[cing2x]

i will soon receive my new 15" alumibook

[Eug Wanker]

Apple, of course.

[hart]

what else?

Apple's are twice as much as buying a bulk pack of say, Memorex. Is it really any different?

[Eug]

Originally posted by hart:
what else?

Apple's are twice as much as buying a bulk pack of say, Memorex. Is it really any different?

Yes.

Memorex is a 2nd tier brand IMO, based on experiences I've read about around the net.

[zigzag]

I've only used Memorex on my iMac superdrive and have never had a problem, but I can only speak for myself.

Does anyone know who supplies Apple with their DVD media?

[wulf]

Of three or four brands I've tried that were equal in price or cheaper, Apple's DVD-Rs are the only ones that have always burnt consistently readable disks.

Some others would play back on the superdrive, but not in my (or my gf's) powerbook. Thus I have stuck with Apple.

[cybernezumi]

Only brands I recall actually having problems burning have been CompUSA's el cheapo house brand & Maxell. I'm running a Rev A 12" AlBook with patched 2x firmware and it seems to like Apple, TDK, Sony & Fuji media just fine. My old Pioneer DVD player is a bit pickier and seems to like Fuji best so I'm switching to it from TDK. All those seem to work fine for video in my PS2 as well.

[parsec_kadets]

I bought some generic stuff at shop4tech.com that's worked great so far. I just bought a spindle of 25, I don't need jewel cases all that much.

[nighttraitor]

I used TDK and i haven't had a coaster yet. I've burned about 10 DVDs.

[cybernezumi]

Hmm, another thing to keep in mind is that the media in single packages & spindles may not be the same even if they're from the same brand. Just noticed that the Fuji singles I have were made in Japan (usually better) whereas the spindles are from Taiwan. The label side looks the same, but the data side definitely has a different color (the single is a darker purple). Have to see how the spindle stuff works.

[superfula]

Originally posted by Eug:
Yes.

Memorex is a 2nd tier brand IMO, based on experiences I've read about around the net.

Hardly second tier brand. Memorex is just as good as Apple, and quite a bit cheaper. If you buy Apple dvdr thinking their better, your quite a sucker for Apple branded items

Any name brand stuff is exactly the same as the other name brand stuff. Sony, Memorex, Apple, etc etc. As long as it's not the cheapo wal-mart brand-type dvdr, your ok.

[Eug]

Originally posted by superfula:
Hardly second tier brand. Memorex is just as good as Apple, and quite a bit cheaper. If you buy Apple dvdr thinking their better, your quite a sucker for Apple branded items

Any name brand stuff is exactly the same as the other name brand stuff. Sony, Memorex, Apple, etc etc. As long as it's not the cheapo wal-mart brand-type dvdr, your ok.

According to the online reports:

Memorex --> OK but sometimes a coaster

Apple --> almost never a coaster

What more can I say?

The Sony, Mitsui, Pioneer, etc. branded stuff has a great reputation too. But Memorex is second tier.

For the most part, you get what you pay for with DVD-R.

[macbarry]

Originally posted by cing2x:
i will soon receive my new 15" alumibook

I've burned about 50 of the "CompUSA's el cheapo house brand" 1X DVD-Rs no problems whatsoever. I've also used dozens of 4X Apple, Fuji and Panasonic DVD-R's - once again no problems. I'm using an internal Apple (Pioneer 4X) Superdrive.

The only problem I've ever had with DVD-Rs has to do with paper labels - DO NOT EVER USE PAPER LABELS - as they tend to peel and bubble and could easily come off , get stuck in your slot loading DVD drive and possibly ruin it.

[michael_on_mac]

Originally posted by Eug:
According to the online reports:
For the most part, you get what you pay for with DVD-R.

I second that.

German magazine c't recently had a test, showing that Apple's DVDs produce most constant performance, least error rate. Though, the other "first tier" brands are almost equally good - being somewhat cheaper.

So if you stick to the ones priced higher (not highest), you should be on the safe side. This is what I'd also recommend for backup purposed, BTW.

Michael.

[sorkinesque]

i've been using generic 'hypermedia' for awhile now. they work/play on any mac i've tried them in but i've never tried them in a standalone dvd player. i did coaster a couple in my pbook's slot drive when i startled the computer setting it down on a desk.

[riverfreak]

Originally posted by Eug Wanker:
Apple, of course.

Really? I know the pat response is always to recommend Apple media but I think the only thing really going for it is its gaurantee.

I've had plenty of failures with Apple branded media, but at least you are compensated (if your time spent sitting on the phone and waiting is worth the $2-$3 bucks).

[Eug]

Really? I know the pat response is always to recommend Apple media but I think the only thing really going for it is its gaurantee.

I've had plenty of failures with Apple branded media, but at least you are compensated (if your time spent sitting on the phone and waiting is worth the $2-$3 bucks).

Apple has been amongst the most reliable for me. Not perfect, but pretty damn good.

The worst for me has been Princo. I will never buy another Princo disc again they suck so bad. Even 4X Princo is unreliable at 1X (and I've tested multiple burners).

i've been using generic 'hypermedia' for awhile now. they work/play on any mac i've tried them in but i've never tried them in a standalone dvd player. i did coaster a couple in my pbook's slot drive when i startled the computer setting it down on a desk.

The only way to make sure they work is to try them on multiple machines, preferably including older DVD players. I have an older Apex machine that is very picky, but always works with Apple media. Mitsui, etc. are also great. My other DVD players and drives are not so picky, but I don't want marginal compatibility. I want the best compatibility I can get (for a reasonable price).

The other thing is that you have to record right to the end of the disc to truly test it. Also, it should have high bitrates, and should be watched at the end.

Ways to "get by" with cheap discs is to:

1) Not use the whole disc, since the end of the disc is the most problematic. Discs often will play fine at the beginning and middle, but then will stutter at the end on cheap discs.
2) Use low bit rate video, since at lower bit rates pickier drives/players don't have as many problems. I've seen people recommend using 4 Mbps or less for this reason, and their advice is justified. However, I just think if it doesn't work reliably at 10 Mbps then it's not worth my time.
3) Record at speeds lower than it's rated for. On several brands (regardless if it's 2X or even 4X rated) if I record at 2X it is unreliable, but at 1X it's perfect. (And with Princo it just plain sucks period, even at 1X.) With Apple 2X media I can always record at 2X.

I've found it's with these types of vigorous standards do you really start noticing the problems.

Also, many people say that with data it's not as big of a deal with video. This is bad logic. They say this because while a video stream might start stuttering with a cheap disc, usually the drive works fine with data (presumably because of the fact that the computer can keep retrying the read until it pulls it off, sometimes at lower transfer rates). IMO, if it doesn't work with video, then I don't want those discs anywhere near my data.

[RoofusPennymore]

I have puurchased several brands to burn on my 1Ghz 15" TiBook. I have never had any issues burining on any of these brands. However when burning movies with iDVD the only brand that has played on a wide range of DVD players is Apple.

Supermediastore use to sell a sampler pack that came with 2 of several brands for you to try. Don't know if they still have it.