There's a recent post on OzB that has been deleted - i suspect it refers to this—-
is the hard drive original? not fake?? any idea?
I've also found some other listing too, which is very cheap as well:
http://shop.ebay.com.au/?_from=R40&_trksid=m570&_nkw=Western…
they are really cheap that its really hard to believe. also, the listing look the same although the username are different.
so, any thoughts please?
malaysia boleh!
The seller says it's a 10 day promotion to promote sales. Hmm.. To get it or not..
apparently the write speed is extremely slow too.. hmm, thought of taking the risk, but the slow speed makes me thinking twice! http://www.cnet.com.au/wd-my-passport-essential-se-1tb-33929…
I'm more concerned about the proprietary cable and the smartware that comes with the drive. Apparently the connection is flimsy and disconnects easily, and the smartware can't be deleted.
Plus you can't take the drive out and connect it using SATA because usb is built into the board.
But I'm still not sure…because for $25, those issues feel less problematic.
EDIT: Upon further reading, the cable may not be proprietary and the smartware may be deleted?
It seems some people have formatted it for Linux so it can be treated as a generic HD. Also there was mention of a CD image on the disk, which presumably contains the smartware and mounts as a "CD drive". It seems this can be disabled using a utility, for the loss of 700MB of space.
You're right about the non-standard cable and the specialised USB interface on the HD, which is how they save on mfr costs.
about the unusual cable, can anyone explain? do you need some sort of cable connector to plug it into the normal USB port?
It's in this review:
http://www.pcworld.idg.com.au/review/security/western-digita…
"For the My Passport Essential SE, Western Digital bypassed the standard SATA II circuitry and built a USB connection directly into the 2.5in internal hard drive, making it shorter than other external hard drives. Unfortunately, the company chose to integrate a micro-USB connection instead of the more common mini-USB port found on external hard drives and digital cameras. While the connection is supposed to be more durable, the cable is also harder to replace if lost."
I don't think it's that hard to source a replacement micro-USB cable.
Oh ok, micro-USB isn't that bad. Still wish it had a regular SATA port inside though, especially if it's as slow as reviews have been saying it is.
This post claims that you can get a large improvement by aligning partitions to 4kB boundaries.
http://inkhornnet.wordpress.com/2010/06/02/wd-passport-essen…
It smells fishy that it so much cheaper than the best price I could find on staticice. How can they make any money after postage is accounted for? I'd be interested in the result if you take the gamble.
hmm.. i have no idea how to do that.. looks very complicated to me to 'improve the performance' of the HD.
im still thinking whether to gamble on $23. hmmmmm……
I'm sure if you ask on forums, e.g. Whirlpool, somebody will explain how to do it under your chosen OS.
That's just changing the cluster size. You get that option when you partition your hard disk.
The comments suggests the seller is using seamail which was cheap as chips when that was still available for US goods.
What are the prices or wholesale prices for these things for the chinese domestic market?
anyone know how to go about doing this? I've got one of these badboys.
On more investigation, it seems the wholesale prices are that low. If the goods are genuine, then Australian importers and stores must be making a killing on the markup.
http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/350014840/WD_External_Hard…
Can't believe its real. My only guess is its a fake that has modified firmware so the computer thinks its a 1TB. With paypal, the onus is on you to prove the item is fake.
EDIT: The item on the original post is this. Scotty unpublished the deal, and i agree with him on this one.
imho if it was legit, we would see 500GB hdds going for $20 delivered
Just like Dept of Fair Trading says "if its too good to be true, then it probably is"
And the buyer may even have to fork out $$ to send the item back registered to get a refund. That's why some people on the ebay forums do tell people to just open an item not received dispute instead. Yes, it's not the right thing to do. But it's the scammer seller who created the trouble!
The feedback of those sellers are really suss. The past feedback were all on clothes and accessories. And after not selling for many months, they suddenly have TONS of 1TB HDD for sale. Hijacked accounts?
but according to that listing, its postage method is small parcel with tracking. So the seller will know if the item has been received. How will Paypal cover you on this? Paypal will refund your $25 back?
The $23 one doesn't say 'with tracking'. But if they can prove they sent it, then you have to do what Davo1111 said. You have to get proof that the drive is fake, and you may even have to return the seller the hdd before getting a refund.
