New DVD's Right Outta the Case

[Ash]

I bought the Unrated Director's Cut of the new Dawn of the Dead this morning and when I tried to remove the disc for the very first time, I darn near broke the DVD.

Some machines pack the DVD in so tight, it's almost impossible to remove it without the fear of snapping the disc in two.
How much pressure does it take to break a DVD?
I've never broken one so I was curious.

Have any of you ever broke a disc taking it out of the case for the first time?
What type of DVD cases do you personally prefer?



Post Edited (10-26-04 06:49)

[dean]

I too have had the trouble taking a dvd [and cd] out of a tight case, but they loosen up eventually.

I don't know about dvds, but I'd imagine they're the same as a cd, and they are pretty tough to snap, so I have no fear when this happens, I just yank em out!

Little side not:  snapping cds is strangely very addictive and very fun.

[blkrider]

I broke one earlier this year...it wasn't a new disc but obviously hadn't loosened.  Now I'm anxious about breaking my DAWN disc when I finally get it.

[Scott]

Well, I just picked up a copy at Blockbuster this morning. Heard good things about this remake.

[Mr_Vindictive]

CDs are actually fairly hard to break.  Either that or I'm weak.

It's not like a piece of glass obviously.  You must be careful not to scratch the disc but breaking it is nearly impossible unless you were intent on doing so.

[Susan]

Cd's aren't that hard to break. I accidentally dropped some from my desk to the floor and they all broke into pieces

[kriegerg69]

ASHTHECAT wrote:

> I bought the Unrated Director's Cut of the new Dawn of the Dead
> this morning and when I tried to remove the disc for the very
> first time, I darn near broke the DVD.

What kind of case was it in? The worst I've ever had are those damn "digipacks".....the cardboard folded things with the plastic trays that hold the discs.

I absolutely DESPISE those. I actually cracked my disc of John Waters' FEMALE TROUBLE trying to get it out of that digipack!

> Some machines pack the DVD in so tight, it's almost impossible
> to remove it without the fear of snapping the disc in two.
> How much pressure does it take to break a DVD?
> I've never broken one so I was curious.

It's actually not due to being "packed in tight"....it has to do with the type of center "hub" the disc is held onto. There's actually different types of hubs for each type of case, such as several types for the common plastic "keep case" (aka Alpha Case), and even digipacks have different types of hubs (some of which are close to what a common CD "jewel case" hub is like).

Doesn't take much to crack a disc.....it has more to do with the angle of "leverage" you apply to try and release it from that center hub.....which is probably how I cracked my FEMALE TROUBLE disc.

> Have any of you ever broke a disc taking it out of the case for
> the first time?
> What type of DVD cases do you personally prefer?

I prefer the common plastic "keep case" for protection AND durability. I despise digipacks and those cardboard "snap cases" which Warner Bros. used up until recently.

[Mr. Hockstatter]

I have a Farscape DVD that was nearly impossible to get out of the box.  And my Battlestar Galactica DVD's were terrible as well.  I just LOVE the way the put four little depressions around the circumference of the disk - wouldn't it be nice to put your fingers in there?  But NO - after putting in the finger holds, they put a plastic ridge in front of them to block them off.

I usually take some sandpaper and cut down whatever part of the center hub is holding the disk in place.  Just enough to get it to work normally.  Even if they're made out of vinyl you can usually cut off enough material to get them to work right.  Then clean it up with a hand vac afterwards.

[odinn7]

I thought I would need a crowbar to remove Mad Max from the case. I figured for sure that I would be throwing a broken disc away.

[Yaddo 42]

The worst DVD cases I've bought were some of the first cheap DVDs I got when I bought my DVD player. They were the clear plastic hard cases for Platinum Disc Corportation/Platinum Home Video with the single button on the side you have to press to open the outside. Without looking it's hard to tell if you've mashed that button hard enough to get it to release, I've seen friends who are mostly used to regular clamshell cases gets p**sed trying to open this kind.

The tray holding the disc has the four depressions and that weird little center web of six connected plastic pieces and six stubs to anchor the disc that you are supposed to mash down on to release. Kind of like standard CD jewel cases, but the center hub has no give at all, so you basically have to leverage the disc off of it. Never cracked a disc doing it, but I've thought I had a time or two when the disc shoots out.

I also hate the black plastic ones with the weak center button for the tray that attaches on only one side to the center hub. The button is usually weak, and often the tray is so shallow you can't get your fingers under the edge of the disc easily. My disc with the "Trinity" films has this kind of center hub but it has ridges to hold the disc above the tray, making it a good exception.

My favorite design is a clamshell with the two part center hub that looks like a yin/yang symbol. Holds the disc in a good position, and give a quick positive release when the center button is pressed.