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How much safer is it to buy a HD from a retailer than...

Forum Storage : Hard Disks - How much safer is it to buy a HD from a retailer than...

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Stealth808   05-16-2009 at 11:37:50 PM

... getting it shipped?

I've been reading so many horror stories of HDs failing allegedly because of improper shipping. So I'm just wondering if the odds of getting an undamaged HD is really that much better buying from a retailer rather than getting it shipped. Also I read somewhere that if you do get a HD shipped its better/safer to pay a little extra and have it sent FedEx rather than UPS or USPS?

Here's my dilema... I was originally planning on buying a WD Caviar Black 750GB but apparently no retailer(Fry's, Microcenter, etc...) in So Cal carries the 750GB they all only sell the 1TB version. So I'm trying to decide if its better it to buy the 1TB locally (even though it runs hotter) so I can have peace of mind that I'm getting a stable undamaged HD...

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stoner133   05-16-2009 at 11:58:12 PM
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Your fears about shipping are crazy. First thing an etailer like Newegg has the drives shipped to them, then they ship to the customer. The local small computer shop buys from a distributer that has the drives shipped to them, then they ship to the local stores. The large retailer gets the drives shipped to their warehouse, then they ship it in some instances by their truck to the store, some instances they ship by those same FedEX,UPS or USPS to the store depending on quanity ordered and distance to the store. Sure there is a risk that the item may get damaged due to shipping but its really no greater or less depending on where you buy it from. There is no way to have total peace of mind, even if you picked the drive up at the factory the number of possible times the drive or the package could have been damaged by handling is astronomical. The only good thing about buying local is if the drive is DOA when you pull it out of the box you can jump back into your car and return in quickly. But even then some of the small shops will try to say you damaged it and must RMA it directly to the manufacturer.

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Stealth808   05-17-2009 at 12:13:09 AM
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So basically you're saying that the odds are the same.

I was thinking about it this way... both retailers and etailers like Newegg get their HDs in bulk on pallets. But if you buy a HD online, that one individual box is going to get tossed around, dropped, and handled more roughly getting shipped separately than a whole bunch of boxes on a pallet...

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geofelt   05-17-2009 at 02:44:28 AM
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If you read the newegg reviews that complain about shipping, you will see that most problems are from some time ago. Newegg wraps the drives in bubble wrap, then in a box with lots of peanuts. Problem solved. No doubt because of some complaints. Their return process is very good if you should ever need it.

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g3force   05-17-2009 at 02:47:40 AM
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Stealth808 wrote :

So basically you're saying that the odds are the same.

I was thinking about it this way... both retailers and etailers like Newegg get their HDs in bulk on pallets. But if you buy a HD online, that one individual box is going to get tossed around, dropped, and handled more roughly getting shipped separately than a whole bunch of boxes on a pallet...


Thats being paranoid. I've ordered 4 drives online and bought one on Ebay. None of them arrived DOA, and none have failed on me.

Quote :

I've been reading so many horror stories of HDs failing allegedly because of improper shipping....


Of course. The natural action that someone would take when receiving a dead drive from an online seller is complain about it, as the return process is sometimes lengthy and tedious. But does this mean that the majority of the population will receive dead drives? No.

Reply to g3force
leon2006   05-17-2009 at 06:39:43 PM
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The individual drives shipped in small boxes through fedex/UPS/USPS get tossed around. It get tossed and dropped. A lot of things happen in between shipment.

The BIG Boxes will mutltiple drives that get shipped to stores takes less stress than the small-individual boxes.

Given the above information..... It doesn't matter..... The mechanical specification of the drive is for more higher than the beating it takes during shipping. READ the DATASHEET.

When i purchased a drive from store or get it shipped say from NEWEGG.... As long as the package or shipping box has no damage or puncture 99% of the time its good.

Make sure that the PACKAGE or SHIPPING BOX is in good order and the drive should be GOOD.

Don't lose sleep on this issue... get your drive


------------------------------ Q6600: Maximus Formula: Zalman 9700LED8GByte: Crucial Ballistics 4-4-4-12: PC6400; Vista Ultimate-64BFG XOC 4890; Disp: 70 Inch HDTV: Hauppage 2250 HDTV Tuner1.4TByte: 2x750Gbyte; RAID0; Case: Antec 900: PS:Antec Quatro 850
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zipzoomflyhigh   05-17-2009 at 06:49:09 PM
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I've bought all my drives over the years from Newegg and never had one DOA or die at all for that matter.

------------------------------ P965/Q6700@3.2 8MB HD4850 OC Edition
4GB Corsair XMS 800
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