Re: Considerations in buying used memory or hard disk

Barry Watzman wrote:
For a typical end-user, you really don't need to worry about component
lifetimes or failure subsequent to initial good receipt. I'm not saying
that failures don't occur. But they are unpredictable, and compared to
the use of a typical non-commercial end-user, the MTBF's are so long
compared to how much you will use the item, that they are irrelevant.
Memories are semiconductor devices, they will have a typical life, once
past infant mortality, of decades. In many way, you will do better with
used components than with new components, because the used components
have made it past the high-falure "infant mortality" stage. Also, many
memory modules (I'd say most) have a lifetime warranty. I've bought
used laptops and sent back defective modules from Kingston, Extend,
Viking and others and had them replaced with new modules, no questions
asked. Random failures are a fact of life, but they are also
infrequent. These items are quite reliable, and if you get one that is
working, it's unlikely to give you a subsequent problem.

[I'm excluding the cases, such as some models of hard drives, where
there is a systemic design defect that ends up impacting a huge portion
of the entire population of that particular model. This has happened
with a few models of disk drives, and indeed was a factor in IBM's
departure from the disk drive market.]


Barry,

Thanks for the reminder of the infant mortality rate, as well as for
your datapoint on the reliability of used memory & hard drives. The
examples of good memory brand names are also helpful. I've heard
good opinions about Kingston (which you mention)& Shikatronics.


Dubious Dude wrote:
Beyond 100% functionality of goods upon arrival, I was also motivated
to post by my ignorance of lifetimes (or the roughly similar concept
of mean time between failure, or MTBF) for hard drives and memories.
That is, they may test fine upon arrival, but the very fact that they
have been used means that they won't last as long. I was hoping that
enough people would share their experiences on this so that a rough
idea can be had of how likely one is to encounter such limits in
2nd hand memories and hard disks. Thanks for relating your experience
on this.
.

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