Buffalo has put out a fast new external Blu-ray burner that connects to PCs via a USB 3.0 interface. Rated at 12x speed, the BR-X1216U3 (page translated) is listed to be able to fill up a 25GB disc in 11 minutes, while also being able to write to single layer and dual layer DVD discs. All good and well, but there’s a few niggles: the fastest speeds can be had if your PC has a 5Gbps USB 3.0 port. Of course, it’s backwards-compatible to regular USB 2.0, but it limits the burning speeds to 7x. Also, it’s set to ship in Japan (for the equivalent of $450) by the end of the year, with no word on an international release.