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2x Seagate Exos X18 18TB Enterprise HDD - $974.13 + Delivery @ Amazon US via AU

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2x Seagate Exos X18 18TB Enterprise HDD - $974.13 + Delivery @ Amazon US via AUAffiliate
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B3 on 21/08/2022 - 14:54 amazon.com.au (1681 clicks)
Last edited 21/08/2022 - 15:47 by 2 other users
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Hi, my name is B3 and I'm addicted to hard drive deals. I've seen them all and this is a cracker.

The good:

This is a top notch Enterprise grade hard drive. Lord of hard drives. Every model you can find under $1000 and under 20TB will not be better quality than this. Designed for demanding usage. Is fast. Will last.

https://www.realhardwarereviews.com/seagate-exos-x18-review/

If you add two at the same time to your basket you get 8% off the $519.29 price. There's no discount on the $18.64 delivery. All up should cost you something like $487 each which is $27 per terabyte. So basically these are close to the same price as the cheapest drives you can get, yet you're getting top notch quality.

I may have got the prices slightly wrong by a few cents as I can't log in to check due to having already bought 2 of them. Cheapest local price I could find is $869.

In Australia you can register them with Seagate and get a FIVE YEAR WARRANTY. I've done this recently with these exact drives. This is huge plus. Hard drive deals in this price range nearly always involve shucking and/or missing out on warranty. This has the best of all worlds.

Delivery for me took 9 days.

The bad:

The main bad is that the 8% off for 2 drives seems to expire at midnight tonight. 'This is a limited time offer and will end at the earlier of 2022/08/22 00:00 or while stocks last.'
There is a maximum of 3 drives allowed but buying 3 loses the 8% discount. If you want 4 for example, you would need to use multiple accounts. Even without the 8% off this is a great deal so I wouldn't get too put off if you are reading this after it has expired. I will be surprised if a better deal arrives any time soon.

In 2012 Seagate had serious quality issues with some of their 3TB drives, as up to 50% of the world’s hard drive production was affected by the flooding in Thailand beginning in August 2011. Everything else they've released has been fine and there are countless stats to back this up. However for the next ten years, and seemingly for the rest of eternity, certain people are unable to heard the word 'Seagate' without instantly screaming that all Seagate products are the worst things ever and that they will never buy a Seagate product again. You should ignore those people.

https://www.backblaze.com/blog/3tb-hard-drive-failure/

'18 TB is a lot of data to loose (sic) at once'
Well it depends how important it is. A few MB are a lot to lose if they're Bitcoin wallets. Just ask this guy. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-62381682

IF you value your data then you should back it up. Some people like small hard drives. Some people (admittedly not many, but still, some) like large hard drives, maybe even enough to buy multiple 18TB models. However the people who like small hard drives seem to be completely unable to understand why anyone would ever buy a large hard drive, especially multiples of them which is strange because they are complaining about losing data and then also complain some mroe about buying multiples of something so they can back it up. One of the last things I need in my life would be 9 x 2TB drives which is what the complainers seem to think I should be buying so they just don't make any sense at all and again, ignore them.

Enterprise drives are designed to be great at everything except noise levels. Many people complain about the noise of Enterprise drives. I have two of this exact model and they seem very slightly noiser than usual but the sound levels are absolutely fine by me and not annoying in any way. However you may get unlucky that they just aren't a great combination with your particular hardware so IF you do happen to find them to be too noisy then you do have the ability to tune them to be quieter, but this tends to be fiddly and involve using command line instructions.

This hard drive is not on the latest firmware. Updating it is again a bit fiddly and involves command line commands which will annoy some people. 'Enterprise grade' and 'user friendly' don't seem to intersect all that often.

Please note I am not personally guaranteeing you will be able to register these drives for warranty, some people seem to complain that they can't. I'm just passing on my experience. My warranty only started from March this year which is a bit odd.

If you're not going to use them much then paying for this level of quality is a bit of a waste.