Edit: The $23 seller said it will be sent with tracking!
hmm.. modified firmware so the computer thinks its a 1TB? can you provide a link that explains about that matter further? I've never heard anything like that. thanks!
http://www.atomicmpc.com.au/Feature/105823,512gb-memory-keys…
i've never heard of it done with a hard drive, but it would be possible. Its mainly done with cheap high capacity usb drives on ebay. They get a 1GB usb key and modify the firmware so it thinks its 64GB. The 1st 1gb is saved, and then the rest disappears into the abyss.
EDIT: http://sosfakeflash.wordpress.com/2008/09/02/h2testw-14-gold… testing software is here. called h2test.
Nothing is impossible for Chinese to make fake :D
Please note that there aren't any feedback left on the hard drives.
Yeah, the accounts may have been hijacked!
Just like Dept of Fair Trading says “if its too good to be true, then it probably is”
Agreed! FAKE for sure :D
How many of you did take the gamble and bought it…put your hand up! :)
I almost did! Thank goodness the seller required immediate payment, which made me stop to think twice(:
Thank goodness the seller required immediate payment
you're not one of those sellers that takes days to pay are you? glares
Oh no no of course not. I pay immediately. But seeing that this seller requiring immediate payment made me even more suspicious. It's as if he wants to sell as many as he can in 10 days, get all the money and ran away with it! Because if he didn't require immediate payment, there will be some who will not pay, pay late etc.
I too have my doubts that the item is real. Like scotty pointed out in the unpublished thread:
Item location: 深圳市, 廣東省, China
The seller seems to be selling mainly memory storage hardware. And if you google buyers' experiences on buying cheap memory devices from eBay/China, there are countless reports that these devices show a 'fake' capacity on your OS and their actual capacity is way below what they advertise them for.
Also, there's a chance that the seller's account could be a hijacked account. None of the items they previously sold are listed, and all the listed items on sale are not in the feedback.
My advice is stay away from the deal.
How come I can't "reply" to some comments? Beneath the comment, I only see votes | report, and the "reply" is missing.
I believe the 'level' of reply is now restricted to 4. This is to prevent users from creating the 'staircase' effect, which renders the post out of the page margins.
I thought that could possibly be the case. Cheers
Is it that bad though? There was a thread on headphones that had a staircase, and it was still readable.
I've seen other sites where you can still reply to someone, but there is a note that says "Maximum level reached" so you know that that is what happened. Otherwise, it confuses the discussion if further comments can't be read in context of the previous ones.
i'm not sure. If you have slow net it will take a while to appear.
The mods dont have an ability to remove such feature (as a penalty)
lol, i thought i was sin binned
I wouldn't be surprised if you were :p
I saw the deal being posted before being unpublished. I couldn't believe that price. Any one wishing to gamble, can you post back the actual storage space on the HD?
OP, did you ask in Whirlpool also? Anyway the people there too think it's fake.
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1557617
You have to admit, it is a very large difference from the retail price here. Yeah, too good to be true. Lucky I'm not in the market for these, and I'm just curious.
I still wonder about the wholesaler I found above, the one selling large quantities for 30 to 45 USD. Are they big time sharks, did they steal a whole shipment, or are markups that big in the chain? Oh well, there will always be some mysteries.
The link you provided was a link to alibaba.com. They are full of chinese scammers. Just google 'alibaba scam'.
[edit]: when I say Chinese scammers, i mean scammers from China.
If these are one of the stolen Malaysian WD drives, that means they dont come with a warranty. but, if they are real, Dont you think, we can take a risk for such a small amount. ( we get a 8 gb USB drive for that price)
I think, till the time, this story is revealed( takes 13-20 days to receive an item from China), it will be either too late or few people will be enjoying good HDD for cheap… real cheap.
but the legal remifications if they find out you have one?
If I purchase through ebay and they dont state, its a stollen HDD. I dont think, I am liable.
Correct me, if I am wrong.
thats true…
If the goods are stolen and are traced down they will be taken and given back to the owner without any form of compensation.
Its fine, but I dont think anyone will invest that much amount to get them back. Its not a 42" LED TV or a diamond set. lol
you think they will have the serial code? or the serial code doesnt place until it clear the custom(of whichever country they meant to be delivered to)?
after all its stolen from the factory…
after all its stolen from the factory…
The recent theft was from Kuala lumpar airport
that means they will already have serial code sticker on?
