×
  • remind me tomorrow
  • remind me next week
  • never remind me
Subscribe to the ANN Newsletter • Wake up every Sunday to a curated list of ANN's most interesting posts of the week. read more

Forum - View topic
What is your preferred DVD packaging?


Goto page Previous  1, 2

Anime News Network Forum Index -> General -> Polls
View previous topic :: View next topic  

What is your preferred DVD packaging?
Spambot am I.
2%
 2%  [ 2 ]
Litebox
3%
 3%  [ 3 ]
StackPak/Spindle
0%
 0%  [ 0 ]
Thinpak
55%
 55%  [ 46 ]
Digipak
7%
 7%  [ 6 ]
Alphapak/Book format
8%
 8%  [ 7 ]
Funimation Viridian Set
4%
 4%  [ 4 ]
Singles
10%
 10%  [ 9 ]
Other
7%
 7%  [ 6 ]
Total Votes : 83

Author Message
Tris8



Joined: 30 Oct 2009
Posts: 2114
Location: Where the rain is.
PostPosted: Sun May 08, 2011 11:40 pm Reply with quote
Liteboxes are nice, but definitely my fav are the Digipaks. It just seems so satisfying to unfold each disk, and the art is pretty. It just gives me a lot more satisfaction when I buy the series and unfold it for the first time.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message My Anime My Manga
lilredphoenix



Joined: 05 Jun 2011
Posts: 156
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii
PostPosted: Mon Jul 04, 2011 11:08 am Reply with quote
Thinpaks are nice bec they do save on space a lot of the series I buy usually come packaged that way. I have purchased several series in Funi's SAVE collection and for the money saved it was worth buying anime this way.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail My Anime My Manga
OldCharlieStoletheHandle



Joined: 12 Dec 2009
Posts: 1288
Location: Mastic Beach, NY
PostPosted: Mon Jul 04, 2011 8:33 pm Reply with quote
I guess I got spoiled when I was able to buy all those singles with artboxes out of the TRSI bargain bin so I chose singles. Since I own a house space is not a big issue for me. They look the best and they are the easiest to replace if broken.

If, however, cost is the main concern (as it often is) my favorite is whichever costs less.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message My Anime My Manga
darkhappy1



Joined: 26 Jan 2009
Posts: 495
Location: PA
PostPosted: Sat Jul 16, 2011 4:01 pm Reply with quote
I chose digipaks even though my only experience with one is Funimation's Evangelion 1.11 Blu-ray. (That is a digipak, right?) I like how it looks and doesn't actually snap. Singles and thinpaks would be tied for second since I like the area efficiency of thinpaks but still like the size of singles.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
ailblentyn



Joined: 28 Mar 2009
Posts: 1688
Location: body in Ohio, heart in Sydney
PostPosted: Sat Jul 16, 2011 9:20 pm Reply with quote
I'm fine with nice thinpacks and tolerate liteboxes for reasons of economy. I have a definite soft spot for singles in an art box. I actually went for digipacks, though, because of the way the art is inseparable from the packaging. There's something nice about the fact that it's not just a standard case with a title-specific cover inserted, but that the art is structurally part of the package. (I also like those really one-off packaging designs, like the special Rurouni Kenshin boxes and envelopes.)

Like almost everyone, I despise spindle packs. I also dislike the alpha-pack: the plastic they are made of is in my experience just not up to the the structural demands the design place on it. Hinges break, and stop working properly, and flanges snap off, and the case ends up with shards of plastic rattling around in it and threatening to scratch the discs.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Sanosuke_Inara



Joined: 23 Nov 2009
Posts: 1662
PostPosted: Mon Jul 18, 2011 12:52 pm Reply with quote
Guess I'm not really experienced enough to make an actual vote, so I won't ATM. So far, though, it's either digipaks or thinpacks.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Spastic Minnow
Bargain Hunter
Exempt from Grammar Rules


Joined: 02 May 2006
Posts: 4595
Location: Gainesville, FL
PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 6:04 pm Reply with quote
Just got the bargain Moribito Bundle from Right Stuff and I'm rather impressed with the Super Jewel Boxes (never had something packed in these before); "Landscape/Letterbox" presentation, everything all nice and shiny, flip open cover with art below the disk, title on the inside of the spine so the booklet is dedicated solely to splashy picture, spine just barely less narrow than a thinpack but easy to read.
Although I guess they'll probably get scratched up and they have hinges that seem easily breakable (like a regular CD Jewel case) It is definitely very sharp looking.

I still support Digipak's as the best multi-volume packaging but I wouldn't kick a Super Jewel Box out of my bed for eating crackers... so to speak.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website My Anime My Manga
Ggultra2764
Subscriber



Joined: 21 Jan 2004
Posts: 3863
Location: New York state.
PostPosted: Wed May 16, 2012 2:16 am Reply with quote
Gonna have to go with thinpaks. Sturdy, durable, look attractive to buy with enough cover art on the cases and save on storage space for my shelves.

