Best RMA Process (SSD)

[jae]

Which SSD manufacturers have the best RMA process, in terms of ease and speed?

I'm starting to move my home servers to SSDs, and reading some of the issues with getting drives replaced and stuff made me wonder if I stick to particular brands. Right now I have Samsung 850 EVO, quite a few Crucial M4s, and a mSATA from MyDigitalSSD(?). From a few post I read it seemed like Samsung is horrible at RMA process.

Sandisk, OCZ, Toshiba Mushkin, PNY, Kingston, Patriot.....

 

[Glaring_Mistake]

I do not really have any experience with RMA for an SSD (possible exception for SanDisk depending on how you look at it).

But the ShieldPlus warranty that OCZ has sounds like it is simple and fast.
You do not even have to show them your receipt,just give them the serial number and a replacement will be shipped out along with a paid return shipping label for sending in your malfunctioning SSD.

So if it works as well as they describe it then I think the RMA process for OCZ would be difficult to beat in terms of ease and speed.

Of course a lot of people avoid OCZ because it is,well OCZ.

 

[Charlie98]

From a few post I read it seemed like Samsung is horrible at RMA process......

I can attest to that. It's not so much the RMA process... and, no, the website RMA process does NOT work, you have to call... but the fact that you get a refurb in return. So, for the price I paid for a premium SSD (840Pro) I wound up with a refurb in less than a year. Just left a bad taste in my mouth.

Haven't had to use the RMA process on my Intel or Crucial SSDs... yet.

 

[WilliamM2]

I can attest to that. It's not so much the RMA process... and, no, the website RMA process does NOT work, you have to call... but the fact that you get a refurb in return. So, for the price I paid for a premium SSD (840Pro) I wound up with a refurb in less than a year. Just left a bad taste in my mouth.

Haven't had to use the RMA process on my Intel or Crucial SSDs... yet.

I've had Asus, Epson, KDS, Viewsonic, Western Digital, Seagate, Seasonic, Netgear, Lynsys, and others send me refurbs over the years for warranty replacements. In fact I don't recall ever getting a new computer component as a warranty replacement.

 

[Elixer]

Best RMA process would be Toshiba/OCZ, WD, logitech, CyberPower (UPS), IIYAMA.

Worst is, by far, Samsung.

 

[smakme7757]

It's almost impossible to say.

I've had bad/slow RMA experiences with Western Digital, for example. But at the same time I've also experienced super support and RMA speed from them as well.

It's really a case by case thing.

Just keep in mind that the majority of people who are happy with their RMA won't write about it on the internet. It's the people who are unhappy that usually want to let off some steam.

 

[pcgeek11]

I don't think any Manufacturers replace RMA Components with new any more all refurb's.

I think for a server I would be more interested in which drive are most reliable rather than the fastest/easiest RMA process.

just my 2 cents.

 

[Puffnstuff]

OCZ and Adata sent me new ssd's when I rma'd their drives. Seagate and WD always send me new hd's when I rma a drive to them. Samsung sent me a refurb after going through the wringer trying to get an rma in the first place for my failed 840 pro 256 drive. My experience with them is why I run an intel ssd right now in my desktop.

 

[VirtualLarry]

OCZ and Adata sent me new ssd's when I rma'd their drives. Seagate and WD always send me new hd's when I rma a drive to them. Samsung sent me a refurb after going through the wringer trying to get an rma in the first place for my failed 840 pro 256 drive. My experience with them is why I run an intel ssd right now in my desktop.

Seagate and WD don't send new drives out for RMA. They are shrink-wrapped in an anti-static bug, but check the label. "Re-certified"

 

[corkyg]

I can attest to that. It's not so much the RMA process... and, no, the website RMA process does NOT work, you have to call... but the fact that you get a refurb in return. So, for the price I paid for a premium SSD (840Pro) I wound up with a refurb in less than a year. Just left a bad taste in my mouth. Haven't had to use the RMA process on my Intel or Crucial SSDs... yet.

Just about the same experience. Beyond that, in over 25 years, I have only had one RMA, and that was for a WDC HDD. Ergo, RMA is not one of my considerations.

 

[Puffnstuff]

Seagate and WD don't send new drives out for RMA. They are shrink-wrapped in an anti-static bug, but check the label. "Re-certified"

Sorry VL but mine are brand spanking new drives with no refurb labels to be had. Only Samsung was cheap enough to send me a refurb.

 

[LoveMachine]

Crucial's RMA for an old M4 was relatively painless. I called, and after a short phone tree was handed to an actual human who communicated very effectively. I had a replacement drive very quickly, too.