I'd guess those stolen Malaysian drives would've been sold off locally or furtherest smuggled into Singapore.
lol its been like more than 20days
Too many borders to cross if over land. It's far easier for these people to sell it off locally or in Singapore as there's a good market there for selling electronics to both tourists and locals.
hahaa but singapore is soo small…government is keeping an eye on everyone even when they go to toilet. if this is theft stock, i dont think anyone there willing to accept it. moreover singaporeans are famous for their kia shu,kia gingfu (scared to lose, scared of government)
by this time, ppl probably already figure out where i am from:P ROFLLL
have you been to singapore? counterfeit items are sold openly everywhere especially electronics at the more well known tourist shopping centres.
smugglers regularly make runs from johor into singapore as goods in malaysia aren't taxed as highly there.
Sim Lim Square in Singapore is like scammer land! But there are some reliable shops there too.. I get most of my computer stuff from there.
i think if you are talking about grey imports are very diff from theft stock…lol afaik the punishment for both are VERY DIFFERENT…grey imports you only get fine or confiscated…but theft stock will result in imprison..so i dont know..
last time i went to singapore i didnt even have time to drop by sim lim…i been hearing too much about it but never experience it..so i dont know
grey imports = real, counterfeit = fake or same as theft stock as the serials are changed.
I dunno, for $23 I think i'm willing to take the risk. Will have a look to see if it's still listed when I get home from work tonight.
It looks dodgy nonetheless. If they are hot I definately do not want to touch them. I'm staying away.
ordered, 23 dollars and paypal who cares :D
http://support.wdc.com/warranty/stolen.asp
not sure how long the page has been up…..but clearly WD felt it worth specifically mentioning……
i found this - http://websupport.wdc.com/warranty/serialinput.asp?aspsid=79…
so i sent a question to the seller, asking for the serial number. and he replied me —
"The item is all new, don't Kaifeng, can't tear open a packing.Please comprehension.Thanks!"
WTH is Kaifeng???!!!
hahaha gonna love chinese…it means broken seal in chinese…rofl THEY ARE SOO FUNNY those sellers..
i knew you're gonna reply… haha
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaifeng
I guess it's the equivalent of an Aussie saying "don't Melbourne"
hmm.. what does it mean - dont Melbourne?
In other words, it doesn't make sense and doesn't mean anything, since Kaifeng is a city in China. That joke was that terrible that people didn't get it.
whats a dont melbourne? I AM IN MELB? T.T
After a night's contemplation, I decided to get 1. Heck, it's just $23. I just treated my friends to dinner a couple of nights ago for much more.
Let us know how you go could you? Just very curious about what is going on here.
Another possibility is what I've heard happens in Chinese factories: after they've done a legit run for the customer (WD in this case) they, or a collaborator factory, do more runs on the sly to sell under the counter. Naturally any quality control goes out the window.
The 320GB WD Element I got early this year was made in Thailand.
hmm.. i really want to buy it, but im scared its fake/lesser capacity. lol.. but imagine if its actually original WD, 1TB capacity.. what a bargain that is.. How i wish the postage can be delivered in 1-2 business days. hahaha
You will need to return it to china, then you will wish the postage was quicker and cheaper ;P
Yep, the price is set a point where the customer might decide to simply keep the drive instead of returning it, which means they won't have to refund. =)
If there are any problems, I will be sending the drives back from Singapore anyway. So I won't lose out that much.
Edit: Last night, before I made the purchase, the seller was so friendly in his messages. NOW! He replies with 1 word. Yes, no, ok. LOL.
I think it's fake.
3TB disks were released today.
These could be counterfeit Elements, ie genuine old stock 3.5" 320GB/500GB altered so PCs read them to show 1TB disks in knockoff enclosures.
The page doesn't state they're 2.5".
Snake oil!!! Notice every seller selling the hard drive has sold power balance bracelets
here is an interesting read i was tempted but seriously if it is too good to be true do a google search
http://forums.ebay.com/db2/topic/International-Trading/Fakec…
some of the neg feedback is really quite amusing…… eg, complaining that the power band was fake (a fake of a fake..lol)….particularly after spending just 16c on it…..
