Did Pioneer stop making BD-ROM drives or was there a big demand to install Windows 11 - Blu-ray Forum

HDTV1080P · 03-02-2025, 09:09 PM

I am not sure what is going on, but when I click on every single Pioneer BD-ROM drive, 100% of the drives are out of stock. Therefore, Pioneer either sold out of all their optical drives so that people can load Windows 11 from a DVD-ROM disc, or Pioneer might have decided to stop making internal and external BD-ROM drives.

https://usa.pioneer/collections/optical-drives

apollo828 · 03-03-2025, 08:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HDTV1080P

Therefore, Pioneer either sold out of all their optical drives so that people can load Windows 11 from a DVD-ROM disc

No. That's your usual baseless speculation. It's been trivial for years to make a thumb drive that can be used to install Windows. The same people unable to figure out that one and who would insist on an optical drive to install Windows would not buy Pioneer drives, which are possibly the most expensive optical drives today. I guarantee that most of them would just punch "DVD computer drive" into Amazon and buy the cheapest one that pops up.

HDTV1080P · 03-05-2025, 01:02 AM

That is not a valid answer to my question. There are over 1.4 billion Windows users using Windows 10 or Windows 11. Its my understanding that there have been over 100 million Windows 11 DVD-ROM discs made, someone can correct me if I am wrong. Yes USB stick is a option from Microsoft for Windows 11, however I hope that is a special USB stick that is read only since I would hate to have someone by mistake format the USB stick. Most Windows users have been installing by DVD-ROM drives for over two decades (Since XP in 2001 and then CD-ROM between 1990 to 2000). Most likely 95% of desktop users are doing a Windows 11 DVD-ROM disc and maybe 30% to 40% of portable computers are USB stick with 60% to 70% being DVD-ROM. BD-ROM drives first started appearing in 2007 one year after the format launch and for around 18 years some people have been using a DVD-ROM disc in a BD-ROM drive to install Windows.

The big question that was not answered, why is Pioneer out of stock on optical drives? They either sold out or they stopped production.

https://www.newegg.com/microsoft-win...82E16832350882

apollo828 · 03-05-2025, 05:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HDTV1080P

That is not a valid answer to my question.

Next time, try sticking to a simple question instead of inserting whatever wild notion runs through your head. You'll get better answers that way.

As for whether or not Pioneer is still making drives, ask them. I'm sure there's an email address you can try, or a chat agent, or whatever.

deatheats · 03-05-2025, 05:47 AM

Definitely not a shortage caused by Windows 11 installs.
Both the ISO and a USB creation tool are free to download directly from Microsoft.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/soft...load/windows11

No need to worry about accidentally formatting the USB, you can just download it again. A lot of users probably don’t even need to do that as they are upgrading from Win 10 (via Windows update) or buying a PC already installed with Win 11.

armus · 04-14-2025, 09:53 PM

One vendor claims that "Pioneer has unfortunately ceased global manufacturing and support for optical drives".

BijouMan · 04-15-2025, 05:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HDTV1080P

I am not sure what is going on, but when I click on every single Pioneer BD-ROM drive, 100% of the drives are out of stock. Therefore, Pioneer either sold out of all their optical drives so that people can load Windows 11 from a DVD-ROM disc, or Pioneer might have decided to stop making internal and external BD-ROM drives.

https://usa.pioneer/collections/optical-drives

Windows 11 is distributed on flash drives, and is available online as an upgrade from Windows 10 if your machine is new enough. Also, M-DISCs supposedly last at least 1,000 years, so how can you declare disc drives as something the world no longer needs when not even 25 years have passed since the introduction of the Blu-ray Disc system?

HDTV1080P · 04-17-2025, 12:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BijouMan

Windows 11 is distributed on flash drives, and is available online as an upgrade from Windows 10 if your machine is new enough. Also, M-DISCs supposedly last at least 1,000 years, so how can you declare disc drives as something the world no longer needs when not even 25 years have passed since the introduction of the Blu-ray Disc system?

The Blu-ray format launched 19 years ago in the year 2006. I have been a huge supporter of Pioneer products since in general they are the best quality when compared to the competition. My family members and I own many Pioneer Elite Signature series plasma screens (2008 model) that were engineered in Japan and assembled in a USA factory using hand selected components from around the world. That USA factory was closed in April 2009 when Pioneer exited the plasma screen business. My family members and I also own many Pioneer Elite 7.1 surround sound A/V receivers made in 2008 and later dates (all working perfectly fine).