 

[Charlie98]

Crucial's RMA for an old M4 was relatively painless. I called, and after a short phone tree was handed to an actual human who communicated very effectively. I had a replacement drive very quickly, too.

As much as the Samsung RMA process leaves a little to be desired, once you actually get hold of someone... bam! I had a replacement drive in 2 days.

Same thing (for me) with WD and a bad 2TB Red I RMA'd... it was here in about 3 days, a refurb for sure... but they sent me a 3TB HDD in exchange. Yes, it was blocked down to 2TB, but I used Acronis and opened it all the way up.

Ergo, RMA is not one of my considerations.

After the experience with Samsung and WD, I changed the way I look at drives... I just buy whatever is on sale now. If it dies, it dies; if it RMAs, well, that's great, too. I just don't see any correlation between a 'better' drive with a longer warranty and it's potential lifespan.

 

[jae]

I don't think any Manufacturers replace RMA Components with new any more all refurb's.

I think for a server I would be more interested in which drive are most reliable rather than the fastest/easiest RMA process.

just my 2 cents.

Yes, I considered reliability first, but what happens IF the drive goes bad during it's warranty period? Would I have to jumps through hoops for it to be replaced? Wait months? etc. I would like to know I can have it replaced quickly and without much hassle.

 

[Brado78]

KINGSTON!! hands down They even pay for the shipping of the defective drive!!!!!! and you get a new one not a refurb

 

[VirtualLarry]

Sorry VL but mine are brand spanking new drives with no refurb labels to be had. Only Samsung was cheap enough to send me a refurb.

Then you got lucky. But don't be spouting that like it's policy, because it's not.

http://support.wdc.com/warranty/policy.asp

WD's replacement Product under its limited warranty will be manufactured from new and serviceable used parts.

 

[Brado78]

WD and Kingston are two different company's there for different policies. WD is famous for taking older drives updating firmware and making them look like you're getting a newer refurb.

 

[Puffnstuff]

Then you got lucky. But don't be spouting that like it's policy, because it's not.

http://support.wdc.com/warranty/policy.asp

Don't get mad because they sent me new drives and not you.

 

[Elixer]

Don't get mad because they sent me new drives and not you.

But it isn't just him... *ALL* of the drives I have gotten back from Seagate & WD over the years have all been refurbs, but, they call them "certified repaired".

No idea what you sent them, but, as was said, you got very lucky if you actually received back new HDs.

 

[sxr7171]

I don't see what the big deal about refurbs is. If they repaired your drive, however long that took, it would then be a "refurb". So they not only repair someone else's drive but put it through a process that also cosmetically refreshes it and send it to you so you don't have to wait for your actual unit to go through the process.

As for WD repleacements, they have been refurbs. They may or may not have a label but serial number will reflect that it is a refurb. Same as Apple if you get a replacement, it is a refurb and the serial number begins with different letters.

 

[corkyg]

I agree with sxr7171 about refurbs. The main point is that they are 100% tested, whereas noobs may only be lot sampled.

 

[therealnickdanger]

I often will seek out refurbs to purchase because I know that - in many cases - the product was hand-inspected to function properly and given that extra amount of effort to ensure its operation. For the most part, I've been happy with every refurb I have bought and the cost savings have allowed me to get considerably more power and features into my PCs over the years than I otherwise would have been able to afford.

On second thought, stay away from refurbs. Leave them all to me!

I personally haven't had a single SSD fail, so I have no experience with RMAs for SSDs. What I can say is that Seagate is a terrible company to work with for HDD replacements. WD/Hitachi have been wonderful to work with.

 

[jkauff]

Samsung RMA performance is actually very good, but as others have mentioned it's only good if you call the phone number. The web RMA has been broken for years.

 

[Elixer]

I agree with sxr7171 about refurbs. The main point is that they are 100% tested, whereas noobs may only be lot sampled.

I think they might pass a basic test, but, I have had back to back Seagate refurbs die on me within weeks, both of them, and the third one lasted ~3 months and that died as well.

Matter of fact, looking at the pile of refurbs that I have had, they are all basically useless now, with a variety of different issues that make them only useful for scratch drives, or perhaps part them out for the circuit boards.

 

[Hulk]

Which SSD manufacturers have the best RMA process, in terms of ease and speed?

I'm starting to move my home servers to SSDs, and reading some of the issues with getting drives replaced and stuff made me wonder if I stick to particular brands. Right now I have Samsung 850 EVO, quite a few Crucial M4s, and a mSATA from MyDigitalSSD(?). From a few post I read it seemed like Samsung is horrible at RMA process.

Sandisk, OCZ, Toshiba Mushkin, PNY, Kingston, Patriot.....

I suppose the best RMA manufacturer would be the one with the worst drives since they would have a lot of experience