Costco discontinuing Sony DVD-Rs?

[uchukaiju]

Have typically bought the 100 pack Sony inkjet printable DVD-R or DVD+Rs at Costco over the years. At least once or twice a year they'd put them on sale for $17.99, and I'd stock up. Went there today & noticed only a small supply of +Rs on display, @ $22.97. No minus Rs available whatsoever.

I asked an employee in the department what was going on, specifically when the yellow package -Rs would be back in stock. He said he doubted they'd be available again, as they don't sell very well (both -R & +R). His opinion was Costco wouldn't be carrying either, as soon as the last +Rs were sold out.

Anyone else seen this happening @ their local Costco?! If it's true, it's an alarming development!

- Mike

[GSP_87]

I noticed a few days ago, Costco had -R & +R of TDK instead of Sony.

[uchukaiju]

Do you remember if they were inkjet printable?! Thanks!

- Mike

[jman98]

Sony USED to use good manufacturers for media sold in the USA, but that hasn't been true for some years now. Honestly, Sony is just as craptacular as everybody else. Trust me, if recent Sony was meeting your standards for "quality" then you might as well just buy whatever crap Costco sells to take its place as you won't notice any difference. If you really cared about media quality you'd be buying online. TDK is just as bad/good (however you want to view it) as Sony is.

[jjeff]

uchukaiju, I was just at Costco today and noticed the same thing, that is only +R discs were available, It's been this way for 6?? months. I also used to purchase the Yellow packaging -R Sony printables and for the most part had good luck with them, I'd also wait for them to go on sale and stock up. Before that I would purchase Verbatims from Sams before they stopped selling them and switched to MemoWrex
I don't need the printable side so I now wait for Amazon to put AZO Verbs on sale for $20, I'm not sure what to tell you if you really need the printables, I think Ty makes printables but they are in excess of $30/100 probably closer to $40 so they'd be double what we got the Sonys for and for Tys you'd need to order online.

[dragonkeeper]

Sony USED to use good manufacturers for media sold in the USA, but that hasn't been true for some years now. Honestly, Sony is just as craptacular as everybody else. Trust me, if recent Sony was meeting your standards for "quality" then you might as well just buy whatever crap Costco sells to take its place as you won't notice any difference. If you really cared about media quality you'd be buying online. TDK is just as bad/good (however you want to view it) as Sony is.

I totally agree with jman98 on this, if Sony was good enough pretty much anything else will be good enough. I think Sony disk are currently made by Ritek. So if like Sony you can save yourselves a few bucks and buy Ritek branded media.

[hech54]

If it's true, it's an alarming development!

Not at all. The whole concept of printable media was/is a joke.

[jjeff]

....I think Sony disk are currently made by Ritek. So if like Sony you can save yourselves a few bucks and buy Ritek branded media.

FWIW I just checked one of my Sony printable -R DVDs and the disc ID was "Manufacturer ID: SONY16D1"
I also checked Sonys pearl top 50 spindle 16x -R at purchased from Staples and it was "Manufacturer ID: RITEKF1"
Like I said before I've had pretty good luck with the printables, less so with the pearl top ones, and I guess the ID partially explains why. Looks like according to DigitalFAQ SONY16D1 is 1st class media, archive quality. Found the RITEK but not F1 but as you said, probably low grade media.

[mail2tom]

I noticed the change from Sony 100's to TDK branded last weekend and thought they were just out of stock with the Sony's. I looked for an online source at a price similar to Costco, but what I found was the price was double the Costco price plus shipping. Guess I'll try the Verbatim Aqua Ace.

[jagabo]

I normally use Verbatim Datalife Plus but I was given a spindle of those SONY16D1 printable discs and they have been very good. No problems at all.

[uchukaiju]

I normally use Verbatim Datalife Plus but I was given a spindle of those SONY16D1 printable discs and they have been very good. No problems at all.

Despite what others are saying, I totally agree! These have been a solid performer for me for years now. If Costco is replacing them with branded non-printable TDK, I'm gonna have to find a suitable alternative. It'll be hard to find a decent ink jet printable DVD-R for around 20 cents a disc.

- Mike

[mail2tom]

In case anyone has a "BJ's Wholesale" membership, or knows someone with one, I received an advertisement in the mail that BJ's is carrying the Sony DVD-R 100's in their retail stores later this week with, I think, a $5 discount. The price was roughly $23 per 100.

[edDV]

My local Costco has a few Sony 100 packs left and a full pallet of TDK.

