Amazon vs. Newegg for bare/OEM hard drive orders

[Flash SWT]

(Hey gang, forgive this lengthy post but I thought it might be of interest to members here.)

I've been a longtime Newegg customer and only made a purchase from Amazon for the first time last Christmas. However in the time leading up to the purchase of my new Mac Pro I began reading numerous reports online about questionable packaging procedures for bare hard drives. I had never had a problem in the past but it had been at least a year since I'd ordered a hard drive from Newegg.

I was going to just order from Amazon but when I read similar reports about their recent packaging I decided the best thing to do would be order from both so I could share my results.

THE ORDER:
I ordered four OEM (bare) hard drives at the same time, two from each retailer.

From Amazon:
Seagate Barracuda ES.2 ST3750330NS 750GB (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001VKYA72)
Western Digital Caviar Green WD10EADS 1.0TB (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001IEZX3G/)

From Newegg:
Seagate Barracuda ES.2 ST3750330NS 750GB (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148295)
Western Digital Caviar Green WD15EADS 1.5TB (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136351)

SHIPPING COST:
One interesting thing to note is that both retailers offer free shipping on orders over a certain price, which most hard drives will fall into. However while the free shipping from Newegg got my order delivered in two days, the free shipping from Amazon estimated it wouldn't even leave the warehouse for a week. I had to pay an extra $13.95 to get my Amazon order delivered on the same day as the Newegg order that was shipped for free.

I verified this same thing with a recent software order, one title from each vendor based on best price of the two things I needed. Newegg's free shipping option gets sent out immediately, the day after order in my experience, while Amazon's free shipping will sit in the warehouse for almost a week before making it on a truck.

PACKAGING:
http://home.earthlink.net/~kmc44/images/Boxes.jpg
(The box from Newegg is larger because in addition to the two HDs it also included a Netgear PS101 Mini Print Server (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833122028) for use with an older HP LaserJet 6L printer. BTW, it is working just fine and setup on our Macs was fairly simple.)

AMAZON:
http://home.earthlink.net/~kmc44/images/Amazon-1.jpg
As you can see each of the drives from Amazon was in an individual smaller box inside the larger one, however there was nothing to keep these two from sliding around within the larger box.

http://home.earthlink.net/~kmc44/images/Amazon-2.jpg
The Seagate drive was in a plastic clamshell surrounded on both sides with "egg crate" material.

http://home.earthlink.net/~kmc44/images/Amazon-3.jpg
The Western Digital drive was in a anti-static bag surrounded only loosely by "air bag" filler that was mostly popped.

NEWEGG:
http://home.earthlink.net/~kmc44/images/Newegg-1.jpg
http://home.earthlink.net/~kmc44/images/Newegg-2.jpg
http://home.earthlink.net/~kmc44/images/Newegg-3.jpg
The HDs had a some bubble wrap around them however as you can see they were crammed into a corner of the box with brown paper filling the bottom. This offers minimal protection and the bubble wrap was popped along one side of each drive. It would have been much better to have the products in the middle of the box surrounded by the paper instead of just resting on top of it and physically touching the box exterior.

The Seagate drive was in a plastic clamshell and the Western Digital drive was in a anti-static bag, both wrapped in bubble wrap.

RMA:
The Newegg 1.5TB WD failed almost immediately. It initially mounted but didn't make it through the initial format before locking up. So $12 later I RMA'ed it and Newegg sent a replacement that seems to be working fine.

http://home.earthlink.net/~kmc44/images/Newegg-RMA.jpg
I complained about the initial packaging in my RMA and the replacement was surrounded on most sides by packing peanuts, however as you can see there were none on top of the drive.

CONCLUSION:
I give my vote to the best packaged drive to the Seagate from Amazon. However I give my vote for the worst packaged drive to the Western Digital from Amazon.

That said, both Seagates and the Amazon 1TB WD seem to be working just fine [knock-on-wood] as I near one month of service.

Hopefully this is somewhat helpful to anyone in the market for additional hard drives in their Mac Pro. What about other retailers? Please feel free to add any recent experiences you've had ordering bare/OEM hard drives.

.

[grue]

I just go to the shop where they don't speak much English so I just point to what I want on the price list.

