Are Time Capsule drives covered under manufacturer's warranty?

[smash]

... by the Drive manufacturer.
I'm assuming since it's OEM provided stuff they aren't, but I'm just wondering if the drive itself can be RMA'ed back to Western Digital, for example.

[G-Mo]

Originally Posted by smash

... by the Drive manufacturer.
I'm assuming since it's OEM provided stuff they aren't, but I'm just wondering if the drive itself can be RMA'ed back to Western Digital, for example.

No.

[Macman45]

Apple give a standard one year warranty on TC's....That's the whole unit, the drive can't be separated from that part of the guarantee..

[smash]

Originally Posted by Macman45

Apple give a standard one year warranty on TC's....That's the whole unit, the drive can't be separated from that part of the guarantee..

But the maker of the drive won't warranty it?

[Primejimbo]

Originally Posted by smash

But the maker of the drive won't warranty it?

If they did, it probably be 1 year also.
Would Samsung have a 1 year warranty on the chip used in the iPhone? No, the whole phone has a 1 year warranty on the whole phone.

[smash]

Originally Posted by Primejimbo

If they did, it probably be 1 year also.
Would Samsung have a 1 year warranty on the chip used in the iPhone? No, the whole phone has a 1 year warranty on the whole phone.

Yeah, but drives are generally third-party and carry their own warranty of 5-7 years. Not sure

[gnasher729]

Originally Posted by smash

Yeah, but drives are generally third-party and carry their own warranty of 5-7 years. Not sure

1. Show me a drive with 5-7 years warranty.
2. Show me your contract with the drive manufacturer.

[old-wiz]

Originally Posted by smash

Yeah, but drives are generally third-party and carry their own warranty of 5-7 years. Not sure

Only applies if you buy the drive separately.

[G-Mo]

Originally Posted by gnasher729

1. Show me a drive with 5-7 years warranty.

WD Black is 5 years.

[aristobrat]

Originally Posted by smash

But the maker of the drive won't warranty it?

Companies like Apple, Dell, TiVo, HP, etc buy the "OEM" version of hard drives.

The OEM version is the same hardware as the retail version (that you'd find on the shelves at Best Buy), but it's sold for a lot less.

The OEM version doesn't come in consumer packaging, it doesn't come with instructions, it doesn't come with support from the drive maker, and if it comes with a warranty (not all OEM versions do), it's usually wayyyyyy shorter than the warranty included with the more expensive retail version of the same drive.

So chances are, the drive in the Time Capsule is an OEM version.

[snberk103]

Originally Posted by smash

Yeah, but drives are generally third-party and carry their own warranty of 5-7 years. Not sure

Warranty coverage was transferred to Apple when those drives were sold to Apple. In essence, part of the price that you pay for buying something direct from the manufacturer includes a portion set aside by the company to cover warranty repairs or replacement.

Apple will get a reduced price on purchasing those drives because they are covering miscellaneous warranty replacements - WD won't have to put any portion aside to cover warranty returns. I assume that part of the contract will specify that the failure rate will be below a certain level in the 1st year.

When you bought the TC, Apple set aside a small portion of the price to cover their warranty coverage.

[smash]

I ran the serial number from a drive from a Time Capsule in this photo ... http://www.anandtech.com/show/4577/a...faster-wifi-/4 ... and it came up as being "out of limited warranty". The warranty expired 6 months after the article was written/posted.

So, there's perhaps a 1 year warranty from Western Digital on the drives. I don't know how old my Time Capsule is since I bought it second hand, but I'm guessing this solution isn't for me as I'd have to take apart the Time Capsule just to look at the serial number.

What a PITA!

[snberk103]

Originally Posted by smash

....
What a PITA!

No. This is what you get buying 2nd hand. You take the risk of getting faulty goods, but the payoff is that you might have gotten a really good deal on something that works find. Caveat Emptor... or something like that.

[smash]

Originally Posted by snberk103

No. This is what you get buying 2nd hand. You take the risk of getting faulty goods, but the payoff is that you might have gotten a really good deal on something that works find. Caveat Emptor... or something like that.

Um, actually...
The TC is fine, but I wanted to RMA the drive in case there were errors.

But thanks for trying to teach me a lesson there!

[snberk103]

Originally Posted by smash

Um, actually...
The TC is fine, but I wanted to RMA the drive in case there were errors.

But thanks for trying to teach me a lesson there!

OK... but as others have pointed out, WD had sold the drive to Apple and transferred the warranty obligations to Apple at the same time.