(Photo: Jenny Van Sommers)

The Best Bet
In the vinyl era, music buffs lovingly preserved their records inside anti-static plastic sleeves. Supposedly indestructible CDs were meant to put an end to such measures, until we found out that a single scratch can cause endless skipping—or demolish backed-up data. If you haven’t yet made the switch to MP3s, the modern equivalent of the anti-static sleeve is the CDefender, a protective piece of plastic that attaches to the shiny data side of a CD (there’s a DVD version, too). Because it’s made from the same material as the disc itself, the coating never has to be removed. And better yet, it can even cover existing scratches. (Ten-pack with applicator, $5.99 at J&R Audio Video Store, 31 Park Row, nr. Ann St.; 212-238-9000.)