[uchukaiju]

In case anyone has a "BJ's Wholesale" membership, or knows someone with one, I received an advertisement in the mail that BJ's is carrying the Sony DVD-R 100's in their retail stores later this week with, I think, a $5 discount. The price was roughly $23 per 100.

Yeah, but not inkjet printable. Thanks for sharing that though.

[uchukaiju]

My local Costco has a few Sony 100 packs left and a full pallet of TDK.

They still had DVD-R (yellow packaging)? So far I've only been able to find DVD+Rs (blue packaging), at the three Costcos I've visited.

Once the Sonys are gone that's it. It'll be TDK branded non-printable for now on!

[mail2tom]

In case anyone has a "BJ's Wholesale" membership, or knows someone with one, I received an advertisement in the mail that BJ's is carrying the Sony DVD-R 100's in their retail stores later this week with, I think, a $5 discount. The price was roughly $23 per 100.

Yeah, but not inkjet printable. Thanks for sharing that though.

I guess the photo of the packaging in the advertisement fooled me. I may just swing by my local BJ's and check.

[edDV]

My local Costco has a few Sony 100 packs left and a full pallet of TDK.

They still had DVD-R (yellow packaging)? So far I've only been able to find DVD+Rs (blue packaging), at the three Costcos I've visited.

Once the Sonys are gone that's it. It'll be TDK branded non-printable for now on!

All were -R (Yellow). Roseville, CA store.

[uchukaiju]

All were -R (Yellow). Roseville, CA store.

Good for you man! Stock up before they're gone for good! Only +R (blue) are available in my neck of the woods (north west New Jersey), and I suspect those will be gone in a week or two.

[jjeff]

Just to reiterate, the ID of the Sony -R white printables(yellow packaging 100 spindle) I checked was SONY16D1(good) while the ID of the Sony -R pearl top(non printables yellow 50 pack) was RITEK(not good).
I would think?? the Costco Sony +R blue packaging 100 spindle printables would also be SONY but I don't use the + format and again my local Costcos only have the +R Sonys left, which it sounds like will be replaced with the TDK(not good) brand when they run out.
It's getting to the point where only landfill grade CMC will be available B&M and to get anything better one will need to order from a reputable dealer online. My local Office * stores which use to carry the good AZO Verbatim DVDs now only seem to stock the landfill grade CMC Life Verbatims and Staples is who sold me the RITEK Sonys

[solarfox]

From SuperMediaStore.com, a 100-pack of Taiyo Yuden "premium", inkjet-printable, 8X DVD-R discs is $35.99, or about $0.36 per disc.

If you "need" 16X, a 100-pack of Taiyo Yuden "premium", inkjet-printable, 16X DVD-R discs is $41.99, or about $0.42 per disc.

In other words, the price difference between these and your "bargain" retail discs, on a per-disc basis, isn't even enough to buy a gumball from a vending machine. The price difference between them in packs of 100 is about the price of a pizza. (OK, maybe two pizzas, if you're OK with Dominos specials.)

Now ask yourself this: if your data is worth so little to you, why are you even bothering to save it on DVD at all?

[dfisher052]

I was in a BJ Wholesale in Saratoga Springs, NY last week and they had Sony 100 pack -R for $19.99. They were not the printables. Was in a Cosco in Brandon, Florida about a month ago & they had Sony 100 printable for $29.99. If that's of any help to anyone.

[uchukaiju]

From SuperMediaStore.com, a 100-pack of Taiyo Yuden "premium", inkjet-printable, 8X DVD-R discs is $35.99, or about $0.36 per disc.

If you "need" 16X, a 100-pack of Taiyo Yuden "premium", inkjet-printable, 16X DVD-R discs is $41.99, or about $0.42 per disc.

In other words, the price difference between these and your "bargain" retail discs, on a per-disc basis, isn't even enough to buy a gumball from a vending machine. The price difference between them in packs of 100 is about the price of a pizza. (OK, maybe two pizzas, if you're OK with Dominos specials.)

Now ask yourself this: if your data is worth so little to you, why are you even bothering to save it on DVD at all?

It's not my data, these are for professional use. I typically go thru 100 or so per week. I've been using the printable Sony -Rs (from Costco) for at least 5 years now. The clients never complain about bad burns, so they must be pretty decent!

To go from under .20 per unit to .36 - .42 per disc is a lot of pizzas per year!

[GSP_87]

Do you remember if they were inkjet printable?! Thanks!

- Mike

The TDK I saw were silver shiny tops, I think. I have a 100pk of printable Sony DVD-R that say Accucore on the wrapper. Are the crap Sony's also Accucore? I'm wondering because I know the Verbatim wrappers that don't say Azo are likely the crappy non-Azo ones.

