i can understand why there is a difference between OEM and retail drives. when you buy a retail drive, it comes in Seagate's nice packaging...well protected, padded, etc. when you buy an OEM from say, newegg, it comes in a static bag, loose, in a big box with some styrofoam peanuts. that OEM drive is possible banged around and who knows what prior to getting to you...maybe causing a DOA or shortened lifespan on the drive assembly. can't blame Seagate for that.

Phhily u mo again. U jus rma online, print a rma/box shippng ups tag 4 $5, ship n wait. WD not ur gf send u emails.

#39 u mo. S/N no stinking receipt.

#43 how do you prove that your OEM drive was purchased before 1/3/09? Magic faeries and crystal balls? I have no doubt that in three years time people will be moaning that segate won't honor the 5 year warranty because the can't prove the bought before the cutoff.

The difference between a 3 year and 5 year warranty moving forward is when and how you bought the drive. The only way they will be able to tell on some drives is by your receipt.

Firstly, they would be able to tell from the S/N weather OEM or Retail, secondly OEM xxxxxNS drives (not xxxxxAS) will still carry the 5 yr warranty (NS represents a Server/Corporate drive, whilst AS is a desktop drive)

#18, if your faith in the hardware matches the warranty, why not buy all your drives at Best Buy and pay for the extended warranty? That way your drives will magically last longer!

A longer warranty does not mean a better product - it just means that the price you pay for the drive reflects a calculation of the rate of failure and the percentage of people who will bother to return their failed drive and the cost of replacement.

If number of drives sold/(number of failed drives returned in X years * cost of replacement= $2), then company makes warranty length X years, raises price by $5, and suddenly they have a "more reliable product."

guess i'll stick with the WD drives with the 5 year warranties

In 3 years a 1TB $100 drive will cost about $30 and is not worth the hassle and cost to ship it, to replace an obsolete drive with another obsolete drive.
I am Ok with 3 year warranty, to make a buying decision I will look at other people opinion (noise, temperature, failure rate, speed) of the specific drive and not the 3 or 5 year warranty.

It is nice to see American hard drive manufacture following the foot steps on their automobile counterpart; 3 year warranty for products that break after two.

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