Price History at C CamelCamelCamel.
Computing 18TB Computer Component Hard Drive Seagate

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closed Comments

  • videoman on 21/08/2022 - 15:03
    +6

    More expensive delivery for me

    Total- $983.22

    Choose a delivery option:
    $40.97 Priority International Delivery : get it by Tuesday, Aug 30
    $27.73 Expedited International Delivery : get it by Wednesday, Sep 7

    • madbison on 21/08/2022 - 16:42

      Agreed. 18.74usd shipping = $27.10aud according to xe.com

      • JCRALLYART on 21/08/2022 - 16:58

        Not really, the $18.64 is in fact AUD but that;s for 1 drive, you are adding 2 drives that is why is no longer $18.64. Try to add only 1 and go through the checkout and it should show $18.64 delivery AUD

      • B3 on 21/08/2022 - 17:02

        Maybe we live in different parts of Australia? My shipping (a while ago) was $18.68 in Aus dollars but it looks like they then add GST to that, which is a little sneaky.

        • hmof on 22/08/2022 - 11:47

          Delivery is not GST exempt.

    • 1000060 on 21/08/2022 - 16:57

      True the postage is annoying!
      Did a search on Gumtree and already picked up 2x for $900. But they only come with 3 year warranty not 5 years. Still pretty happy as I'm not worrying too much about the warranty given the RMA rate is less than 1%.

  • CodeXD on 21/08/2022 - 15:05

    @ Amazon AU

    It is actually Amazon US

  • digitalaxon on 21/08/2022 - 15:20
    +5

    I bought a seagate ironwolf a while back and the clumsy Amazon courier dropped the package as he was handing it over eyeroll. Amazon don't exactly use a lot of packaging/wrapping to protect drives either.

    Given the amount of battering items delivered overseas can encounter and dealing with warranty I would suggest caution - cost of potentially having to send it back overseas and damage in transit make it a risky proposition with the lower cost the only reason to not buy locally.

    • 7ekn00 on 21/08/2022 - 15:40
      +4

      This is part of the QA program!

      If the drive fires up after Amazon packaging and delivery, you have one of the top 5%, think of it as an automatic binning process :P

      When I start a HDD business, my sales pitch will be "when it survives Amazons packaging and delivery, you know they are made to last" ;)

      • BargainKen on 21/08/2022 - 16:24

        Think they call that Natural Selection 😉

        • bdl on 21/08/2022 - 18:10

          Of the drive or the Amazon courier? :P

          • BargainKen on 21/08/2022 - 20:35
            +1

            @bdl: That depends on you I guess, (if you let him walk away) :P

    • Mitch889 on 21/08/2022 - 19:32

      Do you live in Melbourne? I had EXACTLY the same thing happen to me.

      The drive (a Seagate Exos) had zero protection except for a thin envelope around the foil wrapper, and the courier dropped it right in front of me.

      I walked back inside, filed a return and dropped it at AusPost that afternoon.

      Despite some good deals (this is a great price!) I just can’t bring myself to buy a bare drive off Amazon again.

      • blankie on 21/08/2022 - 23:28

        That's good to know, might differ Manufacturer/Seller.

        Had bought a single WD HDD (Ironwolf NAS Type) from Amazon as the seller and came in an the box from OEM and was all packed really well.

    • snoopydoop on 21/08/2022 - 19:39

      I have bought 4x WD My Books from Amazon internationally in separate orders and none have had a problem 2 years later

      But definitely packaging could be better.

    • ng100 on 27/08/2022 - 16:22

      Mine arrived. Plastic amazon bag containing two seagate boxes with the drives like this: https://i.imgur.com/o2x1nu4.jpg
      Seems undamaged.

  • ChatGPT-4 on 21/08/2022 - 15:22

    I've just ordered 2 x 16GB WD Red Pro for $876 to use in my new Synology DS920+. Should I cancel and go with these?

    • SubNoize on 21/08/2022 - 15:26
      +2

      TB I assume

    • itsme56 on 21/08/2022 - 15:27
      +8

      You’re already spending that much. Cancel and get 18TB.

