How much an average Blu-Ray cost in Japan?

[substance]

Hi,

I am located in the US. I would like to import some japanese titles. I browsed through ebay, yesasia and a few others. Each title is $50-$100. Now I am assuming they are not as high as above prices in retailers in Japan(or online stores) I have a buddy who goes to Japan a few times a year. I am going to ask him to buy me movies from Japan.

I am interested in Anime titles like Ghost in the Shell stand alone complex box 1, 2 second gig box 1 , 2. applseed ex machina, cowboy bebop the movie also some american movies in japanese releases like terminator 2, terminator 3, total recall.

thanks

[DangerousG]

You'll probably find the same prices as the online retailers, MAYBE a couple dollars cheaper. Everything in Japan is expensive.

[r0pe]

I can confirm that, BD or DVDs are very expensive in Japan and often without English subtitles, too.

[DetroitSportsFan]

Originally Posted by substance

I am located in the US. I would like to import some japanese titles. I browsed through ebay, yesasia and a few others. Each title is $50-$100. Now I am assuming they are not as high as above prices in retailers in Japan(or online stores) I have a buddy who goes to Japan a few times a year. I am going to ask him to buy me movies from Japan.

Amazon's prices are probably close (a few dollars one way or the other) to shops there.

The killer with Amazon.jp is the shipping (they only offer 2 day shipping), which is around $20 for one BD. It makes sense to order as many titles as you want in one order to save on shipping. YesAsia's prices include shipping, and when you do the math, are usually a bit higher than Amazon.

I am interested in Anime titles like Ghost in the Shell stand alone complex box 1, 2 second gig box 1 , 2. applseed ex machina, cowboy bebop the movie also some american movies in japanese releases like terminator 2, terminator 3, total recall.

Be warned that much of the Japanese anime released there doesn't have English subtitles.

Also, a few things about the U.S. movies you mentioned.

Total Recall has not been released in Japan. However, in the UK it was released and is superior to the U.S. release in picture/sound, with a nice price.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Total-Recall...7300700&sr=1-2

Terminator 2 Premium Edition in Japan is the release of T2 to get (it's expensive, though):

http://www.amazon.co.jp/%E3%82%BF%E3...7300591&sr=1-2

As for T3, instead of spending around $42 for the Japanese release, get the UK release from Sony (which I believe is the same disc) for around $14.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Terminator-3...7301036&sr=1-1

I own all of the above titles and can vouch that they are upgrades to the U.S. releases.

[substance]

ghost in the shell stand alone complex part 1(3 disc) is $230 on yesasia.com part 2 and second gig similar prices for each boxset. appleseed ex machina is $89. now similar boxsets(3-disc 10-14 episodes)in the us are $30-$50. how much these title go for in japan?

detroit i will take your recommendation for those titles, thanks

[kannisto]

Originally Posted by substance

ghost in the shell stand alone complex part 1(3 disc) is $230 on yesasia.com part 2 and second gig similar prices for each boxset. appleseed ex machina is $89. now similar boxsets(3-disc 10-14 episodes)in the us are $30-$50. how much these title go for in japan?

detroit i will take your recommendation for those titles, thanks

These Stand Alone Complex boxes / 2nd GIG boxes are around 16000 yen each in Amazon Japan which is clearly cheaper than $230 even with Amazon JP's expensive international shipping. You'd get 5% VAT removed from these prices when ordering internationally but the expedited international shipping (the only option that's available) is not that cheap. Still with this kind of expensive Anime boxes, YesAsia's prices are easily beaten.

Stand Alone Complex box 1:
http://www.amazon.co.jp/%E6%94%BB%E6...7345563&sr=1-2

Stand Alone Complex box 2:
http://www.amazon.co.jp/%E6%94%BB%E6...7345563&sr=1-1

2nd GIG Box 1:
http://www.amazon.co.jp/%E6%94%BB%E6...7345750&sr=1-2

2nd GIG Box 2:
http://www.amazon.co.jp/%E6%94%BB%E6...7345750&sr=1-4

Which version of Ex Machina is $89 in YesAsia? I only found a Japanese version that was $74 there. This one is 4778 yen in Amazon JP:
http://www.amazon.co.jp/%E3%82%A8%E3...9&sr=1-3-fkmr0

Usually physical shops in Japan are always more expensive than Amazon Japan when it comes to disc prices. 10% to 15% discounts from MRSP are typical in the better shops, and you may get e.g. 10% of the price as the shop's bonus points if you have their member card, which you can use for later purchases in the same store. You usually need an address in Japan to get these member cards. Amazon's prices are usually discounted around %25 - %30 from the MRSP. There are also many stores that sell at MRSP prices without any discounts.

I tend to buy my new Japanese discs from Amazon JP almost all the time, I buy mainly 2nd hand stuff from physical stores. I'm not buying much anime though, mainly just movies.

[dfms23]

Kannisto you have any reccomendations for good 2nd hand shops in Japan? I have a friend heading over soon and thought I would ask him to pick up a few titles. I know he is going to Tokyo but not sure beyond that. I'm trying to save some coin on Equilibrium/Rebellion and maybe a few others. Do they sell HK releases in Japan? My questions may be naive but I have no clue! Lol

[manicsounds]

There are many used places around.

BOOK OFF is a chain that is everywhere. TSUTAYA, some have a used selection. DISK UNION have lots of stores in the Tokyo area, with used movies in most locations.

[kannisto]

Originally Posted by dfms23

Kannisto you have any reccomendations for good 2nd hand shops in Japan? I have a friend heading over soon and thought I would ask him to pick up a few titles. I know he is going to Tokyo but not sure beyond that. I'm trying to save some coin on Equilibrium/Rebellion and maybe a few others. Do they sell HK releases in Japan? My questions may be naive but I have no clue! Lol

I usually look at 2nd hand Blu-ray discs in these Tokyo 2nd hand stores:
- Tsutaya in Shibuya next to the station (B2 floor)
- Many Trader and Liberty stores in Akihabara
- Book Off stores in Akihabara and Shibuya

Have to say though that 2nd hand discs are not usually that cheap, quite often the same discs can be bought as new from Amazon JP at almost the same price. Tsutaya in Shibuya has some good deals on some discs that they have multiple copies of sometimes. I also buy sometimes from Yahoo Japan auctions but that's online.

I haven't much seen non-Japanese Blu-ray imports in Tokyo stores although there seemed to be links to some shops in the other thread. The prices in that thread looked way too high to buy from such a store though as importing directly would be much cheaper. I used to see some imported DVDs in Disc Union at Akihabara but that specific shop changed a long time ago and they don't sell import discs there now.

I think you'd probably be able to import the discs you want from Japan at fairly similar prices (with shipping included) that your friend might be able to buy them at from B&M stores. Equilibrium is also not much seen in 2nd hand stores, I bought mine 2nd hand but had to look for it quite long first and even then the price wasn't so great.