do not buy from this company

[mike_s104]

I would first like to say that this is just a statement of the troubles I have been having with a certain company and would like to warn others of it.



I have been having some issues with www.cdrdvdrmedia.com .

On 11-06-02, I placed an order for some blank DVD-Rs, just like I had a week before. I received an email immediately after stating the item was shipped and included a UPS tracking number. Fine. I waited a week and just when I was starting to wonder where my order was I received another email stating the order was backordered. They did not state that the silver topped media was in stock or when the white topped media would be in stock.

I then waited until 11-17-02 and since I had heard nothing I sent an email asking where my order was. I got a reply on 11-18-02 stating that they were on back order and if I had any more questions to call 626-855-2156. On 11-19-02 I called the number. They stated the silver top was in stock and they could ship it out that same day. She asked me THREE times if the silver was OK. Each time I said it was. I then asked if my credit card was already charged. She stated it was charged when I placed the order.

This is not good business practice to charge a credit card for an order that has not shipped and is actually back ordered.

I called tonight, 11-20-02. The order had not been shipped yet. I stayed on hold for over 30mins while "they checked the warehouse" for my item. While I was on hold I got an email from the stating the order was shipped. This is very underhanded and sneaky. I would have rather known the truth then for them to do this.

I told them that I knew what they did and that I was not very amused. I think I heard her snicker or laugh about it. I didn't think it was very funny.

I stated that I wanted it shipped next day because of all the trouble I was having with them. She said they were not able to do that. I asked for the order to be canceled. I have not checked my credit card to see if the credit has gone through yet.

I then called the Better Business Bureau in their area and filed a complaint. Their number is 909-835-6064.

I just wanted all you guys to be aware of this so you would not have to go through all the troubles I went through.

So, that leads me to: Where is a good place to buy media?

[Stereodude]

I ordered 100 Accu 1x DVD-R's for $84 from them and I got them in a reasonable amount of time.

Stereodude

[bac]

You will probably be interested in this thread then:

"Be aware: MERITLINE = CDRDVDRMEDIA = SUPERMEDIASTORE"
http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?s ... adid=36417

I haven't yet figured out for sure what online store has the best compromise of cheap+reliable+good. The most common recommendation seems to be rima.com.

Some of the retail deals on media this week are good. For example the $2.x TDK DVD-R (2X)
at Compusa. Or best buy's media:
http://www.cdrlabs.com/phpBB/viewtopic. ... 4a0aa3adc1

(Assuming that the best buy verbatim media is new enough to not have the dru500a
compatibility problem)

[mike_s104]

I ordered 100 Accu 1x DVD-R's for $84 from them and I got them in a reasonable amount of time.

Stereodude

well, I had ordered a 25 pack of 2X DVD-Rs from them a week or so before I placed the last order and everything went well with that order. That's why I ordered from them again. I just didn't get the same luck the second time around. Once a company lies and is underhanded with me, that's it.

[mike_s104]

You will probably be interested in this thread then:

"Be aware: MERITLINE = CDRDVDRMEDIA = SUPERMEDIASTORE"
http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?s ... adid=36417

I haven't yet figured out for sure what online store has the best compromise of cheap+reliable+good. The most common recommendation seems to be rima.com.

Some of the retail deals on media this week are good. For example the $2.x TDK DVD-R (2X)
at Compusa. Or best buy's media:
http://www.cdrlabs.com/phpBB/viewtopic. ... 4a0aa3adc1

(Assuming that the best buy verbatim media is new enough to not have the dru500a
compatibility problem)

thanks for the link. I just wished I had that info before I placed my first order.

I do have to say the FIRST order went well and the DVD-Rs burnt @ 2X everytime with no coasters. I will never order anything from them or any of their other stores.

[bac]

Wow, I just noticed rima.com is in the same town as the other 3. I would suspect all 4
estores are affiliated...

[mike_s104]

it's starting to get hard to tell if everyone is connected....another place I order hardware from is in the same area.

I should have figured something was funny with them a few months ago. this was before I found out about the Sony DRU-500A (that I have now). I asked about the Pioneer A04, forget exactly what though. I sent the email to sales@cdrdvdrmedia.com and got a reply from sales@meritline.com . I didn't remember that until now.

[TheWizard]

Look at my reply on the Rants n' Raves forum...

http://www.cdrlabs.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=7580

[seaegg]

I live in Canada and order all my blanks from Rima.com. I find their service to be excellent. I receive my orders in a week using UPS ground and always get an email confirming my shipment as well as a tracking number by the next day if not the same day. Also my orders are small 10 blanks at a time yet all my queries have been answered if not the same day by the next day via email. I can't say enough about their service when one takes into account the number of times I've emailed companies about their products and I'm still waiting on a reply six months later.
I also use Caloptic and even though you don't always get a prompt email with your tracking number enclosed my orders always arrive within a week which is good service from California to Manitoba using UPS ground.
Just my 2 cents. Actually now I come to think about it my orders from Rima and Caloptic get to me quicker than orders placed with Canadian etailers with the possible exception of GBComp and Computer Ultra.