[GSP_87]

Also, my Costco, near the exit, has a thin binder where they collect and print what members request they carry and there's a box to drop notes into to ask them to carry certain things. The binder collects their responses to the requests. Try asking them to carry what you want. They're usually pretty good about carrying good stuff, I think.

[jman98]

The TDK I saw were silver shiny tops, I think. I have a 100pk of printable Sony DVD-R that say Accucore on the wrapper. Are the crap Sony's also Accucore? I'm wondering because I know the Verbatim wrappers that don't say Azo are likely the crappy non-Azo ones.

Looking for Azo wrappers is a waste of time. Verbatim's DataLifePlus series uses Azo and it never says so on the package. It seems to me that if you avoid the cheap Life series that everything else is Azo. I really do not get why so many people are just hell bent on buying media in stores and rolling the dice instead of buying online from reputable sellers so you know what you get.

[jjeff]

Do you remember if they were inkjet printable?! Thanks!

- Mike

The TDK I saw were silver shiny tops, I think. I have a 100pk of printable Sony DVD-R that say Accucore on the wrapper. Are the crap Sony's also Accucore? I'm wondering because I know the Verbatim wrappers that don't say Azo are likely the crappy non-Azo ones.

If those TDKs were a grey top(I'd say more grey than silver) they are for sure CMC and landfill grade, I believe all current TDKs are CMC. Just looked at my 50 spindle of RITEK Sonys and my 100 spindle of SONY16D1 and for the most part they look identical on the outside(they both say Accucore). The only difference is the white printables are SONY16D1 while the pearl top Sonys are RITEK. Kind of poor how Sony makes the wrapper the same on both but I guess this type of thing has been going for a long time, hence the need for a site like this or DigitalFAQ

[jman98]

If those TDKs were a grey top(I'd say more grey than silver) they are for sure CMC and landfill grade, I believe all current TDKs are CMC. Just looked at my 50 spindle of RITEK Sonys and my 100 spindle of SONY16D1 and for the most part they look identical on the outside(they both say Accucore). The only difference is the white printables are SONY16D1 while the pearl top Sonys are RITEK. Kind of poor how Sony makes the wrapper the same on both but I guess this type of thing has been going for a long time, hence the need for a site like this or DigitalFAQ

This is why some of us just say "Buy Taiyo Yuden and Verbatim". TDK media used to be good but not for quite a few years now. Sony has been hit or miss for many years now with it being a complete crapshoot what you get. Look, I don't care what any of you buy. The cheap bastards are always going to buy the 20 cents DVDs and come back here telling how great they are and how "I've never had a bad burn", etc. We've heard it all before. Then down the road we get posts from people crying about how "My discs won't play anymore. What happened?" and we find out that they used the lowest quality discs. Those discs "worked fine" for a few years and then they don't play anymore. We get posts all the time from various guys telling us that Sam's Club or Walmart or Costco, etc., offered some incredible deal on crap media like 100 for $10. Buy it. Take your chances. Just don't come back here crying when they don't work down the road.

[orsetto]

We get posts all the time from various guys telling us that Sam's Club or Walmart or Costco, etc., offered some incredible deal on crap media like 100 for $10. Buy it. Take your chances. Just don't come back here crying when they don't work down the road.

Amen, brother- triple Amen. Your post should be printed on the carton every of every new DVD recorder and burner sold.

I really don't get people who are unwilling to pay 34 cents (incl shipping) for a guaranteed good blank disc, who as a matter of principle won't buy discs anywhere but CostCo or WalMart and then only if they're 19 cents each in bulk. The plain fact is, blank DVD media became a profitless, useless commodity item to mfrs sometime back in 2006, so since then its all been dodgy except TY/JVC and Verbatim DLP/AZO. Today, even those two once-flawless brands have their share of "bad discs" in each package- and they're the best you can buy! Just imagine the crap that slips thru "quality control" for those Sony, TDK, Staples, Philips, and HP weekend sales at the warehouse stores. And yes, I used to really like Sony media- until they joined everyone else at the Russian Roulette OEM table in 2008.

[dragonkeeper]

[I used to really like Sony media- until they joined everyone else at the Russian Roulette OEM table in 2008.

Same here, I use to use Phillips or was it Ricoh which ever it was at one point they were highly rated and seemed over night they became crap. I then used Ritek (R4 or g4 as i recall) for while then they went to total crap so i switched to Sony I awas able to use them for a 1yr or so before i noticed Ritek ids on media. I've been using verbatim and TY exclusively for the past 4 years or so with out any problems. I tend to lean towards the Verbatim they tend to look better when printed on my Epson printer.