Cheap CD-Rs 12/15 Staples, Circuit City, Best Buy CompUSA, Office Depot, OfficeMax

[allisolm]

All from sunday 12/15 newspaper ads. Sorry, I didn't see any free ones.

Staples
$1.94 100pk Optimum (Khypermedia) 48X 496731 $37.98 less $16 Instant Rebate less $20 MIR
$2.94 30pk Sony 453963 $17.98 less $5 IR less $10 MIR

CompUSA
$2.99 50pk TDK 40X(pictured) 298543/292246 $19.99 less $7 IR less $10 mfr MIR

Office Depot
$7.99 100pk Imation 265-177 $44.99 less $7 IR less $30 MIR

Best Buy
$4.99 50pk Memorex 32X (pictured) 32024560/63 $22.99 less $8 IR less $10 MIR
$7.99 100pk Imation 16093 $44.99 less $17 IR less $20 MIR (oops I left these out)

Circuit City
$4.99 100pk Circuit City brand 32X (pictured) CDR100 $36.99 less $10 IR less $25 CC MIR

OfficeMax
$7.99 100pk Memorex 48X (pictured) 2004-4293 $39.99 less $17 IR less $15 MIR

 

[Reel]

Thanks. I just had a friend asking me for some CD-Rs last night. I linked him over here.

 

[eusebio]

Thank you very much for posting CD-R deals regularly

 

[MrPhelps]

Thanks

 

[fleshconsumed]

No worthy deals... 50 pack of memorex are CMC's... dunno about 100 pack, but most likely from CMC too... Sony- hm... questionable to say, heard some very nasty reports about them so I'll pass on it until I check it out...

Only thing left is TDK but it all depends on manufacturer. Anyone knows who manufactures those TDK's at CompUSA - TDK itself, Ritek or TY? Thanks...

 

[Tired of the Bull]

allisolm,
Your effort is greatly appreciated.


fleshconsumed,
Results vary greatly, I wouldn't dismiss a brand without trying it on your specific burner. I've used the el-cheapo brands for years and I've only encountered problems with Lead Data cdrs on a LiteOn burner (no problrms with my Plextor). The cheap CMC's have held up just as well as the TY's and with no more errors.

 

[Mallow]

Memorex CD-RW's have a reputation for being finiky. Anyone have any experience with the 4x ones? Officemax has a 25pk for 14.99 and I think I need some.

edit: sweet, 500 posts ^_^

 

[gsaldivar]

Thanks allisolm!

 

[vtqanh]

The Circuit City brand is actually Digital Media STI, which is made by Princo. For those of you who owns some Sony DVD players that plays only CD-RW, you may want to try this, some models will take these CDRs. I have the Sony 560D, which supposedly plays CD-RW only. It, however, plays this media fine (or any media that is made by Princo)

 

[Siniminister]

Originally posted by: fleshconsumed
No worthy deals... 50 pack of memorex are CMC's... dunno about 100 pack, but most likely from CMC too

Actually, from what I've seen recently Memorex 50 spindles can be CMC, TY, or Prodisc.

 

[Weezerbiatch]

Why does that optimum 100 pack from staples show up as $38? Shoulnd't it be 22 because its a super buy or whatever automatically? Or does it get changed somewhere else down the line?

 

[TheFreakazoid]

Agree with Tired about the media, and Mallow - I got a bunch of Memorex 4X CD-RWs and all but 1 were messed up after a single burn. Tried about everything I can think of but they will NOT erase. So I'd stay away from them, although it's hard since there aren't a lot of high-speed CD-RWs manufacturers out there.

And thanks allisolm, this is always a ? that I have on Sun morn!

 

[optoman]

Just picked up the Optimum from Staples and the TDKs from CompUSA.

TDK: CMC Magnetics, CD-R, 79:59.71

Optimum: CMC Magnetics, CD-R, 79:59.71

They work perfectly fine.

 

[fleshconsumed]

Tired of the Bull
Results vary greatly, I wouldn't dismiss a brand without trying it on your specific burner. I've used the el-cheapo brands for years and I've only encountered problems with Lead Data cdrs on a LiteOn burner (no problrms with my Plextor). The cheap CMC's have held up just as well as the TY's and with no more errors.
Well, I burned about 150 CMC's (Verbatim ValueLife and Imation) on sony CRX1000e and my LG 8160B, and I tested all of them using nero CDspeed. I know that CDspeed is no way to test CDR's for quality (I do have Sony 195a that is capable of returning C1/C2 errors but it's on other machine that does not have DOS/Win9x installed), but reading speed is inversely proportional to the level of C1/C2 errors: the more C1 errors there are, the slower the reading speed will be. And all my CMC CDRs have awfull reading graph after 65 minutes that falls to the bottom and it seems that those CDrs deteriorate with time. Those CMC that I have burned couple of months ago finish reading test at 20x, those that I burned two years ago at 2-4x... On the other hand a three-year old TY has a perfect reading graph...

I would have followed your advice and try to burn some CMCs on my Sony, but I don't have any and I don't want to buy any just to test...

I'm probably gonna test all my CDRs on my Sony for C1/C2 errors even if I have to put the drive into another machine.

Siniminister
Only those Memorex's that are made in Japan are TY's, all others are CMC's and probably Prodiscs (never heard before that Memorex uses Prodisk as a media). And those Memorex's that are on sale are made in Taiwan.