I have so far not seen a Pioneer optical drive break and not even a belt replacement ever needed, versus other brands sometimes breaking in 1 year. A Pioneer DVD-ROM drive from the year 2007 still works perfectly fine in a very old computer. I and family members still own several Pioneer 4K BD-ROM drives that were made around the year 2017+ and they work fine.

My point is the 20th and 21st Century I have been a big supporter of Pioneer products going all the way back to the Pioneer Laserdisc days. It came as a huge shock to learn that Pioneer was out of stock and possible stopped making all optical disc drives for computers. This is the year people are buying Windows 11 Professional 64 bit on a DVD-ROM disc, and extremely weird that one cannot find a Pioneer or LG BD-ROM drive in stock. Its even hard to find a DVD-ROM drive in stock from some places (less selection and older models to choose from instead of the newer models).

So when I get around to making a new PC I most likely will need to remove a old Pioneer BD-ROM drive from a old PC and install it in a new PC that I am building. I prefer to load windows from a optical disc since it’s a secure install since no hacker can make changes to stamped (pressed) optical discs.

This really upsets me that I cannot purchase a new BD-ROM drive from Pioneer and LG. Some people claim its more then the drives being out of stock but instead the drives going out of production. But since its hard to find a good selection of DVD-ROM drives in stock then most likely one of the issues is companies and individuals building new PC’s is causing a shortage of computer parts.

https://usa.pioneer/collections/optical-drives

https://www.newegg.com/microsoft-win...82E16832350882

HDTV1080P · 05-15-2025, 02:33 AM

In the 1980's Pioneer Laserdisc players were what videophiles and audiophiles wanted to own.

SELECT QUOTES from article:

"Japanese brand Pioneer has announced that it has bid farewell to the optical disc market."

"It was one of the last big Japanese companies to make optical drives after more than 30 years as a leader in CD, DVD, and Blu-ray drive technology."

"The last 4K Blu-ray players the company produced were the UDP-LX500 and UDP-LX800 in 2019. We had the former in our test rooms and gave it five stars for its crisp picture and expressive sound."

"This announcement is more about the brand’s computer disc drives, which it has continued to produce since pulling out of the Blu-ray player market."

"As I’m sure you’re aware, manufacturers have been pulling out of the Blu-ray player market at a disappointing rate, with LG the last major brand to have pulled the plug."

https://www.twice.com/product/video/...esy-of-pioneer

HDTV1080P · 05-15-2025, 03:33 AM

From what I am reading 4K Blu-ray BD-ROM computer drives are no longer being made anymore for computers (at least that is what I understand). Also Pioneer no longer makes any type of optical disc drives including no longer making standard 2K Blu-ray computer drives. Some articles are also reporting that LG has stopped making all optical drives for computers. If this is true then both Pioneer a Japanese company and LG a South Korean company is no longer making optical disc drives.

It appears some of the companies from China are making low cost 2K Blu-ray rom drives that support 128GB BDXL discs and M-Disc technology. But it sounds like these new drives will not read 4K Blu-ray discs, which is fine from a security point of view since there exists no authorized software to playback 4K Blu-ray discs from a Windows PC.

ASUS BW-16D1HT 16 times internal BD-ROM drive $129.99 list price, around $118 street price (supports M-Disc and 128GB BDXL discs)

https://www.asus.com/us/motherboards...rive/bw16d1ht/

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ..._ray_disc.html

https://www.amazon.com/Asus-90DD0200...dp/B00DRHOL44/

ASUS EXTERNAL 16 times BD-ROM drive for $179.99 list price or around $166 street price. (supports M-Disc and 128GB BDXL discs)

https://www.asus.com/us/motherboards...ve/bw-16d1x-u/

https://www.amazon.com/Computer-Inte...dp/B071VP89X1/

ASUS SBW-06D2X-U - portable 6X Blu-ray slim burner for $119.99. Drive supports M-DISC and 128GB BDXL discs
https://www.asus.com/us/motherboards...ive/sbw06d2xu/

Some low cost generic brand 2K BD-ROM drives from China are starting to appear on the market for around $62.99. But does not mention BDXL or M-Disc support. New 2-6-2025 model.
https://www.amazon.com/External-Port...dp/B0DW7T7MQG/

stonesfan129 · 05-25-2025, 12:47 PM

Honestly, I just think there is little to no market for this stuff anymore outside of hardcore PC enthusiasts. I can't remember the last time I built a desktop PC that had a 5.25" bay. Maybe >10 years ago on my old W7 machine. I've mainly used external enclosures (I have two with BD-ROM drives and one with a DVD/CD-ROM drive in it for ripping CDs).