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200502…
yea i gone thru all the negatives too…they are sooo funny…but then again..if sellers are funny themselves, how can replies be smart:P
Actually, I remember reading on another forum where some people received counterfeit goods from a seller. The buyer then demanded a refund, and put the case to paypal that it is illegal to send counterfeit goods through the mail. I didn't follow afterwards though, so I don't know how it went.
Chinees Sellers are funny. But Hats off to them, they are ruling the world with massive massive online sales figures with very little knowledge of English. anyways, I asked seller a question and frankly, dont understand what he meant to say.
Dear ebayUser,
Friend how are you!
Now of listed company make to promote sales an activity, movable date only have 8 day, publicity item of function.Thanks!
Click "respond" to reply through Messages, or go to your email to reply
Respond
From: eBayUser
To: seller-jn
Subject: 針對物品編號 200533194684 提出問題，結束時間為 2010-10-29 16小時11分53秒–Western Digital My Passport Essential SE 1 TB USB 2.0
Sent Date: 2010-10-20 03小時32分40秒
Dear seller-jn,
I think, many people asked you about the warranty part. Your hard disk seems to be way cheaper than the original WD HDD. What about the warranty.
Please answer elaborately. I think many people wants to know that.
Cheers
I reckon they type it in Chinese before using some random online translator lol
Saw you on whirlpool ;)
Saw you in the fake iphone thread =D
i'm going to bite. Even if it is a 500gb masquerading as as 1tb, $23 is a bargain. as long as it work.
If not I can always put in a paypal dispute and if the worse case, credit card dispute.
OK.. I ordered one, despite my better judgement.
Just got an email from ebay.
Silly/greedy me.
"""
Thank you for your bid on the following listing:
XXXX94684 - Western Digital My Passport Essential SE 1 TB USB 2.0
However, eBay has had to remove the listing. All bids or offers have been cancelled. Also, we recommend that you consider carefully whether to complete this transaction.
We hope you understand that due to privacy reasons we're unable to discuss the details of why this listing was ended.
Important
We strongly recommend that you do not go ahead with the purchase however if you have already paid for this item but haven't received it, you need to act quickly to get your money back.
Contact your bank to stop payment if you paid by cheque or bank deposit.
Contact your credit card company if you paid by credit card.
If you paid with PayPal, you may be eligible for up to $20,000 in PayPal Buyer Protection. To file a dispute go to the Resolution Centre in My eBay and click on I haven't received it yet or I received an item that does not match the seller's description.
hmm… but ebay didnt state any reason?
eBay usually won't state the reason. The seller is now not a registered user too. Paypal claim……
Ah…too bad. How would ebay confirm whether the goods were legitimate? Or is the possibility greater that these were stolen goods and ebay was asked to prevent their distribution?
Only 1 seller was removed. The rest are still selling..
hmm, interesting. There seems to be plenty of stock and a few days yet until the listings end. I'll wait and see if the rest get pulled as well. lol
i ordered 4:P hahahaha coz i was praying its the genuine stolen stock….DAMMMMN.. got that email too not happy now..
Have you started a dispute? The only worry now is the seller would just anyhow send something to get a tracking number, which will paypal with the required proof..
i guess i might do the dispute
and like most of us, the ebay account was registered with free webmail (gmail) so dont think police can follow that unless this get attention of interpol:P and give the information of account in paypal…
but yea…its because too many ppl reporting it …shouldve kept quiet then i probbaly have 4 cheap genuine usb drive or of coz get jibbed~~ lol
LOL, there were no drives, no shipments! That's why the scammers chose sea mail. It gives them 1-2 months before a victim can claim they did not receive their goods by that time they're long gone.
I guess that's what you get for trying to knowingly buying stolen goods.
Only inexperienced buyers would allow sellers to string them along! Most buyers would know to open a dispute before the 45 days are up and probably only escalate to a claim on the last possible day to give the item more time to arrive.
yea i was going to file dispute when i get the items and found out its fake anyway..what diff does it make?
kammo i know you read this from whirlpool or you were the one who post it up on whirlpool. at least with paypal there is nothing i should be worried about..
Well, it could be real, though if it were stolen stock, the police have probably raided the warehouse by now, coinciding with the ebay email. That's just my theory anyway.
worth biting the bullet for $25 perhaps……
as mentioned on the other thread…..
http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/2airport/Article/