CDRW Information submenu CD-R homepage | ECDC User FAQ | cheap media testing
Burners submenu Amazon | Pricewatch | current sales and rebates
Media submenu Amazon | Pricewatch | current sales and rebates |

In Search of the Cheapest reliable CDR

.

Short Version

On my old Memorex 2x2x6, S&F 8x20 burners (and on my Sony CRX140E 8x4x20 burner at work) I have found: This chart is based on my personal experiences; no scientific findings are suggested. [Note: I've stopped adding entries here: same patterns over time]

Cheap media tested

Unit priceMedia nameTypeFunction (out of 5)Appearance (out of 5)Durability (out of 5)CommentsRebate timetech infoimage
$n/a CD-Recordable.com 12x certified cd-r 5 5 na Free samples from CD-Recordable.com, in jewel case. Good quality feel and appearance. Very nice unbranded top surface, matte for clear marking. Jewel case fits spindle hole too tightly; feels like a struggle to pull the disc out of the case. The various colors are distracting; I would opt for plain or silver/silver media. I've had no problems with any of this media, and it seems to have a consistently good reputation. Might as well Buy American if the media is this nice! CdrID info image
$0.00 Sony 74 10-pack cd-r 5 5 na Taiyo Yuden media, free after rebate. Case flips out and stands up; see the pic. CdrID info image
$0.00 Prime Peripherals 200 pack 80mins cdr 5 3 na Free after rebate from OfficeMax. On spindle hubs, shrinkwrapped (no covers). 20010218 - 20010630 CdrID info image
$0.00 Prime Peripherals CD-R80 cd-r 5 3
Cheap looking		 n/a Free after rebate, in nice slimline cases. CdrID info image
$0.00 CenDyne 8x 74 spindle cdr 3
Had one 'bad media' error, discarded that cd.		 2 2 Free after rebate. Very rough media: lacquer bubbles and runs, grit on the edges. Top lacquer is very delicate; light scratching exfoliated the foil layer (should use Stomper labels on these for sure). Burns fine audio and data at 8x, though. 200011xx to 20010227 CdrID info image
$0.18 Samsung Premium 12x 74 spindle cdr 5 2 4 $8.99/50 after rebate from CompUSA.
Really ugly yellow, cheap-looking label, although it is admirably thick and tough.		 CdrID info image
$0.20 TDK Certified 74 cdr 4
I had a failure-to-close session error on one of these, although I'm not sure it was media-related.		 4 4 $39.99 - $20 rebate. IDs as Taiyo Yuden! Woo hoo! Branded top is tough, slick, and resistant to scratches. CdrID info image
$0.34 Kingston 8x 'sideless' spindle cdr 5 2 2 Works fine (verified to 8x), but the top is unbranded and apparently only single-lacquered., which is worrisome. In the scratch test the foil came off under light pressure, and basically fell off in sheets. Maybe a paper label is advisable on these?
The edges of the CD-R look drippy where the lacquer is uneven.
The 'spindle' was plastic top and bottom with shrink wrap around the sides. I had to store these in spare cakeboxes. 		CdrID info image
$0.40 Fujifilm 12x 80 spindle cdr 5 5 na The coveted Taiyo Yuden maker. The see-through lightweight type of disc. Maybe the TY see-through will cause nay-sayers to reconsider. Strange cakebox with spin-on top lock; I think I like the normal ones better. CdrID info image
$0.49 Kodak Gold Ultima 35-pack spindle 74mins cd-r 5 5 na Bought off kodak.com, free shipping. CdrID info image
$0.60 Imation 8x 74 spindle cdr 3
I have one drive that would not read two data (Joliet) archives I made on this media. Could have been a multisession error.		 5 na Nice finish, professional looking. CdrID info image
$0.67 Hotan CD-RW single jewel cdrw 2 3 na Fewer system lockups than with the Mr. Data CdrID info image
$0.67 Imation 12x 80 spindle cdr 4
One 'failure to read' problem on another drive. Might be a botched multisession.		 5 3 Nice looking cd (I like the green translucent look) but it scratches easier than I would have suspected. CdrID info image
$0.67 Mr. Data CD-RW 5-pack jewel cdrw 4 (was 2) 3 na My 2x burner likes these much better since I upgraded the firmware. This media works consistently in my MpTrip. (was: Diabolical; can cause lockups on my machine) CdrID info image
$0.99 Artmedia 8x Speed Premium single jewel cdr 5 5 na Attractive, minimalist white label. CdrID info image
$1.45 Sony CD-R single jewel cdr na 5 na Nice looking, if plain. CdrID info image
$2.00 Memorex Platinum 74 CD-RW 5-pack jewel cdrw 3
Seem to lose reflectivity or something after 15-20 burns - stereos that would play them previously start to skip or fail to seek. Still works fine on PC.		 5 na New disks are reliable for mastered and packet uses. CdrID info image
$2.24 Verbatim Datalife Plus single jewel cdrw 5 4 na Claims an "extra durable printable surface". Used successfully mastered and Packet/udf. CdrID info image

Function

Most CDR I have used get a 5 (best) rating, because I've rarely had problems that were specifically traceable to media problems. Where I did have problems or errors, I blamed it on the media. :-)
  1. unusable
  2. frequent failures, coasters, or lockups
  3. average
  4. consistent high quality
  5. perfect; never had any grief whatsoever

Appearance

Ok, you might think this is an unimportant thing to rate. But I frequently burn CDs for friends and business associates. I prefer decent-looking media to butt-ugly.
  1. hideous
  2. unattractive
  3. ok
  4. attractive
  5. professional and/or beautiful to look at

Durability

I test this with a pair of scissors. I see how hard I have to scratch to get the foil to rip/tear/score. Also see longevity below.
  1. delaminates by itself. Only useful for transport and other short-term uses.
  2. scratches under light pressure; you should handle these with care.
  3. scratches under medium pressure, like you were walking and bonked it good on the corner of a desk. They'll be fine with normal care.
  4. You'd have to really lean on it to mess it up. Tough media.
  5. seemingly indestructible. Use coasters to build a bomb shelter.

technical data

Technical info is gleaned from ATIP using CDR-Identifier, a brilliant (though now unsupported) utility.

$Id: cheap.orb,v 1.3 2002/09/16 14:21:14 mouse Exp $

This page best viewed with a monitor.

You can if you are not a spammer.

Amazon.com 100 Hottest Books, CDs, Videos, and DVDs.