Caveat emptor: Was the HDD 'refurbished' or 'resetted'?

[NRA]

Hello)

Sooner or later people need more storage space, want to improve the HDD performance or just to replace obsolete or faulty devices, so they check new prices and compare it to used ones.

For a common user it might be difficult to find out about replaced mechanic and electronic parts, and if it's working alright then, it's no issue either, IMO.

The point is that some sellers on purpose abuse repairing software and hardware options to hide errs and pretend the HDD is really 'almost' flawless, whereas it doesn't worth the money.

Would short/ext SMART test and a quick/full surface scan suffice or there're other approaches to make sure?

TY

[Spildit]

S.M.A.R.T. can be cleared.
Defects can be moved from G-List to P-List.
Drives can be Self-Scanned or burned-in.
If the procedure is correctly done it would be near impossible to know if a "bad" drive was "fixed" or "repaired" using a method like that, apart from the fact that it would be visible a cleared S.M.A.R.T. and very strange on a used drive.

Please read :

http://www.hddoracle.com/viewtopic.php?f=117&t=1397

http://www.hddoracle.com/viewtopic.php?f=117&t=1423

A Self-Scan would "retrieve" more life out of a damaged or degradated drive, but would it be safe to use a drive like that to store important data ? Well, at any rate you should have multiple back-ups of your important data to start with.

Examples of SS :

http://www.hddoracle.com/viewtopic.php?f=83&t=1246

http://www.hddoracle.com/viewtopic.php?f=59&t=1456

As for drive testing (if you don't care about the data and you just want to test a new aquired drive) - http://www.hddoracle.com/viewtopic.php?f=117&t=1393

[NRA]

Spildit, thank you for the links to heaps of useful info.

It was a friend of mine who a week ago bought a 'little used' 3+TB HDD with suspiciously good SMART, which appeared to be a truncated (disabled head+clean SMART+HPA) stuff. The seller at that local upgrades' shop said he neither knew it had been tempered, nor he cared much for the HDD worked fine (=no bad blocks) and complied with their (altered) specification, let alone the limited 30-day-warranty concerned the HDD is working only--indeed, half a price steal at a discount of 15%)

Actually for now it does work pretty ok (performance and temperature-wise) as a non-system (video/docs/music etc), except for a periodic ~400ms (reallocated?) 'delay' blocks scattered over 1/4th of the surface, and I'm still reluctant to force remapping some 500+ such blocks.

As far as I explained to my friend that slow block are potentially bad blocks, the buyer thinks how to demand the HDD replacement or cashback (if any), yet hopefully it's a good deal; however I'd rather buy a new 1TB HDD than that (troubles).

[labtech]

With rare exceptions, whenever we buy something at low cost, is it ever good/healthy?
For example: food, shoes, tires, car, equipment of any kind, service of any kind, etc.
Why would it be different with drives?
Wise people say: "You get what you pay for."

[NRA]

labtech, you're talking, yet the problem is not the hardware is used or repaired, but rather the fact the seller tried (1) to conceal issues and (2) to sell the HDD as of a better grade--if he'd honestly showed its condition, then it could be still worth negotiation and even buying, and there were no this topic

Perhaps, he didn't intentionally mislead at least one buyer for he might be but a mere midman/reseller, yet for what it's worth, my friend and I consider it a deceit--and we're already looking for other possible victims to file an action in a case the seller would refuse to replace or pay back on demand.
If ifs and ans were pots and pans.

By the way, getting ready for the worst, who could be considered as an 'expert-witness', any licensed repair specialist would do?

TY

[labtech]

There is no such thing as a "licensed repair specialist."

We get taken/scammed everyday with everything honestly, from the place we live (rented or mortgaged), food we eat, just about everything we buy, and so on. Most is marked up ridiculously (and consequently drives and data recovery and so on). So, fighting it takes too much energy and is mentally poisonous.
Focusing on creating value and investment is much more rewarding. And as result people appreciate it more.

[NRA]

There is no such thing

I leant no matter how they may call it for *any* official service centre and its agent would do, so no problem here--there're a few nearby.

As far as the HDD doesn't meet the factory specifications even as a factory refurbish (rather many slow blocks), it was surely repaired (had bad blocks/sectors hidden and SMART cleared), which doesn't go in line with 'almost ideal' and 'without bad blocks'.

Not sure how it will fall in place, yet if the seller is honest, then he would see it as a fair customer complaint (or later a claim) and would agree to amend it.
Frankly speaking, I'm a bit at a loss how to make sure, avoid extremes and refrain from going into troubles: before buying, besides visual inspection, one can only check factory specifications in the Internet, because surface scan doesn't reveal much, whereas all the rest he could find out only later...
Perhaps, that's why they don't let boot from a USB or run even 'Victoria for Windows'?



P.S. My friend (who happen to work as a journalist) just phoned and said that to shun publicity ("settle the issue") the seller agreed to (1) offer another 50% discount--which seems fair enough or (2) replace the device--also ok, or (3) refund money--may be the best option here. Negotiation is the key)