Hard drive from ebay??

[DJK6]

Is it safe to buy a hard drive from ebay. Any thing to look for or watch out for?

 

[Soundmanred]

eBay

 

[fleshconsumed]

There is no such thing as safe when it comes to ebay, but you can reduce the risk to almost nothing. I bought multiple internal and external 4TB seagates from ebay and I never had any problems. However, I only bought "new" hard drives and from sellers with good feedback.

 

[Charlie98]

There is no such thing as safe when it comes to ebay, but you can reduce the risk to almost nothing. I bought multiple internal and external 4TB seagates from ebay and I never had any problems. However, I only bought "new" hard drives and from sellers with good feedback.

True that...

I've bought a few computer components off eBay... so far so good. The HDD I got was, indeed new... I wouldn't feel comfortable buying a used HDD just randomly off eBay.

You would probably have better luck, if you are looking for used, finding one here in the AT FS/FT thread; at least most people have a Heat number as well.

 

[nickbits]

If it's DOA you'll get your money back. I always post the SMART diagnostics on the item listing when I sell my old ones. Maybe ask for that?

 

[nForce2]

There is no such thing as safe when it comes to ebay, but you can reduce the risk to almost nothing. I bought multiple internal and external 4TB seagates from ebay and I never had any problems. However, I only bought "new" hard drives and from sellers with good feedback.

Funny enough, I've also bought dozens of hard drives from eBay, but I only buy used HDs there.

Any time I'm specifically after something new, I buy it from a regular retailer so that returns and warranty issues are easier to deal with. But if I'm looking to save some $$ buying used, or buy something that is no longer in production? eBay is the place! :thumbsup:

 

[PliotronX]

Funny enough, I've also bought dozens of hard drives from eBay, but I only buy used HDs there.

Any time I'm specifically after something new, I buy it from a regular retailer so that returns and warranty issues are easier to deal with. But if I'm looking to save some $$ buying used, or buy something that is no longer in production? eBay is the place! :thumbsup:

Yup, I've had good luck especially with HDD's advertised as server pulls from fleabay. They typically don't go through as many power cycles even though they tend to have higher PoH they have proven pretty reliable.

 

[goobee]

Watch out for the listings where the seller has it listed as "New, Other". Those are not sealed drives for what ever reason and are claimed to be "New" by the seller.

Maybe they are new and maybe they are not. For a few dollars savings, it is not worth the risk in my opinion.

Just stay with sealed drives and you'll probably be OK.

 

[dbk]

I think you should wait for those deals on externals. Remove the drive from the casing and use it internally - only risk is that you're most likely voiding your warranty. I did that on a 3TD Seagate external like 3 years ago (Staples coupon hayday) and it's still going strong (KNOCK ON WOOD).

 

[blastingcap]

Don't buy off ebay, unless it's newegg's storefront there or something like that. I have never had good experiences buying electronics on ebay if they are fragile. Once I bought a HDD and the guy sent a similar, but cheaper and slower drive. If I hadn't looked at the model number carefully I would have been deceived.

 

[nickbits]

Don't buy off ebay, unless it's newegg's storefront there or something like that. I have never had good experiences buying electronics on ebay if they are fragile. Once I bought a HDD and the guy sent a similar, but cheaper and slower drive. If I hadn't looked at the model number carefully I would have been deceived.

One time I got a better item than I ordered.

 

[Carson Dyle]

I hate buying anything off of eBay that I feel has a good chance of needing to be returned. Hard drives are notorious for arriving DOA or lasting just a matter of hours or days. I'd much rather spend a few dollars more and deal with Amazon's no-questions-asked, prepaid-shipping returns policy than someone selling on eBay.

If I'm buying a used HDD it will be from a place like the classifieds here and I usually feel I can trust someone here to back up the items they sell.

 

[corkyg]

Never had a problem with anything from E-Bay - but then, the actual source is to be carefully vetted. Thdere are many legiti dealers selling on E-Bay. Always check the terms and conditions carefully.

Having said that, I use E-Bay as a last resort when shopping.

 

[ethebubbeth]

As with anything on eBay, research your seller. I bought 4 3tb Hitachi HDS5C3030ALA630 drives when adding a new RAIDZ to my NAS a couple years ago. I went to ebay because prices were still at their peak after the Thailand flood. I haven't had any issues.

You can get bad drives from anywhere. The only HDS5C3030ALA630 that has failed on me came from Newegg and it went bad within a week.

 

[PliotronX]

As with anything on eBay, research your seller. I bought 4 3tb Hitachi HDS5C3030ALA630 drives when adding a new RAIDZ to my NAS a couple years ago. I went to ebay because prices were still at their peak after the Thailand flood. I haven't had any issues.

You can get bad drives from anywhere. The only HDS5C3030ALA630 that has failed on me came from Newegg and it went bad within a week.

Funny how that is! A brand new dud but used fleabay drives going strong! It's a total crapshoot.