Sadly, I think it's the same reason why Sony decided to get out of BD-R media. They're just not selling enough to really make it a viable business. Especially when theirs costed so much compared to the stuff CMC and Ritek are making which is way cheaper.

HDTV1080P · 05-25-2025, 09:12 PM

I just noticed that Walmart has the 16 times speed ASUS BW-16D1HT internal BD-ROM drive for desktop computers for only $99.99 with free shipping. That is $30 cheaper than everyone else. I prefer Pioneer but if they are not making drives ASUS might be the only other option.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/ASUS-BW-1...Drive/34040320

The external 16 times ASUS BW-16D1X-U BD-ROM drive that connects to any computer with a USB 3.0 or USB 2.0 port costs $159.99 with free shipping at Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/Computer-Inte...dp/B071VP89X1/

R3P0 · 05-27-2025, 02:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HDTV1080P

I just noticed that Walmart has the 16 times speed ASUS BW-16D1HT internal BD-ROM drive for desktop computers for only $99.99 with free shipping. That is $30 cheaper than everyone else. I prefer Pioneer but if they are not making drives ASUS might be the only other option.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/ASUS-BW-1...Drive/34040320

The external 16 times ASUS BW-16D1X-U BD-ROM drive that connects to any computer with a USB 3.0 or USB 2.0 port costs $159.99 with free shipping at Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/Computer-Inte...dp/B071VP89X1/

There will for a while be low cost options on the market. However most PC cases being manufactured now no longer have the 5.25" bay to support internal optical drives. If you want this option you will need to start using USB C or USB 3.1. Many of the better manufacturers are just simply not seeing the need to continue manufacturing these devices.

With regards to your comments on USB media for installation of Windows. This has been standard since Windows 10. Microsoft provides the installer for free now. It has 2 options

1. download a ISO to your PC, when you double click it will create a virtual DVD drive. You then click Setup and upgrade your existing Windows OS to the latest version.

2. Create USB bootable media. If you select this option place the USB stick in the USB port and select it from your drives. The Media Creation Tool will then partition and create the USB media for you. You then boot the media and install or upgrade windows.

Do not get offended when people are pointing out that Windows 11 DVD have not been a thing at all. MS has NEVER released a physical Windows 11 DVD ever. This has always been downloadable media or on a new PC a hidden restore partition on the HDD.

Yes you may have supported Pioneer for 15 years, but they have been and are done with the optical market, as they have been for the past 3 years. It sucks but the average consumer does not have the Gen X habits of having physical media.

HDTV1080P · 05-28-2025, 05:12 AM

Walmart now out of stock on the $99.99 ASUS BW-16D1HT. Some third party Walmart dealers selling the ASUS drive for $144.28 now. I was considering buying the ASUS drive, however since ASUS does not read native 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray discs I decided not too. At least my old Pioneer BD-ROM drive reads 4K Blu-ray discs even though there is no longer a official hardware or software solution to play the discs back.

In the ideal world all future internal and external BD-ROM drives should be made to playback 4K Blu-ray discs just in case the BDA comes out with a solution to playback those 4K Blu-ray discs from a computer. Its also possible that the BDA might mandate only 2K BD-ROM drives in the future like the ASUS since there currently is no legal software or hardware to playback the discs. Intel stopped making motherboards with SGX security technology and no legal software exists to playback 4K Blu-ray discs.

At least Microsoft still sells Windows 11 Professional 64 bit on a read only DVD-ROM disc. Only advantage of the USB install is USB is faster then optical discs. Stamped optical discs have the longevity benefit up to 1,500 years.

AfricanRabbit · 08-29-2025, 09:56 AM

I’ve been keeping an eye on Pioneer drives too and it really feels like they’re phasing out of the market. A couple years ago I grabbed one of their external BD units for ripping discs, and even back then it was already hard to find. I don’t think the shortage has anything to do with Windows 11 installs, most folks just use USB for that now. It’s more likely Pioneer is shifting their focus to car audio and AV gear, since that’s where they’ve always been stronger.

gates70 · 08-30-2025, 01:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AfricanRabbit

I’ve been keeping an eye on Pioneer drives too and it really feels like they’re phasing out of the market. A couple years ago I grabbed one of their external BD units for ripping discs, and even back then it was already hard to find. I don’t think the shortage has anything to do with Windows 11 installs, most folks just use USB for that now. It’s more likely Pioneer is shifting their focus to car audio and AV gear, since that’s where they’ve always been stronger.