  • Indomietable on 21/08/2022 - 15:24
    +2

    Will last.

    Any spinning rust will eventually die. When is the big gamble

    • incipient on 21/08/2022 - 15:40
      +2

      Same applies to an ssd. Really, any media outside of tape. Or those "m disks"…but no clue if they actually hold up.

      • furyou on 22/08/2022 - 10:01
        +1

        thought tape rots or sth too?

    • MasterScythe on 21/08/2022 - 15:43
      +4

      8mb HDD I got in the 70's still going strong!

      I had to relube the motor a few times, but it still works!

      • B3 on 21/08/2022 - 18:21

        You like to get your moneys worth!

        • boomramada on 21/08/2022 - 18:45
          -1

          More like wasting money on power to save is 8mb of data lol

  • dfg555 on 21/08/2022 - 15:34

    not bad.

    bought something similar to this last year via amazon uk - x2 18tb wd elements $900 delivered.

    shucked both, can never have enough backups.

    • photonbuddy on 21/08/2022 - 16:38

      bought something similar to this last year via amazon uk - x2 18tb wd elements $900 delivered.

      Bought 3 of these mid July for $385 each. Not planning on shucking them (yet).

      Absolute bargain.

  • hippyhippy on 21/08/2022 - 15:52
    +3

    I give u a + for the effort..

  • Bombdigidy on 21/08/2022 - 16:02
    +9

    Perfect for my historical VR JAV archive

  • McFly on 21/08/2022 - 16:02
    +14

    "The body of your deal is too short. You need at least 10 words," said nobody about this deal.

  • OzComment on 21/08/2022 - 16:03
    +1

    I bought one from WD datacenter series for my NAS and regretted it as I can't bear the noise. Took that single HDD off and my NAS is instantly 10 times quieter. It's now sitting on the book shelf as an emergency hot swap backup. I can't imagine 2+ of those running at the same time. It's something you should serious think about if you NAS is placed in the same room as you do.

  • WhatsTheBigDeal on 21/08/2022 - 16:11

    Got 8TB ironwolf nas drives too with buy2 save 8% deal
    1millon hours mtbf! That over 100 years!

  • carbonmeister on 21/08/2022 - 16:25
    +1

    I have the WD Gold 18TB drive, how would this compare? Also appreciate the informative write up OP! Definitely did think of the Seagate stigma, but that's way past now…

  • Viospeed on 21/08/2022 - 16:25

    I recently purchased x4 16 TB Exos drives. Was disappointed in them compared to IronWolf drives. I ran x4 Ironwolf drives in RAID5 and was getting 390Mb/s sustained write speeds but these drives with the exact same RAID card and RAID config I get like 260 Mb/s sustained.

    The Exos are also slightly noisy when seeking compared to Ironwolf drives and think Ironwolfs are much better.

    • schquid on 21/08/2022 - 16:35
      +1

      Seems suss that it's hitting the peak single drive speed. I have 5x16TB Exos in raidz1 and it usually maxes out at about 700MB/s when running a scrub.

    • Mitch889 on 21/08/2022 - 19:34
      +1

      Definitely sounds like something wrong with the setup, as a single drive should basically hit around 250MB/s.

    • Indomietable on 21/08/2022 - 20:15

      First thing first… stop using RAID5 especially when you have big disks.

      • Viospeed on 21/08/2022 - 20:16
        +1

        This is a home setup, not an enterprise. What is the second thing?

        • Indomietable on 21/08/2022 - 20:38

          If you don't value your data that much then you better off with no raid. Your chances of successfully rebuilding your array is pretty slim.

          Second thing benchmark the disk on its own. It might be the RAID slowing things down.

      • blankie on 21/08/2022 - 23:37

        If all your disks are from the same batch, worth allowing for a ≥2 disk failure. There is a statistically higher chance for a second disk to fail after the first as the failure could be linked to a manufacturing fault

      • Blackcat2 on 22/08/2022 - 08:18

        So use RAID6?

