Shopping for a DVD Burner

Tonight we went to Staples with the intention of buying a couple office supplies within a budget of $6 per person. We had approximately $7 per person in gift cards and rebates but wanted to ensure that we could cover tax as well.

So I got a pack of 3 pocket protectors and a pack of 2 technical erasers, both Staples brand. We saw a new stapler they were advertising, “the easiest to use stapler ever” with the power of an electric – capable of stapling 20 pages even though it’s only mechanical. It seems to use some sort of spring mechanism, quite impressive how powerful it is and how easy it is to press.

I wandered to the computer section and found the TDK IndiDVD 840G on display. The display-only box did say 840G as its model number, and the price was $129 after a $30 mail-in rebate. This is better than anything else I’d seen, so I figured we’d get it. At the checkout, they said it was sold out. But after some searching they came back with an 880N. I didn’t know what this one was, so we passed on it – for now.

They also had a DVD burner called Mach 8 by a company called Pacific Digital. It was on sale $99 after $30 mail-in rebate, or something close to that. It was also 8x speed and seems equal in all respects – except for maybe documentation and software, which I’m not sure about. At the time, I wasn’t sure what it was – some kind of cheapy drive? But I looked online, and it appears to be at least slightly reputable. And the price is decent, although some people bought it for about $70. So this weekend I’ll probably be looking in the newspaper ads for DVD burners. Any of these 3 drives are good – I’ll probably just take the cheapest unless I see other suggestions.