Similar price to buying online, but faster and no shipping drama.

[AppleNewton]

thanks for the nice indepth analysis ...ive been tempted to snag a few 500GB 2.5 drives from amazon as theyre 10$ or more cheaper at any given time than newegg (which i almost always use btw)

I've sent a few emails to newegg's HQ regarding their packaging process; specifically for harddrives, ive only had maybe 2 hdds came faulty which I'd say took the huge hit from shipping.

Retail, is another gamble..higher prices and tax on top of the retail pricing.
not to mention the retail merchandise goes through the same maybe even more processes to get to its destination; manufacture, to warehouse to shipping companies to retail warehouse and/or distribution center to retail supply store,

good stuff.

[Weepul]

Strange. My WD hard drives shipped from Amazon packaged the same as your Seagate, not at all like your WD package.

[Tallest Skil]

You can't reliably use the 1.5TB drives as a control, because the drives themselves are worthless.

Firmware issues and the like. Your problem could easily have existed when the drive was made, prior to shipping.

Oh, wait, a Western Digital?

Wow. Hmm... strange.

[JesterJJZ]

zipzoomfly (http://www.zipzoomfly.com) is the place to go...

[nanofrog]

So far, so good:
directron.com (http://www.directron.com/)
ewiz.com (https://www.ewiz.com/)
BHPhotovideo.com (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/)

Though I've noticed variances in packaging from muliple suppliers, everything I've ordered from the listed sites has worked. No Bad Sectors, DOA's, or other failures. :)

I've had other orders from newegg arrive that were mangled by UPS. :rolleyes: The gear worked, but it wasn't HDD's. No drives from Amazon, though they did pack a router rather well.

[POLOgt]

zipzoomfly (http://www.zipzoomfly.com) is the place to go...

Second that,
I have never had a bad experience with ZipZoomFly.
5 stars for them.

[Flash SWT]

Strange. My WD hard drives shipped from Amazon packaged the same as your Seagate, not at all like your WD package.

Interesting, thanks for sharing. Maybe it really is just a crap-shoot and it all depends on which employee is packing things up for shipment.

[nanofrog]

Interesting, thanks for sharing. Maybe it really is just a crap-shoot and it all depends on which employee is packing things up for shipment.
This has been my belief with newegg as well. I just ordered 3 drives, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed. ;)

Hopefully, it'll be packed well enough to survive the Gorilla squad err... UPS. :p

[Tesselator]

This is why I try only to buy HDDs in store.

[nanofrog]

This is why I try only to buy HDDs in store.
Nothing local carries anything. :rolleyes: It's always "No, but we can order it for you". :p So I do it myself, and save some money at the same time. :D

[Tesselator]

Nothing local carries anything. :rolleyes: It's always "No, but we can order it for you". :p So I do it myself, and save some money at the same time. :D

What city do you live in?

[nanofrog]

What city do you live in?
West Monroe, Louisianna. :rolleyes:

Fairly small, not much open after 5PM, or on weekends except for WalMart, fast food, and convenience stores. :p

[Roy]

I just received my 2nd HD from Newegg, in the last month, and both drives were packed bubble rap and with "peanut" similar style foam pellets in the bottom of the box, sides of the box, and on top in the box. The only bubbles that were burst where the ones at the end of the raps where they cut and then sealed. I don't know what Newegg could have done to more securely ship my 2 drives. Both drives I had no problem with upon installation into my Mac Pro.

I've been doing a lot of converting of my old VCR analog tapes (VCR tape deck hooked to my camcorder hooked to my Mac Pro) to digital and it's a "piece of cake". Simple and easy and I'm amazed at how well the old tapes look after all these years (about 20 years).:):):):):)

[Tesselator]

West Monroe, Louisianna. :rolleyes:

Fairly small, not much open after 5PM, or on weekends except for WalMart, fast food, and convenience stores. :p

Hehehe, population: 13,250, Yeah I guess there's not much around there. :-/ Shreveport has nothing? Is that close? Whoa, what the heck are these things? http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=32.363026,-92.576916&z=14&t=h&hl=en

