Newbury has good selection and is very conveniently located, but man the prices are often really bad. Best Buy offers much better deals on Blu-Rays. Music-wise the place is decent. I desperately want to find a high quality local music/movies store here in Cambridge/Boston, but I am still hunting for a replacement to the Soundgarden in Baltimore. Wish the used inventory would be beefed up. read more

This is a funky record store that has gone a little too corporate. Once they only had a few locations, now they are quite the chain. Still they maintain an alternative independent feel. They have a good selection of music, posters, stickers, and funny nic nacks. read more

I really love this store. Sure it's overrun with cheap pop culture trinkets that look like a good idea but will always lead to disappointment and regret but it's worth it for the DVD collection. There is little reason to comparison shop. They usually have the best price. I am always amazed at the scope of their art house and foreign cinema offerings. A Boston landmark and treasure. read more

Newbury Comics is the most solid and reliable new and used media store in town - I try to buy vinyl and CDs used, cheap and at (small) local stores, but if I'm actually looking for a specific item, as opposed to browsing, I would stop here first. The used DVD section is very good, especially for TV series. Will you get that Battlestar Galactica cheaper on Ebay? - yes. Will you get it today? - no. Do you need it today? - If yes, buy it here. It's fun to browse here too and the used CDs and LPs are wide-ranging and reasonable, but not cheap. I hate the atmosphere, though. Too crowded, too much cheap crap jumping off the walls and making fart jokes in the shopper's general direction. This...flavor, shall we say, is part of the whole Newbury Comics thing, so you have to live with it. That Spencer's Gifts/Hot Topic thing - cheap and plasticky, like Lucite stripper shoes. Sometimes the new CD's are quite cheap and I am not surprised when NC does have more obscure albums. The new Animal Collective was 8$ (!). I am also not surprised when they don't have really obscure things - in this case, do not pass Go, do not collect 200$, go directly to Twisted Village. All in all, thumbs up, solid store, good used selection and, it goes without saying, way better than shopping in a big chain like Best Buy. read more

Pretty nice selection of DVDs and CDs. But I only care for the selective manga that are on sale on the back. Plus it is great to browse around the gadgets/toys in here. Case in point --- the pic of disc jockey system. Checking it out in person awed me...both the system itself and the price ($$$)... read more

I've been shopping at this awesome record store since I moved to Cambridge 20 years ago. I'm the type of person that still needs the physical version of a song or album to fully appreciate the music. Thank goodness that these shops still exist, I wouldn't know what to do if they all vanish. So speaking of, keep supporting Newbury comics! And I'd like to give a special shout out to their assistant manager, Corey, at their Harvard Square branch. Corey goes the extra mile to help out a loyal customer like me. Cory rocks!!! read more

WHile I'm not a big fan of their current schwag merchandise, I always enjoy shopping here for music. They always have a great selection, and their jazz buyer is spot on in my opinion. I have been going here for about 15 years now, and even though it was kind of sad to see the death of the music store, I have to give NC some serious props by staying on top of modern culture and shifting sales into clothing/furniture/accessories/toys/knick knacks/and shwag extrordinaire. Its a pretty smart local biz. read more

Pop culture heaven. Specializes in rock and pop music with a good selection of indie labels that the other chain stores don't have. Prices are cheaper than Virgin or Strawberries, but they still sell too many discs at $16.99. New releases and cut-outs are around $10. Decent selection of used discs and dvds. The comic book section is anemic. They probably only still sell comics because it's in their name. Along with the music and comics, Newbury Comics sells a ton of pop culture crap like novelty and band t-shirts, lunchboxes, shot glasses, bobbleheads, and action figures. Good place to buy something for your 14 year old cousin's birthday if you can't make it to Hot Topic. read more

I'm not going to lie. I go here because I have a problem. An obsession really. I buy CDs. Lots and lots of CDs. And I carry them around with me wherever I go. In my car... to my office... it's weird. I need to upgrade to one of those ipod things those kids carry around these days, but I can't part ways with the tangibility of the real thing. It routes back to when I was growing up - my parents had this amazing vinyl collection (I'm also starting my own - another reason for the 5 stars) and I use to finger through the collection and listen to whatever had the most fun cover art. I learned about a lot of great music this way. OK, so maybe I have some issues with my childhood. Newbury Comics reaps the benefits, as I like to go here and buy CDs on a regular basis and look at the cute record store boys that work there. They're sooo "Empire Records"ish. I like. Also, there is usually good music playing as I walk up and down the aisles... I've discovered a few new bands this way too. Unfortunately last time that Lil' Wayne character was playing and I was all like, "wtf?" But I've been back.. and will be back... probably today. read more

ive always liked newbury comics... all locations, really. everyone is always very friendly and helpful, and i usually find what i am looking for. read more

