How does a refurb HDD end up as a refurb?

Bob1212 · Nov 21, 2022

At first thought it seems that a refurb HDD for backups is an innately bad idea. But then again, I'm using my 2 yr old HDD for backups all the time. Also, if I rotate using my current HDD with a newly bought refurb, then with an HDD failure my risk is limited. Right?

But I'm curious as to why an HDD ends up as a refurb. Did the motor fail and get replaced? A circuit board failed? What are the likeliest causes?

Thanks.

OAT · Nov 21, 2022

I would look more for a recertified HDD than refurbished if you intend to go that route.

Mooly · Nov 21, 2022

I often see these available from an electronics component supplier and they are listed as 'recertified'. Plenty available in 2.5 and 3.5" outline.

Whatever the reasons I just can't see them being 'repaired' as I would have thought that uneconomic. More likely returns of some kind that are retested and certified as working to spec. Perhaps they are pulled from equipment that has been returned, not necessarily where the drive was suspect.

There is a 4TB one for £80. Not sure how that compares to new, or how any of these compare tbh.

badrobot · Nov 21, 2022

Refurbed does not necessarily mean it was damaged. Most of them are just basically returned items, re-certified and re-packaged. People return products for a lot of different reasons.

davewin11 · Nov 21, 2022

Mooly said:
There is a 4TB one for £80. Not sure how that compares to new, or how any of these compare tbh.

A brand new 4TB WD Blue is £83 on Amazon

Dave

cereberus · Nov 21, 2022

The phrase "wouldn't touch it with a bargepole" comes to mind. It is just just asking for trouble!

You have no idea e.g. if original owner dropped it and had intermittent issues.

Berton · Nov 21, 2022

Many times I've seen ads for Refurbished and actually bought a printer from Office Depot that had never been opened. Basically if it has a serial number that is entered at time of original sale then returned it may not be offered again as new hence the Refurb sale, usually at a discounted price.

badrobot · Nov 21, 2022

The thing about buying a refurb, make sure it is not a final sale so that you can return it in case there is an issue with it.

Otherwise, get brand new.

Bob1212 · Nov 21, 2022

Just FYI, here's the kind of thing I was looking at. WD official eBay store, and a 2 yr guarantee is claimed.

Berton · Nov 21, 2022

Didn't have any problem with registering the printer. The 2 Notebooks I got in 2019 came through TigerDirectB2B [Business] carried a 2-year warranty from the firm that had rehabbed them, never have had a problem with them. The 12" was $149 and the 13" was $139. I did notice a jump in pricing after COVID hit and demand affected the supply.

badrobot · Nov 21, 2022

I once bought a refurbed Logitech G933 gaming headphone from Newegg for $40. It was original between $150 to $200 back then. It was a great deal.

Nothing wrong with it. The ear pads are actually sealed.

NavyLCDR · Nov 21, 2022

cereberus said:
The phrase "wouldn't touch it with a bargepole" comes to mind. It is just just asking for trouble!

You have no idea e.g. if original owner dropped it and had intermittent issues.

I have a NAS running 2 3TB and 2 4TB HDDs. The same capacity drives are mirrored pairs, and the two mirrored pairs are striped to give me 7 TB total capacity. The drives are set to run continuously 24/7. I've used refurbed drives and generic (white label) drives. I've had 1 drive failure in 4 years and it was a simple swap and remirror to get back into operation. The drive's S.M.A.R.T. firmware will tell you if there are excessive read errors and reallocated sectors (as well as stop/start cycles and total hours running). The drives are working great for me. Any drive, brand new, well used, or refurbed should have a backup of data anyway, if you care about the data.

My NAS monitors S.M.A.R.T. pretty much continuously and runs data integrity checks on the filesystems weekly.

TM21 · Nov 26, 2022

For me, an old Computer Builder/Tech, it's a matter of Who did the refurb. ???
In one summer, a few years ago, I returned a failed HD to Western Digital for a replacement. The replacement failed in less than a month, so back it went. The drive they sent back to me looked like it had been kicked across a cement floor. I gave it away. It failed within a week of use. So, need I say that WD is on my Sh** list?

However, I've purchases several Epson printers that were sold as "Refurbished" and always worked perfectly.
So for me, it's a matter of WHO is doing the refurbishing, and do I trust them, or not?

I've done a lot of Refurbishing myself, and I've wound up with a product that is better than new. The little Acer SFF desktop PC that I'm using right now came to me as broken and un-repairable. I refurbished it myself and it's one great little PC.

Berton · Nov 26, 2022

I've Rehabbed a number of computers, still have 4 Notebooks with Win10 and a Desktop with Win10 I've used parts from others given me, nice computers. I tell people to give them to me instead of the landfill and save any parts I may be able to use. Since I have only my time in them I can sell cheap or give to someone less fortunate if I hear about them, several months ago sent 4 Notebooks with a missionary to Honduras.

Bob1212 · Nov 26, 2022

Somewhat related: it's prolly better to fix your old refrigeratur, or get a refurbed used one, than to buy a brand new one - because the new ones are engineered to break down in roughly two years. Most brands are from one huge mega corporation, so they're pretty much all the same.

Winuser · Nov 27, 2022

badrobot said:
The thing about buying a refurb, make sure it is not a final sale so that you can return it in case there is an issue with it.
Otherwise, get brand new.

I buy all of my laptop's factory refurbed from Micro Center and they all came with a factory warranty and an option to buy an extended warranty. The only time we had to use a warranty was for the laptop we bought for my wife's sister. We bought the warranty to cover damage for such things as being dropped. She let her youngest granddaughter use it and she dropped it and broke one of the hinges off. It couldn't be fixed so they returned our money that we used to buy a newer laptop. I don't think I would buy a refurbed HDD though.

NavyLCDR · Nov 27, 2022

Winuser said:
I buy all of my laptop's factory refurbed from Micro Center and they all came with a factory warranty and an option to buy an extended warranty. The only time we had to use a warranty was for the laptop we bought for my wife's sister. We bought the warranty to cover damage for such things as being dropped. She let her youngest granddaughter use it and she dropped it and broke one of the hinges off. It couldn't be fixed so they returned our money that we used to buy a newer laptop. I don't think I would buy a refurbed HDD though.

When you buy a refurb laptop are you not also buying a refurb drive in the laptop?

Berton · Nov 27, 2022

NavyLCDR said:
When you buy a refurb laptop are you not also buying a refurb drive in the laptop?

No sure way of knowing without having Serial Numbers to compare between first new and refurb. I once had to get warranty involved with a Notebook and used Belarc Advisor to do an inventory before the return and after got it back, verifyed a replacement of the motherboard had occurred. A form with the return included a statement about whether wanting the original drive returned or not.

Winuser · Nov 27, 2022

NavyLCDR said:
When you buy a refurb laptop are you not also buying a refurb drive in the laptop?

Now we're getting picky! Yes, the drives are used. One of the first things I do is take out the HDD and replace it with an SSD. My last laptop I purchased for myself I replaced the OEM SSD drive with a larger SSD.

How does a refurb HDD end up as a refurb?

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