MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
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Looking for advice on a warranty claim I have currently.
Through work (I am in charge of the ICT systems at a private school) I purchased for a colleague an external HD.
In less than a year the drive has become faulty and won't work - it sounds terminal, like the arm isn't moving correctly inside, makes the typical loud clicky noise as the arm is trying to move and then just spins down.
My college stored his entire media collection (music, movies etc.) on there, doesn't have another copy and although he can replace the data it would just take him ages to re-rip DVDs and CDs and he has asked me if I can try and save his data.
So to start the ball rolling on the warranty claim I opened a support ticket with the manufacturer of the external drive and after going through the usual check list of things to do to get the drive working they have now requested I try and reformat the drive.
However before I do any of this, I want to try the HD in the freezer trick (have had success with this in the past) but I know if I open the caddy I will void the warranty.
To try and get around this, I have requested that I remove the HD from the caddy and try the drive in a internal drive caddy to make sure it isn't a problem with the caddies SATA to USB controller - which to me is a valid technical check in this instance.
They have now come back to me and said to recover data from the drive I must send it to their data recovery company (for a £299 fee) and they will recover it for me. TBH for £70 I can take the drive out, void the warranty and just replace the 2TB seagate drive in there. I would then be free to try all tricks in order to try and recover some of the data.
My question is this, is there any legal loop hole / line I can take if I remove the drive to try and get the data recovered without paying their recovery company the pleasure of doing it for me and still have a valid claim afterwards.
The drive is broken, the caddy is fine and by me removing the drive isn't going to affect this at all and shouldn't void any warranty - Most laptop / PC manufactures allow HD and memory upgrades without voiding warranty by doing so.
I have also tried to do a warranty claim direct with Seagate but as it is an OE drive they just ask that I go back through the caddy manufacture.
Thanks,
TBH, caddy aside, sticking it in the freezer will probably void the warranty anyway; I can't imagine it'd leave no trace inside.
You know, I'd be seriously tempted just to format it. There's nothing on there that's irreplaceable, and you'll be doing it again in another six months next time it fails as he'll go away thinking "I don't need to spend £70 on a second drive for backups, my clever mate can fix it for me."
Putting that another way; how long are you prepared to mess about with it in order to save your colleague having to mess about with it, to resolve a problem of his own making?
I don't see how you can - I presume there's a seal on the caddy so they'd know you'd opened it?
What's the cost of a replacement 2Tb drive these days less than £100 I expect?
For that it's probably worth your colleague taking a punt on you cracking the case and trying the drive in a caddy rather than rebuilding his music collection?
Tell him to buy two external drives next time...