Topic: Magnavision box set packaging rant

[techdude]

Got a few box set from Magnavision lately, and the quality is far from satisfactory, the disc themselves are fine.  So you really can't return them.  But the packaging is so lacking, you wonder why they call it 'Collector's , 'Limited', etc And why they are charging premiums for them.

Example of which is Jurassic Park Ultimate Collection, detailed here:
http://pinoydvd.com/board/index.php?topic=56938

Gladiator EE box have a flap for a leaflet but none was included. 

Godfather set  was even more barebones with a joke of a box as slipcase.   four standard cases , the bonus material disc I got even has a hairline scratch.

Even the better presented Geisha set has a lot of 'wrinkled' plastic DVD cases hidden in the pink box.

Very low respect for the DVD buyer from Magnavision.  For a pricey set like these, surely a 100 or two pesos more of materials could go a long way for making these sets presentable, as it is, it's an insult to the legitimate DVD aficionado.  The DVD buyer feels cheated, and ask why they go legit and pay more for such low quality cases. Even the much maligned C Interactive have much better cases/prints.

It's true, the disc itself are fine, but as the term 'collector's', 'limited', 'deluxe' implies, you should be getting more than that.

[Mr. Hankey]

Godfather set  was even more barebones with a joke of a box as slipcase.   No extras, just four standard cases and four discs, the fourth disc I got was even scratched.

techdude, when and where did you buy your R3 Godfather Set? Your description is the exact opposite of the set I purchased from Astrovision a few years ago. My set has:

1. Really heavy box (feels almost wooden) as a slipcase

2. Four Digipaks - one per movie and one for the extra features, all with full color/sepia print

3. Five discs - One for The Godfather, Two for The Godfather Part II, One for The Godfather Part III, and One for Bonus Materials - and there are so many: documentaries, photogalleries, trailers, deleted scenes, Academy Award acceptance speeches, etc.



Did they release two different Godfather DVD Collection sets locally? Maybe you accidentally got a "Budget Edition" version of the title?

Here's the Pinoy DVD Thread on the Godfather Boxed set. Even the Easter Eggs are the same as those on the R1 version: Godfather DVD box set R3 Details

[techdude]

Not budget.  But got it during a sale at Tower Records Glorietta for 2500.  Then saw it elsewhere the same day for 2000. (note that when not on sale, the set cost 3000)

Definitely not wooden looking nor heavy.  Just plain cardboard box like the one from Geisha without the flap (so technically a slipcase).  The thinnest white cardboard box possible. With Godfather logo on BOTH sides.  Local cheap amarays - not Digipaks.

Amazon set (and pictures) here: http://www.amazon.com/Godfather-DVD-Collection-Brando/dp/B00003CXAA/

The disc are fine.  I am complaining about the packaging materials.  The Discs are DVD9s are identical to the set you bought (probably). 

Maybe late adopters of box sets get these, while first adopters get premium sets, still when not on sale, they are 3000, so hardly 'budget.'

UPDATE: Note that Amazon currently have the set for $35, so even at a sale price of 1500 Php, the local Godfather set is hardly a bargain.

[Mr. Hankey]

But the new version really doesn't include the "Bonus Materials" 5th disc? That's just wrong.

I'm not one who places a premium on packaging, but when DVD special features are removed from the available full-priced boxed sets, I just find it really offensive.

FOUL, Magnavision!

[techdude]

Godfather set  was even more barebones with a joke of a box as slipcase.   No extras, just four standard cases and four discs, the fourth disc I got was even scratched.

Sorry for the wrong impression my post might have caused.  NOT 4 DISCs but 4-Amaray cases with 5 Discs total.  The disc and movie itself are fine as stated earlier.  There's a bonus materials disc.

Photos of local set I bought a couple of months back:

[Mr. Hankey]

Ah, a little better, then. But comparing the images we posted, I'll concede: packaging does make quite a difference.

Sorry, I didn't mean to gloat, but they're really worlds apart.

[techdude]

There was another Magnavision DVD with a packaging problem.  But it was not a box set.  Lawrence of Arabia (Not the Superbit version).  Everything's fine, it even have a booklet... but a closer look at the booklet shows that it is just a few pages of a what was probably a thicker R1 booklet.  The article are incomplete!  That's a cheaper older title (ie DVD9 at 375 Php), so not as much of a complaint but it is still worth noting.

[techdude]

Gladiator Extended Edition:

Amazon:


Local R3:


Note that it has a pocket but no insert, granted that it may only be a flyer of the scenes, but something still feel missing.  Not to mention that the cardboard is again of low quality and not classy looking.

[Mr. Hankey]

Lawrence of Arabia (Not the Superbit version).  Everything's fine, it even have a booklet... but a closer look at the booklet shows that it is just a few pages of a what was probably a thicker R1 booklet.  The article are incomplete!

My R3 Lawrence of Arabia has a 12-page booklet, and it seems like the article is complete. How many pages is the booklet on yours?

[techdude]

Mine is 8 pages.  A re-check seems to indicate it lacked a cover and back cover.  This could be a flaw concerning only my copy of Lawrence of Arabia.  So I could be wrong with this.

As for my wrinkled plastic cover Memoirs of a Geisha, I decided to go back and take a look.  And it seems time had shrunk it a bit and it's not as wrinkled as before.

Still, if Magnavision has just spend a little more on their deluxe versions, It would make buying originals much more palatable and easier to justify. 

[firewired]

All of the distributors are shifting to local production for their packaging -- some more than others. The quality issues are  unfortunate but all of them are aware of our complaints and are hopefully addressing them in future releases.

[techdude]

Sana nga.  For budget titles, there's little to complain about... but for premium ones, you expect better.  Add as little as 50 pesos to packaging, and you would get a much better product.  Surely, they can spare 50 pesos for a 875 (or higher) product. 

Like the Godfather set, if the slipcase is made of sturdy cardboard (like those of hardbound book), even if the disc are encased in amarays and not digipaks, I would have been contended.

[boybi]

All of the distributors are shifting to local production for their packaging -- some more than others. The quality issues are  unfortunate but all of them are aware of our complaints and are hopefully addressing them in future releases.

These substandard packaging has been the rant of pinoydvd members for years already, when will these better future releases be?

[JedTanner]

Not budget.  But got it during a sale at Tower Records Glorietta for 2500.  Then saw it elsewhere the same day for 2000. (note that when not on sale, the set cost 3000)

Hey man, I got my Godfather Trilogy copy last weekend during the 3 day sale in Glorietta and bought it for P1.5K from Astrovision. They also had the Gladiator 3 Disc CE for P1K but I opted not to get since most of the boxes in display are not mint enough. We have the same Godfather copy but got mine at 1.5K. 

But I do agree that the packaging of Magnavision is not satisfactory enough to be called collector's or special edition. Wish they could have the same quality as Warner Bros'.

[techdude]

Here's another one...

The Ten Commandments (50th Anniversary Edition)


Top R3, Bottom R1

More photos here:
http://pinoydvd.com/board/index.php?topic=57186