HDD failure.

[Talman1]

Hi 

How do I register my dissatisfaction / a complaint?

My PC is barely 5 years old and my HDD failed on the 15th of December! Having collected it yesterday I am now in the process of reinstalling all my apps that were lost. You can understand my amusement yesterday when I read that HP had been praised for their sustainable products!

I have had many computers over the years and never had a HDD fail before! Surely on a computer that the technician who repaired it showed signs of light use the HDD should last more than 5 years! I appreciate every computer has built in obsolescence, but within 5 years is stretching things.

I was almost hoping it could not be repaired, so I could get a REPLACEMENT. I  will have to at some point replace my unit and upgrade and whereas before I would have not hesitated to get another HP now I have my doubts! Initially I was delighted with the unit, so much so I bought HP  printers.

I am really disappointed that I had this issue and although I backed things up regularly I have still lost some documents and recent photos I took, which of course can never be replaced. Anyway if nothing else I have got things of my chest! I have tried contacting customer services through social media, but apparently they do not respond.

Yours Dave Rundle. 

[itsmyname]

@Talman1 -- unless you purchased the HP extended warranty, to add more years of coverage (namely giving you a replacement disk-drive), you had a 12-month HP warranty. 

Also, when you purchase a disk-drive through retail channels, the disk-drive will have a warranty from the disk-drive's manufacturer -- typically 1 or 2 or 3 years, not 5+ years.

In the future, download/install and occasionally run the free edition of the SPECCY software.

Expand its "storage" section, and then expand the "S.M.A.R.T." section.

Reference: S.M.A.R.T. - Wikipedia

The disk-drive monitors its own "health", and SPECCY can show you either "good" or "warning" or "fail" for each value that is being monitored. 

With this information, you can be "proactive" about monitoring your next disk-drive.

Note that you have an opportunity to replace the "spinning" disk-drive by a much-faster SSD (Solid State Device), for about the same price as for a one terabyte "spinning" disk-drive.

Since your computer was "activated" (by Microsoft) to run Windows 10, you can reinstall Windows 10, without purchasing a new copy of Windows 10. 

Reference: Download Windows 10 (microsoft.com)

[Talman1]

Hi thanks for your reply and advice. I did fortunately have an extended warranty on my computer through the retailer where I bought it, so it has been replaced free of charge.

I am just surprised and disappointed that the hard drive in a computer that cost around £800 packs up in 5 years with only light use! I find myself questioning the build quality of HP computers if my experience is anything to go by!

I will put the app you have suggested on the computer tomorrow to help prevent the likelihood of this happening again! Given I am now aware of this issue I will look to replace my existing computer with one that comes with an SSD. I may well look for a replacement in the January sales or hope that the HDD issue on my current computer is an isolated issue and not indicative of a computer that is now going to be a continual problem and wait a little longer before replacing it!

Anyway thanks again for your response and have a great 2022. Best wishes Dave. 

[itsmyname · Accepted solution]

@Talman1 -- it is difficult to say whether "5 years" is the mean for a time-line graph of disk-drive failures.

I can imagine disk-drives that fail within a few months, and I have working disk-drives (especially inside external backup devices) that are over 10 years old.

Disk-drive manufacturers know the distribution of failures, and so they set their warranty to 1 or 2 or 3 years, such that customers with "early" failures get a free replacement, which appeases such customers.

I sense the presence of an "actuary" within the manufacturer's head-office -- one who mathematically derives the length of the warranty, based on the given factors, such as MTBF (Mean Time Before Failure) reports from the company's Engineering Department, and the economic cost of having employees in a "Warranty Department" to handle claims.

What other appliances come with warranties? TV DVR/PVR (digital TV program recorders)? Toasters? Microwave ovens? Vacuum-cleaners? Automobile batteries? Rechargeable shavers? For how long per appliance?

Do customers keep the warranty documents, and "register" their purchase, to enable them to make a claim, a few years into the future? Or, do customers say "I accept a low price, in exchange for a short lifetime" ?

Anyway, this is just idle talk. It's good to hear that you have a good solution.

Please click "was this reply helpful" and/or "Accept Answer", when appropriate.

[Talman1]

Hi thanks for your time, perhaps my expectations are to high! I will keep this computer going for at least another 12 months if I can and hopefully by then the supply chain issues will have been resolves and there will be a wider choice of pc's with SSD rather than a HDD!

Take care and have a great 2022! BW Dave.