My Maxtor saga

Last November I bought the Maxtor 2F030J030 Gb model as a slave.All went
well
until about a month ago when it kept crashing \ locking and the hd light was
constantly being thrashed. Anyway, a full format was in order for both
drives anyway....backup and clear the lot I thought. Not to worry.

The main drive is Fujitsu running XP Pro. A full format with two partitions
went well. Then it was the Maxtor's turn. It was having none of it. It would
only be seen by the BIOS intermittently and sometimes I got something like
MAXTOR ORNONE ARES C64 VAM52JBZ during POST

Now I spent a few hours on this, and on the few occasions it did appear I
threw every diagnostic I could at it.
Partition Magic, Partition Manager,Drive Image,Disc Wizard, MaxBlast, Clave,
Powemax, Disc Manager & Data Advisor. Nada. Nothing. Nowt. Zilch.

So a call from the UK to Eire to customer services ensued because I filled
the online warranty form in but waited like an age for an RMA number. The
girl at the other end was helpful enough after me hanging on for 20 minutes
or so to speak to someone, and then sent me all return details via email.
Not content with selling me what I suspect is a dud drive and listening to
The Corrs for twenty minutes I now have to jump through hoops to ship the
******* thing properly back to The Republic. I would like to share with you
Maxtor's shipping advice

__________________________________________________ __________________________
_____________________
Return Shipping Instructions
----------------------------

To ensure an efficient replacement service please follow the 4 step
procedure
detailed below:

Step 1: PACKAGING

Send the hard disk drive only. Detach all cables, brackets, faceplates
and
any other accessories.

Maxtor is not liable for any items received other than the bare hard
drive.

The hard drive must be returned inside an ESD (anti-static) bag, packed
in a
corrugated box with solid foam (not Styrofoam) surrounding the drive to
a
minimum thickness of 2 inches on all six sides.

Multiple drives must have separators to prevent the drives from
touching.

Failure to meet these packaging requirements may result with a Voided
Warranty.

Maxtor approved packaging may be purchased from a Maxtor Customer
Support
representative at a minimal cost. Please see contact information above.

Step 2: PACKING SLIP:

Include the packing slip at the end of this email with the drive

Step 3: SHIPPING LABEL

Address the package using the SHIPPING LABEL at the end of this email.

Step 4: METHOD OF SHIPMENT

Please ship your return drive to Maxtor via a traceable air express
company,
which can provide you with a proof of delivery if necessary. (i.e.
FedEx,
Airborne Express, Burlington or DHL).

Your replacement drive will be shipped to you at our cost. However,
please be
aware that any local customs charges will not be paid by Maxtor.

You are also responsible for the cost of shipping your return drive to
Maxtor.

Please note, Maxtor cannot be held responsible for drives lost or
damaged in
transit to us.

__________________________________________________ __________________________
_______________

So, in essence an estiamted £2.00 phone bill, maybe £5-£7 packaging and God
only knows what customs are going to whack me with for a crap thing that
only cost £45 in the first place. Now, if there is anybody out there who can
suggest a tactic that I may not have tried then by all means give me some
pointers. By the way, I have tried it in a friends machine as well. Still
nothing obviously.

Maxtor? naw, Seagate or IBM for me next time. Just browsing this ng is
proof of the grief and heartbreak Maxtor are responsible for


S.D.

--
Tell a man there are 300 billion stars in the universe and he'll believe
you. Tell him a bench has wet paint on it and he'll have to touch it to
be sure - Murphy's Law

Why is it that nobody has the common sense to save even one hard drive box in
case you need to send one to the shop?

All hard drive companies have the exact same packaging rules when you RMA a
drive. They've had these rules forever. Do yourself a favor and save at least
one of your boxes! The one you get back from Maxtor is a perfectly good one to
save and it won't take up too much space.

"Steve Daly" wrote in message
...
Last November I bought the Maxtor 2F030J030 Gb model as a slave.All went
well
until about a month ago when it kept crashing \ locking and the hd light was
constantly being thrashed. Anyway, a full format was in order for both
drives anyway....backup and clear the lot I thought. Not to worry.

The main drive is Fujitsu running XP Pro. A full format with two partitions
went well. Then it was the Maxtor's turn. It was having none of it. It would
only be seen by the BIOS intermittently and sometimes I got something like
MAXTOR ORNONE ARES C64 VAM52JBZ during POST

Now I spent a few hours on this, and on the few occasions it did appear I
threw every diagnostic I could at it.
Partition Magic, Partition Manager,Drive Image,Disc Wizard, MaxBlast, Clave,
Powemax, Disc Manager & Data Advisor. Nada. Nothing. Nowt. Zilch.

