Western Digital Raptors invalid serial numbers!

[Carfax83]

OK so I have two Western Digital Raptor 600gb HDDs laying around that I want to sell. They should still have some warranty left on them since I bought them in 2011 and they have a 5 year warranty. So I look at the back and check the serial numbers and enter them into Western Digital's warranty check website..

Both drives returned invalid serial numbers!

I'm very certain these drivers aren't counterfeit drives as I bought them for a reliable seller and they were definitely faster than the comparable 7,200 rpm drives that I've owned. BIOS also recognized them by their proper model number, which is WD6000HLHX..

And even more, I looked up a picture of the back of a Western Digital Raptor on Google and I found this:

This picture is from a review of the hard drive. I entered the serial number from that picture into that same website and it returned the same result, an invalid serial number! D:

So by now I'm pretty certain that something is wrong on Western Digital's end and not on mine. The question is, what the hell do I do about it? I don't want them giving me the run around.. I haven't spoken to them about it yet but I will call them, probably on Monday..

 

[BUTCH1]

Possibly typo?, O instead of 0, something like that?..

 

[Carfax83]

Tried that already and it didn't work..

 

[corkyg]

Seems like a contact to WDC is warranted to clarify the situation.

http://support.wdc.com/contact/index.asp?lang=en

 

[paul878]

They are probably oem drives.

 

[Carfax83]

They are probably oem drives.

That's it! They were OEM drives. So do I have to go to a different webpage to check my warranty status?

 

[Mark R]

Western digital do not provide a warranty for OEM drives.

You will need to contact your seller and ask if they offer their own warranty.

 

[Carfax83]

Western digital do not provide a warranty for OEM drives.

You will need to contact your seller and ask if they offer their own warranty.

Well that sucks, as I bought them from a retailer on Amazon so I'm certain they will have no warranty.. Oh well, at least the drives are fully functional. I used them for 3 years and these drives are much better built than standard hard drives.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I had an experience with this problem just three months ago. My own 600GB VelociRaptor went south, with the warranty spec still indicating two more years before expiration. I encountered the same problem attempting to get an RMA from the WD site.

Eventually, I was able to e-mail WD. After sending pictures of the label like yours, they responded with an e-mail declining the RMA request. I made some polite inquiries as to underlying reasons. They then responded with a reversal of their position and granted me the RMA replacement.

It may or may not have to do with different serial numbers for bare-bones OEM disks and a difference in warranty terms. I can only say I was grateful for their final decision.

 

[Carfax83]

I had an experience with this problem just three months ago. My own 600GB VelociRaptor went south, with the warranty spec still indicating two more years before expiration. I encountered the same problem attempting to get an RMA from the WD site.

Eventually, I was able to e-mail WD. After sending pictures of the label like yours, they responded with an e-mail declining the RMA request. I made some polite inquiries as to underlying reasons. They then responded with a reversal of their position and granted me the RMA replacement.

It may or may not have to do with different serial numbers for bare-bones OEM disks and a difference in warranty terms. I can only say I was grateful for their final decision.

Bonzai was yours OEM or retail?

 

[BonzaiDuck]

Bonzai was yours OEM or retail?

Around 1997, I started ordering parts from an outfit named "Compu-Plus" with a facility located in Monsey, NJ. They were always pretty good: no better or worse than the Egg or Directron.

When I started searching the web for a Veloci-Raptor back in 2011 for my sig-rig, the best price popped up at Compu-Plus. I think they wanted $190 give or take.

And -- it was a barebones internal drive, shipped only in the anti-stat wrap. So I suppose it may have been "OEM." What else would it be?

I just never heard of a particular difference in their warranty for "retail" versus "OEM." Seagate and others never made that distinction. I can't remember specifically for WD, but this is the first time I'd ever had to RMA a drive to WD. Or -- the first time one ever "went south" -- barring an old 40GB IDE drive in my sister-in-law's rig. In latter case, the drive was so old we didn't even think about a warranty replacement.