03-02-2025, 09:09 PM	#1
HDTV1080P Blu-ray Champion Top contributor Member since:Jan 2007 Blu-ray reviews: 205	Did Pioneer stop making BD-ROM drives or was there a big demand to install Windows 11 I am not sure what is going on, but when I click on every single Pioneer BD-ROM drive, 100% of the drives are out of stock. Therefore, Pioneer either sold out of all their optical drives so that people can load Windows 11 from a DVD-ROM disc, or Pioneer might have decided to stop making internal and external BD-ROM drives. https://usa.pioneer/collections/optical-drives

03-05-2025, 01:02 AM	#3
HDTV1080P Blu-ray Champion Top contributor Member since:Jan 2007 Blu-ray reviews: 205	That is not a valid answer to my question. There are over 1.4 billion Windows users using Windows 10 or Windows 11. Its my understanding that there have been over 100 million Windows 11 DVD-ROM discs made, someone can correct me if I am wrong. Yes USB stick is a option from Microsoft for Windows 11, however I hope that is a special USB stick that is read only since I would hate to have someone by mistake format the USB stick. Most Windows users have been installing by DVD-ROM drives for over two decades (Since XP in 2001 and then CD-ROM between 1990 to 2000). Most likely 95% of desktop users are doing a Windows 11 DVD-ROM disc and maybe 30% to 40% of portable computers are USB stick with 60% to 70% being DVD-ROM. BD-ROM drives first started appearing in 2007 one year after the format launch and for around 18 years some people have been using a DVD-ROM disc in a BD-ROM drive to install Windows. The big question that was not answered, why is Pioneer out of stock on optical drives? They either sold out or they stopped production. https://www.newegg.com/microsoft-win...82E16832350882 Last edited by HDTV1080P; 03-05-2025 at 01:10 AM.

05-15-2025, 02:33 AM	#9
HDTV1080P Blu-ray Champion Top contributor Member since:Jan 2007 Blu-ray reviews: 205	The Future Of Physical Discs Just Suffered Another Blow Courtesy Of Pioneer In the 1980's Pioneer Laserdisc players were what videophiles and audiophiles wanted to own. SELECT QUOTES from article: "Japanese brand Pioneer has announced that it has bid farewell to the optical disc market." "It was one of the last big Japanese companies to make optical drives after more than 30 years as a leader in CD, DVD, and Blu-ray drive technology." "The last 4K Blu-ray players the company produced were the UDP-LX500 and UDP-LX800 in 2019. We had the former in our test rooms and gave it five stars for its crisp picture and expressive sound." "This announcement is more about the brand’s computer disc drives, which it has continued to produce since pulling out of the Blu-ray player market." "As I’m sure you’re aware, manufacturers have been pulling out of the Blu-ray player market at a disappointing rate, with LG the last major brand to have pulled the plug." https://www.twice.com/product/video/...esy-of-pioneer

05-15-2025, 03:33 AM	#10
HDTV1080P Blu-ray Champion Top contributor Member since:Jan 2007 Blu-ray reviews: 205	From what I am reading 4K Blu-ray BD-ROM computer drives are no longer being made anymore for computers (at least that is what I understand). Also Pioneer no longer makes any type of optical disc drives including no longer making standard 2K Blu-ray computer drives. Some articles are also reporting that LG has stopped making all optical drives for computers. If this is true then both Pioneer a Japanese company and LG a South Korean company is no longer making optical disc drives. It appears some of the companies from China are making low cost 2K Blu-ray rom drives that support 128GB BDXL discs and M-Disc technology. But it sounds like these new drives will not read 4K Blu-ray discs, which is fine from a security point of view since there exists no authorized software to playback 4K Blu-ray discs from a Windows PC. ASUS BW-16D1HT 16 times internal BD-ROM drive $129.99 list price, around $118 street price (supports M-Disc and 128GB BDXL discs) https://www.asus.com/us/motherboards...rive/bw16d1ht/ https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ..._ray_disc.html https://www.amazon.com/Asus-90DD0200...dp/B00DRHOL44/ ASUS EXTERNAL 16 times BD-ROM drive for $179.99 list price or around $166 street price. (supports M-Disc and 128GB BDXL discs) https://www.asus.com/us/motherboards...ve/bw-16d1x-u/ https://www.amazon.com/Computer-Inte...dp/B071VP89X1/ ASUS SBW-06D2X-U - portable 6X Blu-ray slim burner for $119.99. Drive supports M-DISC and 128GB BDXL discs https://www.asus.com/us/motherboards...ive/sbw06d2xu/ Some low cost generic brand 2K BD-ROM drives from China are starting to appear on the market for around $62.99. But does not mention BDXL or M-Disc support. New 2-6-2025 model. https://www.amazon.com/External-Port...dp/B0DW7T7MQG/ Last edited by HDTV1080P; 05-15-2025 at 03:44 AM.