So a call from the UK to Eire to customer services ensued because I filled
the online warranty form in but waited like an age for an RMA number. The
girl at the other end was helpful enough after me hanging on for 20 minutes
or so to speak to someone, and then sent me all return details via email.
Not content with selling me what I suspect is a dud drive and listening to
The Corrs for twenty minutes I now have to jump through hoops to ship the
******* thing properly back to The Republic. I would like to share with you
Maxtor's shipping advice

__________________________________________________ __________________________
_____________________
Return Shipping Instructions
----------------------------

To ensure an efficient replacement service please follow the 4 step
procedure
detailed below:

Step 1: PACKAGING

Send the hard disk drive only. Detach all cables, brackets, faceplates
and
any other accessories.

Maxtor is not liable for any items received other than the bare hard
drive.

The hard drive must be returned inside an ESD (anti-static) bag, packed
in a
corrugated box with solid foam (not Styrofoam) surrounding the drive to
a
minimum thickness of 2 inches on all six sides.

Multiple drives must have separators to prevent the drives from
touching.

Failure to meet these packaging requirements may result with a Voided
Warranty.

Maxtor approved packaging may be purchased from a Maxtor Customer
Support
representative at a minimal cost. Please see contact information above.

Step 2: PACKING SLIP:

Include the packing slip at the end of this email with the drive

Step 3: SHIPPING LABEL

Address the package using the SHIPPING LABEL at the end of this email.

Step 4: METHOD OF SHIPMENT

Please ship your return drive to Maxtor via a traceable air express
company,
which can provide you with a proof of delivery if necessary. (i.e.
FedEx,
Airborne Express, Burlington or DHL).

Your replacement drive will be shipped to you at our cost. However,
please be
aware that any local customs charges will not be paid by Maxtor.

You are also responsible for the cost of shipping your return drive to
Maxtor.

Please note, Maxtor cannot be held responsible for drives lost or
damaged in
transit to us.

__________________________________________________ __________________________
_______________

So, in essence an estiamted £2.00 phone bill, maybe £5-£7 packaging and God
only knows what customs are going to whack me with for a crap thing that
only cost £45 in the first place. Now, if there is anybody out there who can
suggest a tactic that I may not have tried then by all means give me some
pointers. By the way, I have tried it in a friends machine as well. Still
nothing obviously.

Maxtor? naw, Seagate or IBM for me next time. Just browsing this ng is
proof of the grief and heartbreak Maxtor are responsible for


S.D.

--
Tell a man there are 300 billion stars in the universe and he'll believe
you. Tell him a bench has wet paint on it and he'll have to touch it to
be sure - Murphy's Law

On Fri, 1 Aug 2003 01:26:53 +0100
"Steve Daly" wrote:


"SimMike-" wrote in message
news:MfiWa.33748$uu5.4055@sccrnsc04...
Why is it that nobody has the common sense to save even one hard
drive box
in
case you need to send one to the shop?

All hard drive companies have the exact same packaging rules when
you RMA
a
drive. They've had these rules forever. Do yourself a favor and save
at
least
one of your boxes! The one you get back from Maxtor is a perfectly
good
one to
save and it won't take up too much space.



I feel that I must disagree. I have the original box which Maxtor says
would be perfect for shipping. Having a look at the polystyrene is NO
WAY 2" thick minimum. There is a nice poly base that is exactly 4cm
thick, sides of just over 3cm and no poly packing for the top
whatsover, just funny looking V shaped cardboard that compresses and
then folds on the semi-encased drive.

Maxtor has the resources to test their packaging until they have a
minimum-cost configuration that provides adequate protection during
shipping. If you don't have the Maxtor-provided box then either pack
using 2 inches of foam all around or expect to get your warranty voided.

That'll no doubt give the Jobsworth's at Maxtor reason for warranty
invalidation.

The drives have shock sensors. If the shock sensor is tripped then your
warranty is void. If you ship in the Maxtor-provided packaging then the
shock sensor should not trip in transit unless there is an impact strong
enough to damage the packaging, putting the responsibility with the
carrier.


