Simpletech Hitachi Simpletech external hard drive crashed in less than one year of use. In fact, it does not even work any more. Internet
I purchaced a 500 Gigabyte Simpletech external hard drive from best buy just less than a year ago. I backed up most of my files on this hard drive so that just in case, as before, my computer crashes and needs to be reformatted.
As I was trying to retrieve some of the files I backed up on this drive, I could no longer access any of the files. In fact, it would not even respond any longer. I can not even pull up any options, such as 'format drive' and my computers don't even acknowledge the simpletech external drive any longer.
Reading other peoples reviews on the internet in regards to this problem, I realize that this is very common for this company's products.
I believe I am still under warrenty which means I could get my money back, but it does not do anything to get my files back. I just hope I have the reciept....if not, then I have a $120 paper weight.
My advice is to back up all your files on dvd's and store them away safely. It's not as convenient as having a back up hard drive; but at least the information will be there and you don't have to worry about system crashes.
Hope this helps.
1 Updates & Rebuttals
JAFO
Atlanta,Georgia,
USA
Have you tried?
#2Consumer Suggestion
Fri, September 25, 2009
I'm not sure what your level of computer skill is, nor whether you have already tried this but:
Have you tried removing the physical drive from the enclosure and adding it to your computer as a secondary drive? It is possible that only the board in the enclosure died and you could still get to your data.
The down side to this is that trying it would likely invalidate any warranty claim with Simpletech. The up side is that you may get your data back which you will not if you return the drive to Simpletech. They would probably just send you a refurb unit as a replacement.