Sony Blu-Ray Production To End?
I thought I’d confirm that Sony Entertainment is NOT ending the production of blu-rays.
Sony Storage Media Solutions Inc is ending “the production of all models of Blu-ray disc media, mini discs for recording, MD data for recording, and mini DV cassettes” in February 2025 according to their January 23rd, 2025 press release.
They had ended production of blank recordable CD-R and DVD-R on July 1st, 2024 in response to the drop in demand for optical discs, ending some of their BD-R production at their Tagaze, Japan manufacturing plant. And consumers now mostly backup their music and film on Cloud Storage services, external hard drives and solid state drives, because these offer more storage and have dropped in price in some countries.
Yes, LG had decided to no longer manufacture blu-ray players last month so people had believed Sony Entertainment had ended manufacturing Blu-rays in response to the popularity of streaming. But physical media remains popular in areas with little to no high speed access to the streaming services, which are getting more and more expensive and fail to provide access to all music and films.
I’m cancelling my Netflix subscription soon because of their price hike and I’m sure I wont be alone in looking for better options.
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Speaking of streaming services, you should note that a 5,000 PC Optimum point offer is available to individuals purchasing $50 Apple Gift Cards from participating Shoppers Drug Mart and Pharmaprix stores until January 31st, 2025. And Apple Music & Apple TV offers are available from PC Optimum.
Prime Day Has Begun
It’s midnight Pacific time and that means Prime Day has begun at Amazon.ca.
Personally, I look for deals on CDs/Vinyl and Blurays first and then browse my wish list to see if anything i’ve added there dropped in price. But you should note that deals will be offered randomly throughout today and tomorrows so it may be worth your while to pop into Amazon.ca every six hours or so.
What i’ve observed it that the majority of savings are in their miscellaneous Amazon Basic products, which can be quite useful, Amazon devices like the Fire branded tablets, televisions and streaming devices, and Blink indoor and outdoor games and doorbells. But I also like to browse their electronics store deals.
I believe a free month of Amazon Prime is currently being offered to new members and the $9.99 (plus taxes) monthly fee may be worth it if you are considering a big ticket item. But other offers are also being added to sweeten the deal, like a free 12 month Doordash Dashpass membership, on top of the usual subscriptions to the Amazon Music and Prime Video streaming services, Prime Reading eBook service and Prime Gaming, which includes access to Twitch.
As i’ve mentioned in my previous blog entry, students ages 19 to 24 can also received an extended free tryout period, an additional 50% discount on membership and deals on products students use, which is also quite useful for parents with kids off to college and university.
By the way, the aforementioned Doordash Dashpass membership offer is available to all current members as well, until 06/06/2025. And you should keep an eye out for discounted Doordash Gift Cards at your local grocery, pharmacy and gas stations, or bonus loyalty point offers given with the purchase of these gift cards at those retailers.
On a side note, new Prime members should know that Air Miles members can get 50 Bonus Air Miles by renting discounted films at Prime Video via airmilesshop.ca until the end of the 17th of July.
Enjoy.
Prime Day Is Coming (July 16th-17th)
I believe an offer for a free 30 day Amazon Prime membership should be available to new members at Amazon.ca today, the 15th of July, 2024. And Prime Student is also available free for six months for students aged 19 to 24, with a special deal for students in the province of Quebec.
Prime Members who also like to stream music also have an option for Amazon Music Unlimited, which will be free for 5 months instead of one until the end of Prime Day, or 3 months for free for individuals that aren’t subscribe to Amazon Prime.
Record Shows This Weekend & More
There will be three record shows this weekend, one in Halifax, Nova Scotia and another in Newmarket, Ontario and the last in Edmonton, Alberta.
The Halifax Record Fair will be held at the Halifax Forum Maritime Hall at 2901 Windsor St. on Saturday, the 14th of October 2023 from 10am to 4pm.
Admission with be $5 and parking will be free. And the nearest bus stops, 8572 and 8564, are located in front of the complex. Consult Halifax Transit for details.
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The Newmarket Vinyl Record & Collectibles Show will be at the Royal Canadian Legion on Sunday, Oct 15th, 2023 from 10:00 am to 03:00 pm.
Admission will be $5 and the venue is located at 707 Strigley St, which is serviced by multiple bus stops so you can find the nearest, more convenient stop by using the trip planner on the York Regional Transit site.
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The Fall edition of the Edmonton Record Fair will be hosted at the Central Lions Recreation Center at 11113 113 St. on Sunday, the 15th of October 2023 from 11am to 3.30pm.
Admission is $5 (or $10 for early admission at 9:30am). And the nearest bus stops are 1122 and 1488, on 111 avenue. Consult Edmonton Transit for details.
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By the way, you should note that Amazon Big Prime Day only ends at 3am Eastern Time on October 12th, so you might be able to find a deal or two until then. Click here for the deals on music.
Enjoy.
Back To School Deals
Back To School offers for vinyl, CDs and television, film and music related merchandise are available at multiple retailers:
Buy One Get One 50% Off offers on posters and t-shirt can be found in store at Sunrise Records, as well as a 10% off offer on new CD purchases of over $50 and 15% off offer on new vinyl purchases of over $100.
Indigo also has a select number of new vinyl releases online with a offer for free shipping on orders over $35.
If you’re looking for used vinyl, CDs, DVDs and blu-ray you can buy one and get 20% off on the second used purchase at Legend Records, both online and in store in Ottawa. And Sonic Boom Toronto will ship orders over $175 free to any destination in North America with some limitations (posters, turntables, speakers and record storage crates are ineligible).
Don’t forget to drop by at your local record store this long weekend for labour day specials.
Enjoy.
Optimum and Sunrise Records Offers
There are two offers that I thought you’d like to know about.
The first is from PC Optimum and includes an offer for 5000 bonus points on $50 Apple Gift card purchases from participating retailers, which expires on August 30th, 2023 and can be used on up to a maximum of $500 in card purchases. Click here for details.
The second is an in-store offer from Sunrise Records, which includes a 25% discount on vinyl with the purchase of a turntable. Contact your local store for details.