--
--
--John
Reply to jclarke at ae tee tee global dot net
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)

On Fri, 1 Aug 2003 00:28:07 +0100
"Steve Daly" wrote:

Last November I bought the Maxtor 2F030J030 Gb model as a slave.All
went well
until about a month ago when it kept crashing \ locking and the hd
light was constantly being thrashed. Anyway, a full format was in
order for both drives anyway....backup and clear the lot I thought.
Not to worry.
=20
The main drive is Fujitsu running XP Pro. A full format with two
partitions went well. Then it was the Maxtor's turn. It was having
none of it. It would only be seen by the BIOS intermittently and
sometimes I got something like MAXTOR ORNONE ARES C64 VAM52JBZ during
POST
=20
Now I spent a few hours on this, and on the few occasions it did
appear I threw every diagnostic I could at it.
Partition Magic, Partition Manager,Drive Image,Disc Wizard, MaxBlast,
Clave, Powemax, Disc Manager & Data Advisor. Nada. Nothing. Nowt.
Zilch.
=20
So a call from the UK to Eire to customer services ensued because I
filled the online warranty form in but waited like an age for an RMA
number. The girl at the other end was helpful enough after me hanging
on for 20 minutes or so to speak to someone, and then sent me all
return details via email. Not content with selling me what I suspect
is a dud drive and listening to The Corrs for twenty minutes I now
have to jump through hoops to ship the ******* thing properly back to
The Republic. I would like to share with you Maxtor's shipping advice
=20
__________________________________________________ ___________________
____________________________
Return Shipping Instructions
----------------------------
=20
To ensure an efficient replacement service please follow the 4
step
procedure
detailed below:
=20
Step 1: PACKAGING
=20
Send the hard disk drive only. Detach all cables, brackets,
faceplates
and
any other accessories.
=20
Maxtor is not liable for any items received other than the bare
hard
drive.
=20
The hard drive must be returned inside an ESD (anti-static) bag,
packed
in a
corrugated box with solid foam (not Styrofoam) surrounding the
drive to
a
minimum thickness of 2 inches on all six sides.
=20
Multiple drives must have separators to prevent the drives from
touching.
=20
Failure to meet these packaging requirements may result with a
Voided
Warranty.
=20
Maxtor approved packaging may be purchased from a Maxtor Customer
Support
representative at a minimal cost. Please see contact information
above.
=20
Step 2: PACKING SLIP:
=20
Include the packing slip at the end of this email with the drive
=20
Step 3: SHIPPING LABEL
=20
Address the package using the SHIPPING LABEL at the end of this
email.
=20
Step 4: METHOD OF SHIPMENT
=20
Please ship your return drive to Maxtor via a traceable air
express
company,
which can provide you with a proof of delivery if necessary.=20
(i.e.
FedEx,
Airborne Express, Burlington or DHL).
=20
Your replacement drive will be shipped to you at our cost.=20
However,
please be
aware that any local customs charges will not be paid by Maxtor.
=20
You are also responsible for the cost of shipping your return
drive to
Maxtor.
=20
Please note, Maxtor cannot be held responsible for drives lost or
damaged in
transit to us.
=20
__________________________________________________ ___________________
______________________
=20
So, in essence an estiamted =A32.00 phone bill, maybe =A35-=A37 packaging
and God only knows what customs are going to whack me with for a crap
thing that only cost =A345 in the first place. Now, if there is anybody
out there who can suggest a tactic that I may not have tried then by
all means give me some pointers. By the way, I have tried it in a
friends machine as well. Still nothing obviously.
=20
Maxtor? naw, Seagate or IBM for me next time. Just browsing this ng
is proof of the grief and heartbreak Maxtor are responsible for

You will find the same rules on the Seagate site I believe. IBM got out
of the drive business, so you're not going to have much luck with them,
but they also required either 2 inches of foam all around or their box.

And there are plenty of tales of grief and heartache with respect to IBM
drives.
=20
=20
S.D.
=20
--
Tell a man there are 300 billion stars in the universe and he'll
believe you. Tell him a bench has wet paint on it and he'll have to
touch it to be sure - Murphy's Law
=20
=20
=20
=20
=20
=20
=20
=20
=20
=20
=20


--=20
--=20
--John
Reply to jclarke at ae tee tee global dot net
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)

Previously SimMike- wrote:
Why is it that nobody has the common sense to save even one hard drive box in
case you need to send one to the shop?

All hard drive companies have the exact same packaging rules when you RMA a
drive. They've had these rules forever. Do yourself a favor and save at least
one of your boxes! The one you get back from Maxtor is a perfectly good one to
save and it won't take up too much space.

In addition you can do advance-RMA. That is what I did. Gives you a
nice free shipping box to send back your drive. (I had one with fried
electronics that was acting erratically. Still got all the data off.)

Arno
--
For email address: lastname AT tik DOT ee DOT ethz DOT ch
GnuPG: ID:1E25338F FP:0C30 5782 9D93 F785 E79C 0296 797F 6B50 1E25 338F
"The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws" - Tacitus

"Steve Daly" wrote in message
...
:
: "Arno Wagner" wrote in message
: ...
:
: In addition you can do advance-RMA. That is what I did. Gives you a
: nice free shipping box to send back your drive. (I had one with
fried
: electronics that was acting erratically. Still got all the data
off.)
:
:
: advance-RMA then huh? I guess that's the equivalent of Maxtor
sending an
: appropriate box + packaging at even more ****ing cost which is
apparently
: what they can do. Not to be daunted, a quick call to my local UK
Trading
: Standards has put me right.
:
: It seems strange that the morons have picked up on my inclusion of
Maxtor's
: shipping regulations rather that even attempting to solve the problem
: regarding the drive.
:
: So then, **** y'all
:
: c'ya in *
comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.storage.****edupmaxtor.pa ckaging*
:

None are so blind as those who simply refuse to see. Wait a minute!
What's that sound? Ker-PLONK!