I can't even count how many hours I've killed in this store perusing the $6.00 DVDs and the highly amusing collection of refrigerator magnets. Prices on new releases can be steep, but you can also find some amazing deals if you dig through the bins and are open to buying previously owned items. The staff here are pretty friendly and helpful, too, which is always a plus, but especially in wannabe-edgy chain stores. My one main complaint is that the "background music" can get overpowering at times, to the point where I am certain that my soul is being crushed by the decibels clanging throughout my body... but I feel like that's true of any electronics/novelty store. This place also has a Zoltar machine now, which is beyond amazing... for just $0.25, the deepest secrets and insights of your psyche can be revealed to you (like when Zoltar told me that I am well-liked but can tend to be devious, and that I should find "a redhead to cultivate" in my near future... seriously, have you ever heard a more awesome fortune than that?!). read more

I cannot and will not buy my CDs anywhere else - and I work at a store that sells music. The prices are great and if I'm looking for something obscure (which I usually am), nine times out of ten I've found it here. The staff is extremely friendly and knowledgable - once, when I was buying a CD, the guy ringing me out recommended another band that was similar to the one I had. He was so enthusiastic that I got the CD he recommended a few weeks later and it's now one of my favorites. Even if I'm not looking for anything specific, I always leave with something and feel good doing so because I paid less than I would have somewhere else. read more

Jest Ain't What It Used To Be! I've shopped at Newbury Comics for YEARS and in the Ol' days (since the Late 80s) if you dropped into Newbury, it always seemed like a party! The music would be pumping, the staff dressed like you and everybody seemed to be familiar with the products. If it was comics, there was at least one comic book expert (or "freak" but seldom an outright "nerd"!) If he or she didn't know something about comic history, you accepted it but what said expert was good at--was knowing if something had come in or whether or not it was late getting to the store. Some people would go the extra mile and call to see if it was available at another location. If this was true about the comics and comics related books (graphic novels and compilations weren't released in a big way until well into the 90s.) the customer service was triple-fold when it came to the MUSIC! If there was a local band or a Top 10 group you were interested in, they jumped at the chance to help you! They were music enthusiasts, some who were actually in a band or were indie musicians, so they had their pulse on The Scene! Unlike those who "phoned it in" for their former rivals at TOWER RECORDS or HMV, the Newbury staff took pride in the fact that they were working in a music store and were all too eager to demonstrate their knowledge! If you were looking for a particular song and you only hummed the tune--they usually knew it--and if it was something silly, they disguised their contempt and you were grateful for it. I even remember searching for a particular song and even though it took about 15 minutes, between myself and the two sales associates, we learned that it was from THE AUSTIN POWERS SOUNDTRACK! I didn't buy it then, but I DID buy great compilation of British punk songs! I can't remember what the other CD was but I do remember walking out of the store happy! Why? because they took the time to help me. As they say, that was then--this is now. With the lack of competition from TOWER and HMV--both of which went belly-up, has come a relaxing of the customer service, which had been their primary strength. A laziness from too much fat around the middle. Even though they still listen to the music blaring on their PA system throughout the day, you're lucky if you can find someone to take the time to find a song, record, or CD. And when it comes the comics it's even worse. sure, the footprint devoted to comics has shrunk significantly, at least as recent as 5 years ago, there was at least somebody who knew about the inventory--now they just send you to the comic book store that's hopefully, just around the corner. They can't be bothered. This not only makes me sad, it makes me angry! Newbury Comics used to be MY store--or at least it felt like it. It was the one place where, after I got out of work or if a date went badly, I could go to Newbury Comics "For A Wicked Good Time!" Once upon a time. read more

I will always shop at Newbury Comics because they have an amazing collection of records (especially electronic at the Newbury St. location) blind boxes, and knick knacks. However when it comes to finding things or asking about products I feel I am always on my own. I went into the store earlier this week for an LP that was just released which I had been waiting for for months. An inventory check indicated they had 3 of what I was looking for but they simply couldn't find them anywhere in the store. I was basically told "we have what you are looking for but we can't find it" After I heard this I took it apon myself to search since I didn't want to leave empty handed and eventually found it myself. I have applied for a job at Newbury Comics multiple times in my college days thinking there was no other place that I could work that had my interests in mind. However, I was never hired which made me upset because I felt I had the range of knowledge to be very helpful to whoever came to shop. Especially because none of the employees ever know what I am talking about when I ask. I don't know the requirements for being hired there but as far as I am concerned they should be prepared for questions that go beyond "where are your socks with weed leaves on them?" I guess my advice is to know what you want when you go into a Newbury comics because you're not going to get much help from the staff. read more