        • Indomietable on 22/08/2022 - 14:24
          +1

          RAID6 or RAID10 would be good option. I would rather not use any RAID and just put the data direct to the disk than run RAID5 - at least failures are compartmentalized.

          Here is a good article explaining on why Raid 5 is pretty bad : https://www.digistor.com.au/the-latest/Whether-RAID-5-is-sti…

          • Blackcat2 on 22/08/2022 - 14:31

            @Indomietable: For myself, the only reason to run Synology's SHR/RAID5 is to make it easier to expand the volume. However, I do understand that above 4TB, the idea of recoverability using RAID5 is pretty much out the window. My setup consist of RAID5 + backup to restore from, in case RAID5 rebuild go bad.

  • ultramic on 21/08/2022 - 16:26

    Noob question, can these be used as a standard PC hard drive ?

    • wellzi on 21/08/2022 - 16:30
      +1

      Yes.

      • ultramic on 21/08/2022 - 16:35

        Thanks. I saw they also had a HSMR version, can that be used in a PC too ?

      • schquid on 21/08/2022 - 16:36
        +1

        Loud though. Pinging, tapping, clicking and a good bit of humming. It's like working next to the ADHD kid.

        • MasterScythe on 22/08/2022 - 09:48

          Agred, Loud, but only loud for a hdd.
          Still quieter than a zip disk, floppy, CD-RW, or tape.

          So long as you have a closed case, it shouldn't be an issue.
          A defrag Is good white noise for a nap.

    • Mitch889 on 21/08/2022 - 19:34

      You could, but you shouldn’t, they are noisy AF.

  • taki on 21/08/2022 - 16:44
    +2

    4x 10TB is better/safer than 2x18/20.
    1 more to go for Synology DS920+ when the time comes (waiting for better times if ever they come ;)

    • furyou on 22/08/2022 - 10:05

      Looking at the Synology DS920+ too, did it ever have a good deal price?

  • ahdoor on 21/08/2022 - 18:23

    Thanks op. Gave you a thumbs up for your effort.

  • trevor99 on 21/08/2022 - 19:52

    Good deal. I like the Ultrastar HC 520s 12tb, but the Exos 18Tb for under $500 win atm.

    https://www.amazon.com.au/WD_Black-7200RPM-Cooling-Massive-C…

  • gadgetguy on 21/08/2022 - 20:28

    This deal is $983 inc cheapest delivery.

    These below work out at $883 for 2, delivered inc import duty. shipping etc:

    https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/125423769972

    • B3 on 21/08/2022 - 21:07

      Those seem to be stolen and come with only 30 days warranty, the pics alone are a red flag.

      https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/tfm7w9/what_is…

      • gadgetguy on 21/08/2022 - 22:07

        Interesting but the thread you linked to talks about drives sold on amazon. I'd be wary of claiming these particular drives are "stolen" without more evidence than a random reddit thread which does not refer to this seller or even to ebay.

        The OP for this current deal also acknowledges that some of the drives he posted could not be registered.

        So, who knows.

  • Menzoberranzan on 21/08/2022 - 21:05
    +2

    Gotta say OP made a massive effort with his post and selling message. 10/10 would go to OP for HDD questions

  • ChatGPT-4 on 21/08/2022 - 21:15

    Not sure whether I need 2 or 4 drives to fill up my Synology NAS. I should be able to scale up down the line if I start off with two. Is RAID1 the recommended setup?

    • truetypezk on 21/08/2022 - 23:09
      +1

      With 2 drives to start RAID1 is pretty much the only choice.
      You only need to start worrying about your choices when you add another 2 drives. (2*RAID1, RAID6 OR SHR/SHR2)
      I use 2 separate RAID1 arrays on my 4 bay device just because I don't like to fork out a huge sum of money to upgrade all 4 drives at the same time. With 2 separate arrays you can upgrade 2 when needed. I think you can also do that theoretically with SHR but I'd rather not be locked into Synology's propritory stuffs should I have to do a recovery.