[mike_s104]

thanks for the info. yeah, I understand that items do get back ordered and go out of stock BUT you don't charge someone's credit card for something you DON'T have and then a week later tell them it's on BO AFTER you get their money. it would be the same thing as me going into a store picking up an item and telling the employee that "I'm taking this now and I will pay for it sometime when I get a little extra cash." try that..you'll get stopped at the door and/or arrested for shoplifting. it's just bad business practice. and the trying to slide the order out as I am on the phone...that's just wrong. it's not that hard to be honest with someone. most people would like to be told the truth rather then lied to. if they would have told me the truth and said:

"We're sorry for charging you credit card without shipping the order. We'll try to change our methods. The item you ordered is now in stock. When you called yesterday, the person you talked to realised after speaking with you the item was going to be in today and felt it was better for you that we hold your order only one more day in order to get you the exact item you wanted rather then sending you a substitute. For all the trouble you are having with us, we are going to send it next day air. We're sorry for all the trouble you are having with us. I can assure you that this is not normal for us. We will make sure we do better in the future and hope we can do business with you again."

if they would have said something like the above, I would have let the order be completed and ordered from the in the future. thre is no reason why a merchant should do what they did to me or anyone else. yeah, the shipping probably would have cost more then their profit on the item I ordered, but they are going to lose more since I am never going to buy from them again. and with me posting this, if I can get at least 1 more person to not buy from them I will be happy.

I just don't want anyone else to get screwed over like I was.

[boblx2]

I did not understand that shoddy treatment and bad media, etc. was at epidemic proportions. But not long ago I gave up on ordering media all together. After being shafted time after time and making more coasers then I did good ones, I decided to buy my media locally. Yeah it is more expensive but guess what? No COASTERS! It's probably 30% more if you can find it on sale but I don't have to mess with shipping and spend hours on the phone trying to get my credit card charges reveresed, etc. It's worth the hassle to me. Of course I don't use tons of DVD media either so it is not that expensive.
I would like to add Shop4Tech to the list of shoddy vendors. That was the one of the later ones I have been hassling with after sending me a bunch of white discs that absolutely would not work in place of the TDK 2X that I orderd. My latest was the www.cdrdvdrmedia.com that was mentioned above. So I am through ordering media. I buy it at the store when I need it and try to find it on sale and I have been pretty luck at it so far. Much better then driving myself crazy with these crooked vendors!

[mike_s104]

the places I deal with on a some-what regular basis are below:

www.newegg.com
www.mwave.com
www.bestbuy.com
www.circuitcity.com
www.crucial.com
www.isquaredinc.com
www.3dcool.com

there are so many places that have burnt me in the past that I have lost count of them all.

[TheWizard]

I did not understand that shoddy treatment and bad media, etc. was at epidemic proportions. But not long ago I gave up on ordering media all together. After being shafted time after time and making more coasers then I did good ones, I decided to buy my media locally. Yeah it is more expensive but guess what? No COASTERS! It's probably 30% more if you can find it on sale but I don't have to mess with shipping and spend hours on the phone trying to get my credit card charges reveresed, etc. It's worth the hassle to me. Of course I don't use tons of DVD media either so it is not that expensive.
I would like to add Shop4Tech to the list of shoddy vendors. That was the one of the later ones I have been hassling with after sending me a bunch of white discs that absolutely would not work in place of the TDK 2X that I orderd. My latest was the www.cdrdvdrmedia.com that was mentioned above. So I am through ordering media. I buy it at the store when I need it and try to find it on sale and I have been pretty luck at it so far. Much better then driving myself crazy with these crooked vendors!

Dang, apparently you aren't the only one who has had bad luck, mike_s104, it seems as though boblx2 has had bad luck as well. Frankly, I don't understand why all these stories of getting shafted are surfacing, especially with the companies in question. I, too, have bought from Shop4Tech before and everything went smoothly there as well. I did order CD-R media from them and not DVD media, maybe that is the culprit? I'm positive that DVD media is at a higher demand right now than CD-R media.

As for media bought in stores being better than media bought from online vendors, I would disagree. Keep in mind, all media is made by a handful of companies, most of which are located in Asia. The CMC discs you get in a Memorex spindle are the same, for all intents and purposes, as the unbranded CMC discs you buy from an online vendor; check the ATIP to be sure. There are exceptions, of course. Bad batches can occur both in branded and unbranded media. IMO, buying unbranded media is great because it is cheaper than the branded stuff and it is the same quality. The only gray area with online vendors is when they say "100 unbranded discs" you don't know who the manufacturer of the discs is, therefore it is a crap shoot. Although, you can usually judge by the price and description what manufacturer you will get. For example, $15 for 100 silver/silver discs will not be Taiyo Yuden, chances are this particular spindle will be CMC, Prodisc, or Ritek. All it takes is a little observation.

