Unsafe at Any Speed

Update January 2008.



As I note in some of the commentary things can change a lot in two years. It's entirely possible that the "same product" that I had such bad experience with two years ago is actually very different today. While I avoid TDK products because they burned me with poor quality users seeking cost-effective and reliable media would probably be better off giving more weight to more recent reviews (which might better reflect whatever they are currently putting in this package) and/or a site that tracks media quality such as http://www.digitalfaq.com/media/dvdmedia.htm (although they don't seem to be updating that one any more) where among many other details you can find that TDK-branded packages have included media actually manufactured by TDK CMC Moser Baer and Philips.



My original review follows. FYI I have no interest in TDK or any other media mfr other than as a user.



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These disks are not made by TDK (they only make -R type) they are rebranded trash from CMC. I had 15% with obvious naked-eye visible defects (delaminations and voids in the dye layer) and for the "good" ones needed to burn at a sluggish 4X to get a decent quality of burn. Having burned more than 1000 disks using various brands I assure you - these are not a bargain they are garbage. Unless of course you burn at slow speeds and don't ever use the outer 20% of a disk.



UPDATE [late 2006]: I have been re-reviewing the burn quality of the disks that I did use. I am now finding hundreds of thousands of parity errors on every TDK disk (vs a typical 2 to 4 thousand on good disks e.g. Sony). THESE ARE WITHOUT DOUBT THE WORST DVD MEDIA I HAVE EVER USED. ANYONE WHO ENTRUSTS THEIR DATA TO THIS GARBAGE IS DOOMED TO DISASTER IF THEY EXPECT TO BE ABLE TO READ THE DATA IN AS LITTLE AS A YEAR OR TWO.



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Three packs and not one lost

These seem to burn really well. I've gone through three packs now without a single lost DVD. By the way if you have a lightscribe burner and haven't tried the actual label burning yet you've gotta try it. The labels look really good (considering that they're burned on) but the burning of the label can take more than 20 minutes if it's a complex label.



Overall a great product here in these DVDs.



Tom Carpenter

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As I expected.

Just as I have come to expect Maxell is still #1. I have been a Maxell fan for years considering that I used to sell their products. They were the best then and are the best now. Matched with my new Pioneer DVD writer it's an awesome combination.More detail ...

Good Stuff at a Competitive Pricing Point

This was my first experience using double layer media for burning so while I have no reference points to go by I must say I've not had a bad disc so far. I promise to update this review if things begin to change.



I have two versions of Nero (6 and 8) on two very different computers and I've noticed that they both automatically lower the burn rate to 4X (though I can pump it up to 6X on Nero 6) and wonder if speed accounts for the fact that "lesser" brands fail more often. I even have one of the hated Sony burners in my Core Duo 2 laptop with Nero 8 and it works despite being HUGELY slower than with a Lite-On drive installed in my ancient AMD64 desktop.



My only gripe with this product is oddly what drew me to it in the first place: the price. At $40.48 for a 30 pack you're looking at $1.35 per disc. I find it hard to believe that in this day and age when the product cycle for optical discs of this sort is quite mature that it costs this much to produce them. Can it really be more than double the cost of two single layer discs which can be had for 20 to 30 cents each at fairly reliable quality? Perhaps...I've never made them myself. I will conclude in Verbatim's defense that this is the lowest price point short of the widely maligned Memorex discs. That's why I chose them and all in all I'm quite happy.



P.S.--It might be interesting to hear from those who have used both these and the cheaper Memorex discs to see if patterns in why things head south do so. I'll let you know if I decide to bite the bullet and try the competition at some point.More detail ...

Excellent Value

In the past I've found DVDs from different companies may or may not be usable in all my equipment. Sony DVDs were compatible with all my equipment but they can be pricey. I was happy to find that these Amazon DVD were compatible with a wide range of equipment. We've already burned DVDs on an Apple IMac G5 Dell Inspirion 15 Sony DRX-840U DVD burner and Toshiba DR410 DVD player/burner. No compatibility problems. And they are priced less than $19 for a 100 disc spindle! Excellent!