      • ChatGPT-4 on 22/08/2022 - 00:05

        Good to know, thanks. That helps a lot

  • trevor99 on 22/08/2022 - 00:16
    +3

    For Enterprise quality disks I rather not use RAID, instead use a second for regular backup then disconnect and remove.

    Reasons are
    1) they're very reliable anyway so likely won't need RAID, but mainly
    2) RAID doesn't protect you from deleting or corrupting your data by accident, virus wipe, machine stolen or the like.
    And save some power.

    For backing up any regular files I use xcopy /s/d/y . Will recursively copy only changed/added files since last backup.

    • The One Demon on 16/09/2022 - 08:46

      But then you need 1 extra drive per HDD you have… In my 8 bay NAS, only 1 drive is used for backup… I don't want to use 3 more drives for backup purposes, too much money for no gain.

  • bondi on 22/08/2022 - 08:20

    This is almost the cheapest price offered on Amazon US.
    I purchased 2 of this HDDs early this year. US$321 plus shipping to Australia. It worked out around $480 Oz dollar each at the time of exchange rate.

    The HDD is good for NAS and make sure it is 7200rps and CMR with 521MB cache.

  • kungfuman on 22/08/2022 - 08:33

    I would look at the reviews first before you jump into these.

  • mikeb on 22/08/2022 - 10:09

    I've got 4x12gb ones in a NAS and I can vouch for the fact that they are noisy. This is no good in a room where you like quiet because these things are constantly clunking.

    • truetypezk on 22/08/2022 - 21:18

      These should go inside a NAS on a mini rack in a server room:)

  • pharkurnell on 22/08/2022 - 10:41
    +1

    In 2012 Seagate had serious quality issues with some of their 3TB drives,

    Do you think things may have changed by now though?

  • havebeerbelywillsumo on 22/08/2022 - 15:03

    Now marked "expired", with price now at 1040 (plus delivery) for 2, missed little there, not a "bargain" at all IMO.

  • serial101 on 30/08/2022 - 17:44

    Just curious if anyone received these yet - got 1 of the 2 I ordered today and it was a 4TB EXOS HDD instead of 18TB but someone has stuck an 18TB sticker on the box covering the original barcode and serial number - assume the second will also be dodgy. Already have a return/refund organised with a chat agent - would have preferred the actual item I paid for though :(

    • B3 on 31/08/2022 - 13:29

      I've now received 4 of these in 2 lots of 2 and all are legit 18TB drives that registered successfully for the 5 year warranty.

      • serial101 on 31/08/2022 - 14:39

        Hopefully the one I am yet to receive is correct :) The first one already on its way back to Amazon.

  • videoman on 01/09/2022 - 17:00

    I just got my 2 drives and I can't believe how poorly they were packed. They were sent in a large box with no padding around the hard drives at all. The hard drives were just sealed in anti static bags. The box did have some plastic air bags sitting on top of the drives but that wouldn’t done much to protect them.

    I just tried both drives and they don't work. One of them makes a beeping sound when I first turn it on and the other sounds like it's trying to start up but doesn't show up in windows. One of the hard drives has a visible dint on it. I just talked to amazon chat and I have to return the drives for a refund.

    https://imgur.com/a/iCljwV2

  • vaper on 07/09/2022 - 09:50

    Got my drives and it was a complete waste of time. Both drives dented duribg shipping and have I/O errors.

    • videoman on 08/09/2022 - 08:32

      How did they package your drives? Similar to mine above?

  • ChatGPT-4 on 09/09/2022 - 00:20

    Gosh, did not expect this to fail after one week of installing into NAS. One of my drives just started throwing UNC errors today and has failed the S.M.A.R.T. test. Doing a RMA with Seagate Australia rather than sending back to Amazon

  • LD99 on 21/09/2022 - 01:22

    Got my drives today - quite a delay considering it was ordered a month ago. The two HDDs were sent together in a plain satchel bag without ANY kind of padding (no foam, no cardboard, and not even bubblewrap). Both had multiple dents on the metal casing before I even took them out of the anti-static bag. I tried one out and it was throwing I/O errors, so I did not even bother with the other one.

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