HD Warranty still applicable for OEM WD drives bought off of Ebay?

[AndyD2k]

Want to buy a drive off of there but not sure if the warranty would still apply

 

[Cr0nJ0b]

that depends a lot on the drive. Get a serial number and check it out.

 

[AndyD2k]

You mean to check how much is left in the warranty? It's a newer drive so it should have at least two years of warranty

 

[RebateMonger]

Originally posted by: AndyD2k
You mean to check how much is left in the warranty? It's a newer drive so it should have at least two years of warranty

Well, sometimes a big OEM PC maker (like IBM) buys drives for their PCs and those drives have a different warranty than other, identical, drives that were generic OEM (not included with a PC originally). That's why the best approach is to find the S/N.

I haven't returned a WD drive in fifteen years, but I know that Seagate, for instance, doesn't even ASK for a receipt or purchase date for an OEM drive. Your warranty is based entirely on the S/N of the drive.

 

[tcsenter]

Warranty still applicable for OEM WD drives bought off of Ebay?

Nope. For that matter, the warranty for any product bought on Ebay is no longer valid, unless the seller is the company that markets the product or its authorized agent.

The exceptions are so rare that you might as well assume that nothing on Ebay comes with the manufacturer's warranty unless the seller is the manufacturer.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Originally posted by: tcsenter

Warranty still applicable for OEM WD drives bought off of Ebay?

Nope. For that matter, the warranty for any product bought on Ebay is no longer valid, unless the seller is the company that markets the product or its authorized agent.

The exceptions are so rare that you might as well assume that nothing on Ebay comes with the manufacturer's warranty unless the seller is the manufacturer.

Not true. For example, XFX (I think) has a "double lifetime warranty", which means that they will extend the warranty to the purchaser if you ever sell your card.

Also, I think that the mfgs warranty is still valid in most cases, if the product is retail new and an original sales receipt is provided with the purchase.

 

[AndyD2k]

I'll be buying from Newegg or the like. Guy just wrote back that the warranty is through them. No point in trying to save a few dollars only to get f'd a year later if the drive fails

 

[taltamir]

Originally posted by: RebateMonger

Originally posted by: AndyD2k
You mean to check how much is left in the warranty? It's a newer drive so it should have at least two years of warranty

Well, sometimes a big OEM PC maker (like IBM) buys drives for their PCs and those drives have a different warranty than other, identical, drives that were generic OEM (not included with a PC originally). That's why the best approach is to find the S/N.

I haven't returned a WD drive in fifteen years, but I know that Seagate, for instance, doesn't even ASK for a receipt or purchase date for an OEM drive. Your warranty is based entirely on the S/N of the drive.

Seagate and WD and other HDD manufacturers only ask for a receipt if the drive was manufactured longer ago then its warranty period.

that is. If the drive was manufactured 1-1-2007 and has a 3 years warranty they will not ask you for a receipt as as long as it is not 1-1-2010.
If it is 5-1-2010 (the drive shows as out of warranty), but you have an official retailer receipt showing you purchased it in 2009, then your warranty is good until 2012 instead.

However, some OEM drives are sold with a 30 day warranty, it depends on the serial number.

So you should ask for the serial number and check for yourself (most manufacturers have a tool on their website that verifies the default warranty based on serial number).

 

[RebateMonger]

Good summary, taltamir.