What are all these DVD case types ?
 

Please excuse my ignorance - I thought I understood what the various DVD cases were, but the more I read here, the more confused I am and find I don't really know. A recent discussion/thread of WB keepcase list and people "upgrading" to keepcases made me realize, I don't know what they all are ?

Could someone please enlighten me to what are: snappers, keepcases, Amary and digipacks ? And also (I know this may be more of opinion) as to which are better and why ? I have also seen many a thread debate about that too. It would be nice to know what everyone is talking about.

Thanks.

Snappers are the stupid cardboard cases that are slightly wider than regular DVD cases.
Amarays and Keepcases are the same thing,they are the regular plastic cases most DVD's come in.(just like the cases PS2 and XBOX games come in)
I am not entirely sure what is considered a digipack,so maybe someone else can chime in on that one.

As for which is the best,i prefer amaray keepcases since they are the "norm",so i like everything to look consistant in my collection.

Digipacks are completely made of cardboard/paper like the first two Harry Potter DVDs.

Not been into DVD long, huh?

Well, as Maxflier said, the snappers are the thin cardboard cases that have a black plastic pivoting bar that you would have to snap shut to close the case. Warner Brothers and New Line Cinema used these style of cases from the beginning until just with in the last year or so. Other studios have used them as well, I think some early HBO movies were in these as well.

Keepcases are those fully plastic cases that most DVDs come in.

Amarrays is just a brand name for certain keepcases. Generally those with a push-button hub or some sort. Alphas are keepcases that have hubs that are a hard plastic knub with a little locking tab that you have to 'trip' to get the disc to release. The Star Trek CE releases are in Alpha cases.

Gigipaks is a catch-all term for box sets that hold multiple discs. Usually they refer to packaging like the Star Trek TNG and Alien Quadrilogy. I sometimes call them gatefolds. Then there's the digipaks that are made like a book, where there's a 'spine' and several disc trays are attached there. Packaging like Star Trek DS9, VOY, and Babylon 5 are like this.

It amazes me how many different types of cases there are. There are even differences within what appears to be the same kind of case, like in the design of the hub and such inside.

How many times can the wheel be reinvented?

Just give me a case that holds the disc well, protects it from damage and is easy to remove. A DVD is supposed to last a long time, but that can't happen if it's container contributes to damage.

I hate the cases in which the play surface of the disc is allowed to touch the plastic case, which can lead to scratches. I also can't stand the cases where you almost have to bend and flex the disc to get it off the hub - I'm surprised I haven't cracked one in such a case yet.

I know people generally hate snappers, and I don't prefer them, either. But my very first DVD - The Matrix - probably has the best construction inside. It's easy to remove, and there is a tall center hub to keep the play surface off the case.

Not quite. The digipak is best identified by its "shatterproof" plastic holder which creates the form for the package, around which is placed cardboard or other materials for identification. Investigate their website for some propaganda: http://www.digipak.com/

Thanks - all. This really helps. And, yes, Mike Lowrey, I have not been into DVD long, but via these forums and people like you all, I am learnin: e.g. just recently learned about OAR and MAR (knew about widescreen and full/foolsscreen) but not what OAR and MAR meant and they refer to the same thing. Thanks again.

So what would you call the thin cases that sets like Family Guy and Seinfeld came in? A slimline keepcase?

Hey forumsmy.-..everything you need to know is here...with pictures !

http://www.math.ttu.edu/~kesinger/dvd/

Awesome, DanishDVDfreak ! Thanks !

And it shows just like Altimus Prime said:

No problem pal...anything for a new fellow DVD nerd :)

I believe those are NexPak cases. They're wafer thin.

Sounds like my Harry Potter DVDs. I just left out the plastic part.

I attribute it to the fact that there are many DVD case suppliers, and each one makes a slightly different case to avoid patent infringement.

No, NexPak is a company. They own the Amaray, Alpha (officially called ALPHApak), and THINpak brands. What's kind of confusing is that "Thinpak" is actually a trademarked brand name, but is also used generically by consumers as a name for the actual product (kind of like people saying Band-Aids instead of adhesive bandages, Q-Tips instead of cotton swabs, etc.). If you wanted to be proper, those types of cases are called ultra-slim cases, but they're alternately referred to as Thinpaks, Slimpaks, or Slimlines by the general public.

I'm waiting for the Paris Hilton Paks. You can put an entire season of The West Wing in the same dimensions as a single DVD. Utterly amazing. :up:

The Kirstie Alley Paks...I'm passing on those.

To make things a bit easier:

Keepcases (standard single-size) = Jaws, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Braveheart, The Bourne Identity, Top Gun, 12 Monkeys, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and Ghostbusters.

Keepcases (slim-double size) = Spider-Man 2, Terminator 3, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, X-Men 2, Aladdin, Minority Report, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and Catch Me If You Can.

Keepcases (full-double "Alpha" type) = Forrest Gump, all the Star Trek 2-Disc Collector's Editions, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (Criterion Collection), and all of Fox's Five Star Collection.

Snappers = The Matrix, Full Metal Jacket, Superman, The Fugitive, The Green Mile, The Perfect Storm, The Exorcist, Ben-Hur, National Lampoon's Vacation, Caddyshack, and the entire Clint Eastwood Collection series.

Digipaks (a.k.a. gatefolds) = Once Upon a Time in America, Band of Brothers, the Alien Quadrilogy, Citizen Kane, E.T., Lord of the Rings (Extended Editions), the Godfather DVD Collection, Jackie Brown, Unbreakable, The Simpsons (Season box sets), 24, and Sex in the City.

Thinpaks (a.k.a Slimpaks and Slimlines) = Seinfeld, The Karate Kid Collection, The Twilight Zone (Definitive Edition box sets), Roswell, Millennium, Futurama, and The Family Guy.

*Amaray, Alpha, Scanavo & Nexpak are all brands of keepcases (and Nexpak and Scanavo also make their own Thinpak cases).

Thanks, joliom - that's a good summary.

I don't see many studios use the single alpha case anymore. I kinda liked those. It was less likely for the disc to come loose.

Was Azkaban only in the double slim? I was unaware, what a drag since the first 2 had nice digipacks.

Wow. That's exactly the opposite of how I would have put it.

They still use them here and there. They seem to favor the Amaray Safe Case type that has the two extra plastic bars in the finger slot area as opposed to the more classic design. Mostly they've moved to an unknown keepcase brand that is similar to Amarays, but uses a 3-pronged push-down hub. Most recently I've noticed these new ones that are exactly the same as the above mentioned Amaray clones, but substitute a hub that matches the nodule type commonly found on the flip page of most studio slim-double cases (looks like 4 arrows pointing at each other). I still haven't had any luck figuring out who manufactures these cases for the studios, nor do I know of any place that sells them brand new.

Even if I did like them (I actually prefer the digipacks), I really don't like them changing the packaging mid run. Now they look foolish together.

I agree. It doesn't make any sense to change the packaging mid-run.

My preference would be for them to phase out the digipak versions of the first two in place of slim-double keepcases. I'm sure they'll eventually do a box set with them all in keepcases (maybe when HP 4 hits the shelves).