03-05-2025, 05:47 AM	#5
deatheats Expert Member Top contributor Member since:Dec 2020 4K collection:812 Blu-ray collection:2574 DVD collection:61	Definitely not a shortage caused by Windows 11 installs. Both the ISO and a USB creation tool are free to download directly from Microsoft. https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/soft...load/windows11 No need to worry about accidentally formatting the USB, you can just download it again. A lot of users probably don’t even need to do that as they are upgrading from Win 10 (via Windows update) or buying a PC already installed with Win 11.

04-14-2025, 09:53 PM	#6
armus Active Member Member since:May 2020	One vendor claims that "Pioneer has unfortunately ceased global manufacturing and support for optical drives".

05-25-2025, 12:47 PM	#11
stonesfan129 Special Member Member since:Jun 2016 Location:Wisconsin Blu-ray collection:122 DVD collection:10 Trading Score:2	Honestly, I just think there is little to no market for this stuff anymore outside of hardcore PC enthusiasts. I can't remember the last time I built a desktop PC that had a 5.25" bay. Maybe >10 years ago on my old W7 machine. I've mainly used external enclosures (I have two with BD-ROM drives and one with a DVD/CD-ROM drive in it for ripping CDs). Sadly, I think it's the same reason why Sony decided to get out of BD-R media. They're just not selling enough to really make it a viable business. Especially when theirs costed so much compared to the stuff CMC and Ritek are making which is way cheaper.

05-25-2025, 09:12 PM	#12
HDTV1080P Blu-ray Champion Top contributor Member since:Jan 2007 Blu-ray reviews: 205	I just noticed that Walmart has the 16 times speed ASUS BW-16D1HT internal BD-ROM drive for desktop computers for only $99.99 with free shipping. That is $30 cheaper than everyone else. I prefer Pioneer but if they are not making drives ASUS might be the only other option. https://www.walmart.com/ip/ASUS-BW-1...Drive/34040320 The external 16 times ASUS BW-16D1X-U BD-ROM drive that connects to any computer with a USB 3.0 or USB 2.0 port costs $159.99 with free shipping at Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/Computer-Inte...dp/B071VP89X1/

05-28-2025, 05:12 AM	#14
HDTV1080P Blu-ray Champion Top contributor Member since:Jan 2007 Blu-ray reviews: 205	Walmart now out of stock on the $99.99 ASUS BW-16D1HT. Some third party Walmart dealers selling the ASUS drive for $144.28 now. I was considering buying the ASUS drive, however since ASUS does not read native 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray discs I decided not too. At least my old Pioneer BD-ROM drive reads 4K Blu-ray discs even though there is no longer a official hardware or software solution to play the discs back. In the ideal world all future internal and external BD-ROM drives should be made to playback 4K Blu-ray discs just in case the BDA comes out with a solution to playback those 4K Blu-ray discs from a computer. Its also possible that the BDA might mandate only 2K BD-ROM drives in the future like the ASUS since there currently is no legal software or hardware to playback the discs. Intel stopped making motherboards with SGX security technology and no legal software exists to playback 4K Blu-ray discs. At least Microsoft still sells Windows 11 Professional 64 bit on a read only DVD-ROM disc. Only advantage of the USB install is USB is faster then optical discs. Stamped optical discs have the longevity benefit up to 1,500 years.

08-29-2025, 09:56 AM	#15
AfricanRabbit Junior Member Member since:May 2015	I’ve been keeping an eye on Pioneer drives too and it really feels like they’re phasing out of the market. A couple years ago I grabbed one of their external BD units for ripping discs, and even back then it was already hard to find. I don’t think the shortage has anything to do with Windows 11 installs, most folks just use USB for that now. It’s more likely Pioneer is shifting their focus to car audio and AV gear, since that’s where they’ve always been stronger.

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