Here's me: http://maps.google.com/maps?t=k&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=35.168239,136.88597&spn=0.014419,0.025492&z=16 <-- Quite a bit different... :p

[nanofrog]

Hehehe, population: 13,250, Yeah I guess there's not much around there. :-/ Shreveport has nothing? Is that close? Whoa, what the heck are these things? http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=32.363026,-92.576916&z=14&t=h&hl=en

Here's me: http://maps.google.com/maps?t=k&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=35.168239,136.88597&spn=0.014419,0.025492&z=16 <-- Quite a bit different... :p
Man, do I miss larger cities. :rolleyes: Pensylvania and Maryland were rather cool, as you could live in a smaller area and not feel crowded. But a decent sized spot of civilization wasn't that far. Say 30 min or so. I was only about 2 - 2.5 hrs from DC as well.

Shreveport is about 1.5hrs away, so not terrible, but not a trip I'd want to make daily. :p

BTW, my Caviar Blacks just arrived. 25.5hrs from order to door. :eek: :D They were sliding around in the box a bit (bubble wrap on the drives, but stuffed in a large box full of paper). I need to get them in, and test for errors.

Keeping my fingers crossed. ;)

[poobah]

We got a bunch of 1 TB Western Digital blacks from NewEgg last week. Each drive was wrapped in about 4 layers of the large bubble wrap. The HD bubble wrap cocoons were buried in a big ol box of foam packing peanuts. Seemed fine to me.

[Flash SWT]

That reminds me of something else I read before ordering. If I remember correctly it was that Newegg orders shipped from TN had the brown paper filling the box while orders shipped from CA had foam peanuts. That would explain why my RMA drive had the peanuts but the original was the brown paper.

[nanofrog]

That reminds me of something else I read before ordering. If I remember correctly it was that Newegg orders shipped from TN had the brown paper filling the box while orders shipped from CA had foam peanuts. That would explain why my RMA drive had the peanuts but the original was the brown paper.
These came from the Memphis facility as well.

I relocated/rerouted some of the drives and cabling, but still need to error check them. I'm careful, so it takes time. ;) That, and the case is rather full ATM, though not maxed yet. :D I can still fit another 5 drives. (Full tower case).

[Flash SWT]

These came from the Memphis facility as well.

Were they in with the brown paper filler or packing peanuts?

[nanofrog]

Were they in with the brown paper filler or packing peanuts?
A couple of layers of bubble wrap on the drives, and the box was filled with brown paper.

Oddly enough, I got an email from newegg on a survey/opinion of the packing materials (brown paper). It's newegg's idea of going green for packing materials. I gladly let them know I didn't care for it, and preferred peanuts. ;)

[Eidorian]

I usually pit NewEgg against ZipZoomFly. ZipZoomFly seems to have Free Shipping a bit more often but the product itself might be a $1 more.

You want that Free Shipping.

[DuaneWayne]

I ordered 7 1TB WD green drives for use in an opensolaris zfs server. No problems with any of them.

[DoFoT9]

This is why I try only to buy HDDs in store.

Nothing local carries anything. :rolleyes: It's always "No, but we can order it for you". :p So I do it myself, and save some money at the same time. :D

buying in store is better, more personal and they can see how confronting i am (if you knew my physique you would be cacking yourself) :rolleyes:

i like in a town of about 2,000 people, when i drive the hour to uni though i am a 2min drive away from basically the cheapest store in australia :) (cheaper because i dont have to pay shipping) - so its great :)

[nanofrog]

buying in store is better, more personal and they can see how confronting i am (if you knew my physique you would be cacking yourself) :rolleyes:

i like in a town of about 2,000 people, when i drive the hour to uni though i am a 2min drive away from basically the cheapest store in Australia :) (cheaper because i dont have to pay shipping) - so its great :)
I don't mind buying in stores, so long as they know what they're selling, understand what I'm asking for. ;) Unfortunately, I haven't found this locally. :( As for keeping anything in stock, not good odds. I can't even get simple stuff like a 3.5" to 5.25" adapter without ordering it. :eek:

Ordering it from them can take just as long or longer, and in the end, costs more than the item is worth to me. Especially if I have to spoon feed them descriptions and model numbers. :rolleyes: They just don't have a clue what I'm talking about. I might as well be speaking in Chineese. :D

Yet if I wanted some obscure part for a tractor, NO PROBLEM. :D :p

[joaoferro37]

Newegg
They will have good deal all the time. Why?
They team up with some external storage company and leak out the drives to them in order to get good pricing and that is why there are OEM drives.

