Barracuda XT, Barracuda, Barracuda Green, DiamondMax and other desktop SATA and IDE drives

[Donat76]

I was really disappointed to hear that Seagate and another hard drive manufacturer lowered their warranty periods this year.  Warranty is one of the top priorities I consider when purchasing anything.

Regardless of the reason Seagate publicly states for this change, it is an indication to me that the manufacturer has less faith they have a quality product.  Although I've rarely had to use a manufacturer's warranty,  I like the peace of mind knowing that I'm covered.

I have seen several websites stating contradicting information about the warranty period for this and other Seagate drives.  I have seen 1 year, 2 years and 3 years for this exact drive on different store websites.  I've also searched Seagates website but I've found no clear answer and the Warranty Checker requires that I already own a drive and have a S/N to check.

What is the warranty if I was to purchase it today? 

[Cantbecanit]

OEM is normally 1 yr.

Retail is normally 2-5 yrs, and will say on the box, so never lose the box if you buy a retail unit.

[win]

and why OEM has less?

i believe 3 years minimum is a must for HDD, regadless internal, external, oem, retail, non retail, taken out from enclosure, etc.

all wlll be used for just 1 same thing. store data.

[Hammey]

Hi I used to buy the oem drives not really to save money as the difference was never that much but it saves on packaging. Now it seems seagate wants everyone to get a box with junk plastic inside. Anyone that would buy a oem drive now from them is crazy 1 year warranty because you dont get a bunch of packing material is nuts. I know alot of shops that have just stopped selling there drives or have really cut down on there stock.

[spcxxx]

here in EU is minimum 2 years for OEM too...

and i bought OEM with 3 years warranty recently but just at this one distributor

http://www.edsystem.sk/main.aspx?cls=ProductDetail&pro_id=435497

[tarecaro84]

The reply I got from Seagate was as follows: "Thank you for contacting Seagate Support.  Seagate recently began a warranty reduction program. In order to determine the drive warranty, the serial number must be available for the product. ...". 

OEM vs Retail is not the issue.  I was at the local Best Buy last night and there were identical model 3TB Barracuda's.  The ones made in Thailand had a 5 year warranty and the ones mad in China had a 1 year warranty.  This gave me cause for concern and makes on-line purchases extremely difficult if one has to request the serial number and then verify the warranty period. 

In more than 30 years I've only sent one drive back for any type of warranty service and it was for a firmware issues which Seagate covered and I was very happy with the level of service.  This new policy and 1 year warranty period may be something I can't live with.