I read a few threads about HD crashed, worn out and other problems. Also some of you mentioned about the average life of a hard drive maybe around 3-4 years depending on the usage.
My question is if I had a problem with my HD and I know for sure because it has worn out, is it worth to send it back to the company where I bought it and have them replace it? Or might as well buy a new laptop? I have this one notebook that I prefer to keep longer and it's 3 years old now.
I know many people upgrade and replace HD themselves for their desktops, but how about notebooks?
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General discussion
Hard Drive life span
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5 Posts
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1. How to tell it's worn out.
It's easier if the drive sounds like a tin can full of marbles, or you hear that noise not unlike worn out brakes. Silence is bad too. If it sounds normal try a DRIVE FITNESS TEST or diagnostic from the drive's maker.
2. How I move to a new drive.
If the drive isn't toast, I use a desktop machine, a pair of 3.5 to 2.5 drive adaptors (under 4 bucks each) and my trusty Ghost (software) to clone the drive.
3. Lifespan.
The drive makers will not tell you how long the drive will last. Get over that and you find the drives do last 5+ years if they are treated well.
Hope this helps.
Bob
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If your old HDD is still spinning Bob's advice on how to save your data is good. Changing the drive in a laptop is much easier than changing a desktop drive. It is no more difficult than changing the battery, The drive is accessible on the bottom of the laptop in a recess with a removable cover: usually secured by one screw. The drive has a row of contacts at one end and just pops in or out with no connecting needed by you. Hope this is what you need to know. good luck Stewart
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and I also found the instruction how to do so. Sounds easy to do.
It's not broken yet. I'm just being paranoid maybe after reading many HD problem in this forum.
I'm not worried about the data. I always back them up regularly to jump drives and another exact copy in another notebook. Basically, I have an exact back up notebook to bring with me incase the other one broke or infected by virus. I know it's a stupid thing but I really haven't had much luck repairing program or removing stubborn virus/spyware by myself. So I just reformat and reinstall everything.
Thank you for all the input
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believe it or not, every 'new' HDD
is manufactured with a known number of defects
built in. This apparently is considered
'normal' in the hard drive manufacturing
world. The problem is, some manufacturers
are worse than others and allow more defects
per sq. inch than others on each platter.
I read this in an interesting article some
years ago but I can't locate the reference.
I've seen drives last 10 yrs, and some 10mos.
you need to make sure you buy your drive with
a long warranty.
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