Amazon, you gotta find a good seller there.
RMA, never have problem with newegg and customer service respond is fast and reliable.
Amazon, err....unless you buy from Amazon directly otherwise, it depend on the company policy.

[Eidorian]

If you do a Google Shopping Search and buy on Mwave.com you can activate a coupon. Your purchases over $100 get $10 off.

I just ordered a motherboard and CPU. $158.48 for the pair.

[Semiopaque]

I have to agree with those who said zipzoomfly. Their packaging is the best I've come across. Every drive from them comes in either plastic clamshell or antistatic bag packed inside a foam 'box' (see pic with a bunch of the foam boxes in the back) which is packed inside their shipping box. Very secure. I'm not sure on their RMA process, though, as I have not had to return anything from them yet.

I've had various shipping experiences with Newegg. Drives shipped from their Cali facility come packed pretty well (wrapped in bubblewrap as others have shown). I've also gotten some drives shipped from Tennessee that were not packed very well at all (ordered 3 drives and they just broke off the styrofoam that they came from their supplier in).

That said, I have dealt with Newegg customer service several times and they have been quite pleasant and easy to deal with. They also do seem to keep track of how much you order from them, so if you order a lot you might get special treatment (I've never had to pay for any return shipping and have had them take returns out of their policy before no questions asked).

I prefer the Newegg website to zipzoomfly's. It's much much easier to browse for things with more search options.

I also prefer FedEx shipping (which zipzoomfly uses) over UPS (which Newegg uses), but this has more to do with my local drivers. The FedEx guy calls me when he is ten minutes away - the UPS guy barely even slows down to see if I'm actually home. Also, Newegg products generally get shipped faster than zipzoomfly (like a day or two faster).

Generally, I switch between the two companies based on price for hard drives, but I have a preference for Newegg on other hardware because of my experience with their excellent customer service people.

Oh, I also use cashbacklive to get a % or two cashback when ordering through Newegg or I use upromise.com to get cash back. Zipzoomfly used to be on there too but I don't think they are anymore. (On a semi related note used upomise to get 1% cashback on my refurb Macbook Pro from Apple last year as well).

[nanofrog]

If you do a Google Shopping Search and buy on Mwave.com you can activate a coupon. Your purchases over $100 get $10 off.

I just ordered a motherboard and CPU. $158.48 for the pair.
:cool:
BTW, any gimmicks attached?

[Eidorian]

ZipZoomFly's site has improved somewhat. Their search box actually incorporates thumbnails as you hot search to help you find your item. When you're searching via categories deeper in they do need to incorporate a much more interactive guided search more like NewEgg's.

NewEgg's OEM hard drive packaging has always been terrifying when you see the bare drive come in bubble wrap and tape just dumped into the box.

I got a processor off of ZipZoomFly when it wasn't even listed on NewEgg and when it did show up it was $5 more on NewEgg.

:cool:
BTW, any gimmicks attached?Not that I know of. You just have to come in to MWave's site from a Google Shopping search. You activate it in a banner ad and it lasts 1 hour.

The discount doesn't show up until you're logged in but before you finalize the order. You get the $10 off coupon as "Google Checkout" automatically as a cookie that you activated earlier. Phenom II X2 550 and a nice ASUS 760G board coming soon.

Like I've said before you need to check around on ZipZoomFly and MWave because they'll usually offer free shipping for a few dollars more on the item price. You end up saving more by getting free shipping instead of paying for it.

I'm looking into Bing's Cashback via PayPal for my next purchase which is probably going to be a Phenom II quad this winter.

[Semiopaque]

I'm looking into Bing's Cashback via PayPal for my next purchase which is probably going to be a Phenom II quad this winter.

Oh yeah...it's called Bing now hehe. It's a pretty decent cashback site, though its search functions for specific products aren't that great. I often have to search for something else more generic to find the link for the site I want to purchase something from.