J.

Get a life, buddy. You'd be surprised at how many people just throw their
so-called "defective" hard drive into a plain old box with no packing
materials and ship it off. It's a well-known fact that the majority of
returned HD's are actually non-defective. And unless you've worked for a
delivery company, you have no clue as to how people throw boxes across the
room, into bins, trucks, etc. Maxtor is simply giving you common-sense
directions that most people don't follow because they automatically assume
they're getting a new HD.

It seems strange that the morons have picked up on my inclusion of
Maxtor's
shipping regulations rather that even attempting to solve the problem
regarding the drive.

So then, **** y'all

c'ya in * comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.storage.****edupmaxtor.pa ckaging*

Previously Steve Daly wrote:

"Arno Wagner" wrote in message
...

In addition you can do advance-RMA. That is what I did. Gives you a
nice free shipping box to send back your drive. (I had one with fried
electronics that was acting erratically. Still got all the data off.)


advance-RMA then huh? I guess that's the equivalent of Maxtor sending an
appropriate box + packaging at even more ****ing cost which is apparently
what they can do. Not to be daunted, a quick call to my local UK Trading
Standards has put me right.

No, actually advance-RMA costs just the same as ordinary RMA. They
want a credid card in case you do not send anything back, but they
do not cahrge the card if you send the defective drive back to them.

It seems strange that the morons have picked up on my inclusion of
Maxtor's shipping regulations rather that even attempting to solve
the problem regarding the drive.

So then, **** y'all

And the same back to you. You know, we are not Maxtor tech support
here and if you do not like the comments people make here, then
please go away.

Regards,
Arno Wagner
--
For email address: lastname AT tik DOT ee DOT ethz DOT ch
GnuPG: ID:1E25338F FP:0C30 5782 9D93 F785 E79C 0296 797F 6B50 1E25 338F
"The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws" - Tacitus

Previously Rasmus Bruun wrote:
Get a life, buddy. You'd be surprised at how many people just throw their
so-called "defective" hard drive into a plain old box with no packing
materials and ship it off. It's a well-known fact that the majority of
returned HD's are actually non-defective. And unless you've worked for a
delivery company, you have no clue as to how people throw boxes across the
room, into bins, trucks, etc. Maxtor is simply giving you common-sense
directions that most people don't follow because they automatically assume
they're getting a new HD.

And in addition they will trade you one appropriate packaging for
another. It is not like they make a profit from this.

There is also the slight problem that with grossly inadequate
packaging even a non-defective drive has a good chance of being
broken after shipping.

Regards,
Arno
--
For email address: lastname AT tik DOT ee DOT ethz DOT ch
GnuPG: ID:1E25338F FP:0C30 5782 9D93 F785 E79C 0296 797F 6B50 1E25 338F
"The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws" - Tacitus

"Rasmus Bruun" wrote in message
. ..
Get a life, buddy. You'd be surprised at how many people just throw their
so-called "defective" hard drive into a plain old box with no packing
materials and ship it off. It's a well-known fact that the majority of
returned HD's are actually non-defective. And unless you've worked for a
delivery company, you have no clue as to how people throw boxes across the
room, into bins, trucks, etc. Maxtor is simply giving you common-sense
directions that most people don't follow because they automatically assume
they're getting a new HD.


You really don't get it do you? What part of the contents below don't you
understand?

I have the original box which Maxtor says would
be perfect for shipping. Having a look at the polystyrene is NO WAY 2"
thick minimum. There is a nice poly base that is exactly 4cm thick, sides
of
just over 3cm and no poly packing for the top whatsover, just funny
looking
V shaped cardboard that compresses and then folds on the semi-encased
drive.

So, in simple terms for simple folk. I have the original box that now seems
to NOT COMPLY with what has been said \ instructed in the shipping
regulations and now will contact Maxtor again for the delivery of a
*suitable* box. So, if a new box arrives, complete with packaging, that is
the same dimensions as the original one here then the 2" of thickness rule
is a contradiction. So go figure! Or then again, I just maybe bloody minded
and encase it 18" of poly on all 6 sides like so much industrial waste.

Busily turning adversity into inspiration here