only 3D-ready, but will also boast universal playback (BD, SA-CD, DVD-Audio/Video, CD) for a variety of media and formats. You can pick up the BD-S1067 in Europe and Yamaha intends to launch additional DivX HD Certified Blu-ray player models in North America.

Samsung has just introduced a new line of Blu-ray players that include their first portable 3D model, the BD-C8000, which will do 3D movies when attached through an HDMI output. The 10.3-inch display is only good for movies in 2D, though. As for battery life, you’ll get up to three hours on a full charge. You also get 1GB of internal memory, and Wi-Fi for BD-Live. The BD-C8000 is shipping now for $500.

Some other new Blu-ray players include the BD-C7900, C6800, and the C5900. The C7900 is the most promising, with dual HDMI outputs and other Internet features like Blockbuster, Netflix and Pandora. The C6800 has just one HDMI output, while the C5900 is an entry-level player.

If your laptop has both the USB port and the power, Plextor has a new device to bring Blu-Ray to your machine. The new PX-B120U is a USB-powered BD-ROM drive, which plays Blu-ray movies and even goes a step further with the ability to burn DVDs and CDs.

Those features are nothing special. It’s the ability to function entirely from USB power that we like. The device can also be converted into a living room player when connected to the forthcoming PlexMedia. At just $99.99 it is very tempting.

Philips Blu-ray players will now be shipping with BLOCKBUSTER On Demand, offering another way for Blockbuster to offer consumers instant access to the latest movies. It will work with the Philips 5320 and 7320 Blu-ray models.

They are a little late to the party on this one and we don’t see them knocking Netflix down anytime soon. Most of us already have a PS3, after all. But if this catches your movie viewing fancy, the On Demand service offers comprehensive on-screen search and browsing capabilities, as well as full details, ratings, trailers and additional information concerning each movie.

Still looking for an HDMI 1.4-compatible Blu-ray player? LG’s BX580 hopes that you’ll notice it and put it in your livingroom. The device is now shipping, more or less on schedule with what we reported back in May.

It is however $100 less than the $400 we expected. Amazon has it listed at $399, but add it to your shopping cart and it’s only $299.86. Not bad at all. Who’s buying one?

Blu-ray players normally just play Blu-ray discs, but Hitachi see them doing more. That’s why they decided to integrate a 32GB solid-state drive as well.

Hitachi is calling it the “Hy Drive,”. The idea is that the operating system and critical software components could be installed into the SSD, leaving your platter hard drive free for everything else. It could improve overall system performance. Hitachi launches the new drives in August.

LG’s latest Blu-Ray player has it all. The BX580 is a network 3D Blu-ray with HDMI (v 1.4), Wi-Fi, DLNA, external HDD support, NetCast and a USB connector. And now we know when it will ship, more or less. The BX580 has just shown up on Amazon’s website, priced at $399.99 and it’s listed as the company’s first network 3D Blu-ray player.

It will handle all of the upcoming 3D Blu-ray titles and ships with NetCast Entertainment Access, giving users the ability to enjoy web content.