I've gotten almost $500 cashback from this since I signed up in Nov/Dec of last year - a lot of it off OEM hard drive purchases from Newegg and Zipzoomfly. You can also find links to 8% off BuyItNow products on eBay through the regular search site still.

[nanofrog]

ZipZoomFly's site has improved somewhat. Their search box actually incorporates thumbnails as you hot search to help you find your item. When you're searching via categories deeper in they do need to incorporate a much more interactive guided search more like NewEgg's.

NewEgg's OEM hard drive packaging has always been terrifying when you see the bare drive come in bubble wrap and tape just dumped into the box.
I actually haven't bought from ZipZoomFly, but it's really good to hear about the packaging. :D I always feel like it's a craps shoot with newegg. :rolleyes: :(

I got a processor off of ZipZoomFly when it wasn't even listed on NewEgg and when it did show up it was $5 more on NewEgg.

Not that I know of. You just have to come in to MWave's site from a Google Shopping search. You activate it in a banner ad and it lasts 1 hour.

The discount doesn't show up until you're logged in but before you finalize the order. You get the $10 off coupon as "Google Checkout" automatically as a cookie that you activated earlier. Phenom II X2 550 and a nice ASUS 760G board coming soon.

Like I've said before you need to check around on ZipZoomFly and MWave because they'll usually offer free shipping for a few dollars more on the item price. You end up saving more by getting free shipping instead of paying for it.

I'm looking into Bing's Cashback via PayPal for my next purchase which is probably going to be a Phenom II quad this winter.
I'll have to check into this again. Last I tried, I kept trying to get a page to load over and over, waiting for the link. It didn't show up after trying for a couple of hours, and I gave up. :o

[Eidorian]

Here's what I got when searching for processors. I first spotted it this morning before work.

[nanofrog]

Here's what I got when searching for processors. I first spotted it this morning before work.

:cool: Thanks. :) I'll have to keep an eye out for it. :D

[Eidorian]

Looks like my MWave order already shipped from CA.

[DoFoT9]

I don't mind buying in stores, so long as they know what they're selling, understand what I'm asking for. ;) Unfortunately, I haven't found this locally. :( As for keeping anything in stock, not good odds. I can't even get simple stuff like a 3.5" to 5.25" adapter without ordering it. :eek:
oh god that is the MOST annoying thing ever isnt it!? when your taking to someone and they are like :o :eek: that just frustrates me so much.

the store near uni is great for products but, they have a "mother" store about an hour away and they ship stuff from there overnight if it isnt in store. quite reliable.

Ordering it from them can take just as long or longer, and in the end, costs more than the item is worth to me. Especially if I have to spoon feed them descriptions and model numbers. :rolleyes: They just don't have a clue what I'm talking about. I might as well be speaking in Chineese. :D

ching chong chaaaang! if they are going to be that bad then you should just get it off ebay or something like newegg in your situation. that sucks.

Yet if I wanted some obscure part for a tractor, NO PROBLEM. :D :p

uuhhh. i dont even want to know where you live haha!!! im on the beach :) bestest place in the world eheh! :) i dont really do farms that well im afraid to say (not afraid of getting my hands dirty but).
:D

[nanofrog]

the store near uni is great for products but, they have a "mother" store about an hour away and they ship stuff from there overnight if it isnt in store. quite reliable.
The biggest thing around is a Best Buy, but given this area, they don't carry the stuff I'm looking for when it comes to computers. Especially drives. Consumer stuff. Inkjets, laptops, some desktops. Nothing workstation/server class, let alone any parts I'd need.

So I have to order everything. If it wasn't for the Internet and shipping companies, I'd be up a creek... :D :p
uuhhh. i dont even want to know where you live haha!!! im on the beach :) bestest place in the world eheh! :) i dont really do farms that well im afraid to say (not afraid of getting my hands dirty but).
:D
First page of this thread. ;)

I ended up here to be closer to family. What a mistake. :eek: :D :p

I grew up in Orlando. Not on the beach, but only an hour or so in two directions at the time. :D

[DoFoT9]

The biggest thing around is a Best Buy, but given this area, they don't carry the stuff I'm looking for when it comes to computers. Especially drives. Consumer stuff. Inkjets, laptops, some desktops. Nothing workstation/server class, let alone any parts I'd need.

heard of it, cant say ive dealt with them (basically any company you know isnt here in australia hahaha).