And although Amazon touts their new "Frustration Free - Ready to Ship" packaging I received my package of DVDs in a small neat box marked "Ready for Shipping" INSIDE a huge box labeled C3 that was 19 X 13 X 8. I don't think the warehouses are clear on the concept yet. Although my account page allows Packaging Feedback on products I ordered none of my Amazon Vine products including this one are on the feedback page. But this minor flub did not change my mind or rating for these DVDs they are an excellent product.More detail ...

Memorex DVD+R DL The least expensive reliable Double layer recordable DVD

I've been shopping for the least expensive DVD+R DL online and found this Memorex 50 pack for around $50. This seemed the best deal around only if they worked!!!



I had used Verbatim Verbatim 2.4x Dual-Layer DVD+R DL Spindle 10 Discs in the past with no problems. So It was a gamble to order this item after reading many negative reviews. After receiving this item I started burning DVDs and had no problems at all. Every single Memorex DVD+R DL seemed to work perfectly!



For those who had trouble with this item I suspect a software or hardware incompatibility issues more than a problem with these disk. I use a 17" Apple Laptop Computer (2006 model) with a G4 processor at 1.67 Ghz. The software I used to burn the DVD's is Roxio Popcorn 3.0.2 (recommended) and the hardware is the built-in Apple Super Drive.



Compared to the next choice of Verbatim at $1.65 per DVD :Verbatim DVD+R DL 8.5GB 2.4X 20pk Spindle at $33 (today's price--I've noticed the price on the Verbatim to fluctuate from $32-$38- The memorex at $1.00 per Double Layer 8.5 GB is the best deal around with no quality issues.



Pros:

1-Double Layer DVD+R at 8.5 GB for a buck

2-Silver and a handsome looking writable surface (with a permanent marker)

3-Appears of a nice quality and no difference compared to other more expensive DVD+R DL

4- Works fine with my Apple factory Superdrive (G4)

5-Recorded (burned) DVD plays fine on all of my home DVD players as well as other computer drives



Cons:

None-still hoping for the price to go below a $1.00!

PLEASE SEE UPDATE AUGUST 2008 BELOW.



Conclusion: Recommended!

Tip: (I had success with Roxio softwares-Popcorn 3)



Update March 1 2008: Amazon dropped the price to $44.99 for 50 bringing the cost down to 90 cents each-An even better deal!



IMPORTANT Update-April 2 2008: I received one 50 pack Spindle with defective DVDs I tried only 2 with the same set up and software and computer and I kept getting error messages and the DVDs wouldn't burn. I returned to Amazon and requested replacement. The replacement seems to work fine like the previous ones that led to this positive review.



At this point It is questionable which batch you're going to get with some "defective" sets floating around the market or perhaps not compatible with certain drives?. The only positive thing here is Amazon's amazing customer service which allowed me to exchange or return the defective ones. Other sellers may sell you the defective batch and may not accept a return once you open them and try to burn one.



***NEW UPDATE: August 27 2008. I received two defective sets of 50 (total of 100) with the same setup mentioned above. I tried to burn every single one of them but ZERO results. Not a single one worked. I was able to burn some of the left over discs from the last order dated March 2008.



AT THIS POINT I AM WITHDRAWING MY RECOMMENDATION AND REDUCING THE 5 STARS RATING TO ONE! THESE DISCS MUST HAVE A QUALITY CONTROL ISSUE. I AM SWITCHING BACK TO VERBATIM AT A HIGHER PRICE PER DVD THAT I HAD NO PROBLEMS WITH SO FAR.More detail ...

"Premium" means "average" in non-Sony speak

Don't be fooled "premium" means "average consumer grade" in non-Sony speak. But that being said it's a perfectly fine tape for taping your kids at the local park or a ball game.



The main difference is that consumer tape isn't designed for archival storage so you may experience more drop-outs or tape delaminating as it gets older. More detail ...

"Premium" means "average" in non-Sony speak

Don't be fooled "premium" means "average consumer grade" in non-Sony speak. But that being said it's a perfectly fine tape for taping your kids at the local park or a ball game.



The main difference is that consumer tape isn't designed for archival storage so you may experience more drop-outs or tape delaminating as it gets older. More detail ...

AmazonBasics products are quality electronics accessories offered at a great value.More detail ...