[cfitz]

The CMC discs you get in a Memorex spindle are the same, for all intents and purposes, as the unbranded CMC discs you buy from an online vendor; check the ATIP to be sure.)

Not necessarily. The ATIP code really just tells you who made the master from which all the blank CD-Rs were manufactured. It doesn't guarantee anything about the dye type, reflective layer, quality control, etc. used during the manufacturing process. The generic brand may be made in the exact same factory using the exact same materials as the name brand with the same ATIP, or it may be made in a back alley garage (figuratively speaking) with a worn-out master discarded by the brand name manufacturer. You really don't know. In the end, you can only judge the discs by the performance you obtain in actual usage on your system.

cfitz

[boblx2]

As far as Shop4Tech, just try getting a refund some time. I bought two packs of TDK 2X from them. They were great! They were marked TDK on the hub of the disc and they had a mirror finish. So then I ordered a 3rd bunch, twice as big as the first two. You got it! Shafted! They were not TDK, even though that was what I orderd, they substituted some unknow white coloted discs that would not work on anything. When I called them they admitted that they had substutued without asking me. So they gave me an RMA to return them. They signed for the return 3 weeks ago and I have been after them ever since to refund my credit card. Nothing but the run around I always get from these guys. I have never gotten a refund. I don't know why I bother.

As far as a couple companies making all the discs. That could be but the answer is quality control. Vendors like TDK have to meet certain specs. Those discs got to TDK, for example, the rest go to places like we are buying them from that sell them for half the price. But guess what? less then half of them work because they are not up to spec, which is why TDK did not want them! And on and on.... I have resolved my problem they have gotten the last of my money!..

[mike_s104]

it isn't the quality or type of disk I was having trouble with. it was the trouble I was having with the company that I am complaining about.

1. they charged my credit card for an item that didn't have in stock for which their website said nothin about not being in stock,
2. they took over a week to notify me the item was on back order.
3. they lied and said it would be shipped after I called them and stated the silver topped DVD-Rs would be fine instead of the white topped.
4. while I was on the phone with they the next day they told me the order had not shipped yet. while I was on hold the tried to slip the order by me. I got an email as I was on hold stating the item was being shipped.

[Stereodude]

it isn't the quality or type of disk I was having trouble with. it was the trouble I was having with the company that I am complaining about.

1. they charged my credit card for an item that didn't have in stock for which their website said nothin about not being in stock,
2. they took over a week to notify me the item was on back order.
3. they lied and said it would be shipped after I called them and stated the silver topped DVD-Rs would be fine instead of the white topped.
4. while I was on the phone with they the next day they told me the order had not shipped yet. while I was on hold the tried to slip the order by me. I got an email as I was on hold stating the item was being shipped.

Complain to your credit card company. Most have rules where companies can't charge your card until the item ships.

Stereodude

[mike_s104]

yeah, I could do that. I will wait another day. they are supposed to be crediting my account the total. the Visa I used is actually a check-card that takes the $$ out of my checking account. I did contact the BBB in their area. next will be Visa if it does not show up by Monday.

[scuzy]

i ordered from supermediastore.com and both times i got my order within 2 business day and that's pretty fast ground shipping. I guess it's because it's within state. But i'll do business wit hthem again

[boblx2]

Well it looks like I may have to make an apology to CDRDVDR. They said the TDK discs we were inquiring about had TDK stamped on the hubs. When we received them this was not true. And we began having trouble with them which we never did with the TDK 2X mirror finished media. I guess the problem was the A05 all along, that and a bad A06 in the same system. We noticed today that when DVD Decryptor reads one of those discs it calls it a "TDK'. It also calls out a bunch of numbers behind the TDK and they are exactly the same as the old original discs. So it looks like they are the same discs they just don't have "TDK" stamped on the hub. Of course they do not work any better with the A05 but that is another problem.

Just thought I would get that straight while it was fresh in my mind.

[mike_s104]

just to update the first post I did about this. as of 11-22-02 I have a credit for the full price of my order that I canceled from www.cdrdvdrmedia.com .

I placed an order with www.allmediaoutlet.com for 50 2X DVD-Rs for a price of $56 with free ground shipping. I will update you on how this transaction went whne I receive my order. the UPS estimated delivery date is 12-02-02.

[boblx2]

Well I finally got a refund from Shop4Tech. It was short ten dollars but I guess I won't quibble about that. I tried 4 of the discs and all of them failed. I guess they charged me for the bad discs. It took them 3 weeks to refund my money after they signed for the RMA. And after a gaggle of phone calls they finally responded. It was not pretty and they will never get another cent from me but I guess that is the best that could be expected. Actually I had written it off as money lost so it was a pleasent surprise to look at my credi card and see the refund. Hey I could almost buy another Sony drive for that much!

.......

[mike_s104]

I got my order from www.allmediaoutlet.com today. everything is as ordered.

see http://www.cdrlabs.com/phpBB/viewtopic. ... 2850#42850 for more info.