First page of this thread. ;)

I ended up here to be closer to family. What a mistake. :eek: :D :p

I grew up in Orlando. Not on the beach, but only an hour or so in two directions at the time. :D

no idea where any of the places are that you mentioned haha... all i know is that your in America (Y). its a tough decision aye, moving closer to family or sacrificing lots of other stuff. i guess every month or so you could go for a "road trip" to a large city and stock up on the goods you need :p

i guess a good thing to come out of it is that you save money because its too much hassle/shipping is too much :p:D

[nanofrog]

no idea where any of the places are that you mentioned haha... all i know is that your in America (Y).
Monroe, understandable. But Orlando? :eek: That's Walt Disney World! (OK, technically Buena Vista, FL, but it's close enough). ;) :p

i guess every month or so you could go for a "road trip" to a large city and stock up on the goods you need :p

i guess a good thing to come out of it is that you save money because its too much hassle/shipping is too much :p:D
Nah. Given the pricing in this area, and the taxes, I'm better off ordering it. :eek: Deals can be had on the net, so it works out in my favor I'm sure. Assuming I can find it in the nearest major city (about 1.5 hrs). :p

In a pinch, maybe, but I try to plan better than that. ;) :D

[DoFoT9]

Monroe, understandable. But Orlando? :eek: That's Walt Disney World! (OK, technically Buena Vista, FL, but it's close enough). ;) :p

ive heard of orlando, didnt know that DL was there though! :o see how much i DONT know :p


Nah. Given the pricing in this area, and the taxes, I'm better off ordering it. :eek: Deals can be had on the net, so it works out in my favor I'm sure. Assuming I can find it in the nearest major city (about 1.5 hrs). :p

In a pinch, maybe, but I try to plan better than that. ;) :D

wow thats bad, musnt be much competition around.. or anything much around for that matter haha!

1.5hrs to the nearest city :eek: thats worse then me. but your population is bigger then mine! odd haha.

[Flash SWT]

Dragging this thread back up it looks like Newegg has improved their packing for bare hard drives.

I just received both a Western Digital (WD15EARS) and Seagate (ST31000524NS) drive today and I am much happier with the packing job. The WD drive was in an anti-static bag while the Seagate was in a plastic clamshell. They were both individually wrapped in bubble wrap and in their own small cardboard box. These boxes were then placed in a larger box with a network switch and USB flash drive I ordered and padded with the brown paper.

I just started the burn-in process on the first drive but I'm hopeful the better packing means I can avoid another RMA.

.

[blevins321]

Dragging this thread back up it looks like Newegg has improved their packing for bare hard drives.

I just received both a Western Digital and Seagate drive today and I am much happier with the packing job. The WD drive was in an anti-static bag while the Seagate was in a plastic clamshell. They were both individually wrapped in bubble wrap and in their own small cardboard box. These boxes were then placed in a larger box with a network switch and USB flash drive I ordered and padded with the brown paper.

I just started the burn-in process on the first drive but I'm hopeful the better packing means I can avoid another RMA.

.

Nice. I just received 2 WD20EARS 2TB WD Green from Amazon today that were packaged like you described.

[scottsjack]

I've had great results from both Newegg and OWC. All drives have arrived sealed in an anti-static back and packed tight enough to protect them. I usually go with whichever of the two has the right drive at the right price. The one drive I ordered from Amazon was a Seagate external drive. It's retail box had plenty of padding around it.

[Eidorian]

How about some new pictures? :D

My bubble wrapped 2.5" 320 GB drive from 2007 is still strong. I have not purchased any new hard drives since late 2008 though.

[crashnburn]

Do share more experiences :)

[diazj3]

I've used OWC and Amazon. OWC packing is always perfect - individual or bulk drives. My latest drive - a WD 2TB Green from Amazon, came also perfectly packed (individual box, plastic clams), with a better price point than OWC. No problems at all. I guess they have improved their packing to match higher standards.