My nitpicks with other options:
-Stackpaks are quite inconvenient as a means to store DVDs. While they save on space as well as thinpaks, it's quite troublesome trying to open them up to get the next disc within a title you want to see.
-Alphapaks, at least the earlier ones used by distributors, and singles volumes tend to take up quite a bit of shelf space depending on the length of the anime. In the case of the alphapaks, the way in which they are made feel a bit too bulky than necessary. The ones used by Bandai Entertainment though don't have the bulk of earlier alphapaks, giving them similar benefits as thinpaks.
-Digipaks have greater space-saving potential than thinpaks, but the material used in making them looks fragile. I'm thankful that the few digipaks I own came with protective covers to reduce any wear and damage to them.
-Funi's Viridian Collection sets are as cheap as they say they are. The cardboard material used to store the DVD cases tend to wear out more easily than alphapaks and thinpaks I've collected.
-Liteboxes are my least favorite DVD packaging for TV anime titles. Seeing the inside of them doesn't look too attractive when you have two discs from a set stacked up in the same row with one another which is usually as annoying as a stackpack to handle when sorting and storing discs. The material used to make them seems cheap as I've had some cases of receiving liteboxes where the plastic locks used to hold them in place were chipped or broken and the first thing I see when I open the case to a litebox is the back of whichever DVD wasn't locked in place.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website My Anime My Manga
manicli



Joined: 16 Jun 2012
Posts: 186
Location: Toronto, Canada
PostPosted: Thu Aug 09, 2012 9:54 am Reply with quote
I would have to say Alpha packs, like the ones Funimation save editions come in where each plastic insert holds 2 discs (one on each side) and none of them overlap.

I like them because none of the discs touch each other than you can see the back of the cover art Smile plus you can fit 4 discs into a single dvd case which saves on a lot of space!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
ikillchicken



Joined: 12 Feb 2007
Posts: 7272
Location: Vancouver
PostPosted: Thu Aug 09, 2012 6:25 pm Reply with quote
From best to worst:

Thinpacks: Easily the most efficient. Lets you pull out whatever disc you need without any rearranging. Looks the nicest too and makes space for lots of additional artwork on each individual case.

Singles (w/ Artbox): When you think about it this is really just an extra large Thinpack. A little bit nicer looking as a result but not quite enough to be worth the added size.

Alphapack: Not the nicest looking packaging out there but I can't argue with the functionality. In fact, this is probably the most efficient of any option.

Digipack: Certainly looks nice and requires little rearranging. Having a big fold out though is really rather unwieldy so it is at a slight disadvantage compared to Alphapacks.

(Honestly though, I could go either way on these two. For a show I really like I might prefer a nicer looking collector's Digipack. For most stuff I'll take a more efficient Alphapack though).

Litebox: Same as Alphapack but surprisingly annoying to use because the subsequent discs overlap.

Stackpack: The worst obviously. The most plain looking and a massive pain in the ass to get a disc out.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message My Anime
Binbogami



Joined: 09 Aug 2012
Posts: 5
PostPosted: Thu Aug 09, 2012 6:37 pm Reply with quote
You know how the Bleach box sets were for the first 3 box sets? Yes those.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Veers



Joined: 31 Oct 2008
Posts: 1197
Location: Texas
PostPosted: Fri Aug 10, 2012 10:40 am Reply with quote
Thinpacks are the best. The durability and artistic spirit of the artbox singles collection combined with the shelf space sensibilities of other more compact options! That they're usually released as a set and as such have more reasonable prices than buying singles is icing on the cake.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message My Anime
Touma



Joined: 29 Aug 2007
Posts: 2651
Location: Colorado, USA
PostPosted: Sat Aug 11, 2012 10:11 am Reply with quote
Binbogami wrote:
You know how the Bleach box sets were for the first 3 box sets? Yes those.


I would call that a type of "brick," which is not on the survey. I think that they have not been used much recently.
The old bricks were like two or more standard keepcases, with one or two discs in each, glued together. They could be very thick, like a brick.

Those Bleach collection boxes are like a cross between an old brick and a digipak. I think that they are more like a brick that is made with the hard plastic used in digipaks, rather than the softer plastic of standard Keepcases, and they are much thinner than the old bricks.
They probably do have a specific name, but I do not remember seeing it.

EDIT: It looks like I am wrong about the names. Judging from the pictures in the first post what I am calling a brick is really an Alphapak.

I thought that the Alphapak was like the litebox with only one disc on each side of the flapper. Funimation used that case for the Kaze No Stigma S.A.V.E. release. What is this case called?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website My Anime My Manga
Display posts from previous:   
Reply to topic    Anime News Network Forum Index -> General -> Polls All times are GMT - 5 Hours
Goto page Previous  1, 2
Page 2 of 2

 


Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group