Optoman
So those TDK's are also by CMC's...? That's gotta be a new low for TDK They have never used CMC's before...

PS went to OfficeMax - their Memorex's are also made in Taiwan - meaning CMC...

 

[optoman]

fleshconsumed is probably right about the cdrs not lasting as long. I use the higher quality cdrs to backup important data and the cheaper ones to send out to friends and make backup copies of software cds. I don't use the originals, just the backups. I have never had a cdr go bad on me yet but I do find that when you burn a cdr at high speeds >24X, the cheaper cdrs will tend to have more errors.

 

[Siniminister]

Originally posted by: fleshconsumed
Tired of the Bull
Siniminister
Only those Memorex's that are made in Japan are TY's, all others are CMC's and probably Prodiscs (never heard before that Memorex uses Prodisk as a media). And those Memorex's that are on sale are made in Taiwan.

Actually, there's no way of knowing until you get to the store. The quotes in any given ad for a particular speed or particular packaging should be taken with a grain of salt. This especially applies to Best Buy, which is where I do the majority of my CDR shopping on a nearly weekly basis.

Also, it will vary store to store as to the availability of Taiwan vs. Japan media. Again, from past experiences driving to 3 Best Buys.

 

[vfdfs2]

May i have this as my christmas present, "post cheap CD-R deals weekly"?

 

[Mallow]

geez, you have to buy cd-rs on a weekly basis? what on earth do you do with them?

 

[DVDdude]

*** GET THE 100 PACK IMATIONS FOR FREE (after rebate) AT OFFICE DEPOT ***

I did this today :

Buy the 100 pack imations at Office Depot for $37.99 with $30 rebate.
Pricematch them to Best Buy's Sunday ad ($27.99 with $20 rebate).

Total cost at Office Depot : $27.99 + tax.

Send in Office Depot $30 rebate and get the 100 pack FOR FREE!

 

[l31itz]

Originally posted by: DVDdude
*** GET THE 100 PACK IMATIONS FOR FREE (after rebate) AT OFFICE DEPOT ***

I did this today :

Buy the 100 pack imations at Office Depot for $37.99 with $30 rebate.
Pricematch them to Best Buy's Sunday ad ($27.99 with $20 rebate).

Total cost at Office Depot : $27.99 + tax.

Send in Office Depot $30 rebate and get the 100 pack FOR FREE!

Man, that's genius. I think I'll try that too =)

But first I have to go and get my favorite memorex CDRs

great post!!

 

[RossMAN]

Originally posted by: eusebio
Thank you very much for posting CD-R deals regularly

Another grateful thank you.

 

[fleshconsumed]

Siniminister
I was at the OfficeMax today, their Memorex 100 pack is from Taiwan, I was also at the BB, since it's only 200 yards away from OfficeMax and their Memorex'es are also from Taiwan.

Also, it will vary store to store as to the availability of Taiwan vs. Japan media. Again, from past experiences driving to 3 Best Buys.
Dunno about that... I compared Memorex'es from Taiwan and from Japan - they had different SKU's, and the rebate was only on the ones made in Taiwan, which makes me believe that it will be the same in other stores (I don't think BB managers can choose which CDR's will be on sale - from Taiwan or from Japan). Besides I don't see Japanese Memorex'es as often as a year or two ago - it seems that Memorex does not order as much from TY's as it used to.

Mallow
Cuz I burn a lot. Usually I burn anywhere from 25 to 50 CDR's per month and since they are quite expensive, I jump on every deal there is. Unfortunately not every week has good deals, ie this week there are no good CDR deals on quality CDRs. Of course 100 pack of Imations for $8 seems cheap, but as I said, they are CMCs so their quality is very poor.

PS if anyone buys SONY could you pop one into your drive and see who manufacturer is please?

 

[cranston]

Dunno about that... I compared Memorex'es from Taiwan and from Japan - they had different SKU's, and the rebate was only on the ones made in Taiwan, which makes me believe that it will be the same in other stores (I don't think BB managers can choose which CDR's will be on sale - from Taiwan or from Japan). Besides I don't see Japanese Memorex'es as often as a year or two ago - it seems that Memorex does not order as much from TY's as it used to.

Flesh:

I found that on the Memorex 50 packs, the 40X TYs and the 40X "Taiwan-crap"s both had the same UPC code. I didn't look at the 32Xs or the 48Xs. Of course I was mildly surprised, and it touched off a series of "buy TYs at one store, and Taiwan-craps from another (where they were almost free after rebate), and then return the Taiwan-craps to the first store." Complicated? Sure, but I got TYs and that's what mattered. I chuckle to myself as I keep returning to some of those stores, and noticing "32X" TYs languishing on the shelves. People don't know any better, and I guess they must think those CDRs are "not worth it because they only say 32X." heh-heh.

As for the 100pks, it appears to me that the outer blue wrapper on the TYs wraps over the bottom, and goes to within a 1/4 inch or so of the top. The Taiwan-craps use what looks like a paper wrapper around the stack under the lid and it only goes to within an inch or so of the top. Dead giveaway.

Cheers,
Cran

 

[Damn Dirty Ape]

What program do you guys use to identify the discs' maker and all?

 

[RossMAN]

Originally posted by: Hellspawn
What program do you guys use to identify the discs' maker and all?

http://www.gum.de/it/download/english.htm