CD-ROM Buyer Caveat: Check Prices

CD-ROM buyers are given four words of advice by a recent survey of prices: You better shop around. Price tags from superstores to warehouse clubs and discount department outlets varied by as much as 30%, according to a report by PC World, a San Francisco-based monthly magazine about personal computing.

The magazine looked at shelf prices for major titles such as Lion King, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, Myst and Compton’s Multimedia Encyclopedia. It found that Myst, for example, sold for as little as $40 and as much as $60. The Sim City 2000 CD collection ranged from $60 to $90.

In general, superstores had the best combination of prices and selection, according to consumer editor Roberta Furger. Furger did her price comparisons among San Francisco Bay area stores, but visited mostly national chains that tend to sell their CD-ROMs for the same prices across the nation.

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