Flasherly wrote:

-- snipped --
You mentioned, unless I'm misinterpreting, you're
effectively tapped out on returns -- Seagate will only send you so
many replacement warranty issues, three now being your last right to
make a warranty claim?
-- snipped --

No, as far as I know. I bought the original HD in April 2018. The
warranty extends till 2020. My impression when talking with the
Seagate representatives is that Seagate would continue to replace a
defective drive with a new one until I got one that worked. The
customer service experience I had after buying the drive and the
follow-up conversations were very direct, pleasant and satisfactory.

The "three times" is a reference that the original drive I bought was
DOA. The replacement drive (number two) Seagate sent me was DOA. The
replacement drive (number three) Seagate sent me to replace drive
number two works. "Crossing my fingers" was meant to convey my hope
that the drive will continue working for its expected life but that,
given that the first two drives were DOA, there is no certainty it will.

I have had very good luck with my hard drives in the past or just don't
put them to a lot of stress to wear them out quickly. In either case,
I don't have a need to buy them very often. Prior to this purchase, I
bought one hard drive (new) in December 2016 for a build. Before that,
I think 2010 was the last time I was in the market for a hard drive(s).
I wouldn't even have bought one now (2018) except that I wanted to add
another drive. So I build a new pc for myself about every seven years
and for the most part do my research when I'm at the point that I can
use the info to actually choose what to build/buy. That's when I start
asking questions in the NG. My impression is that your experience with
pc buuilding is much greater than mine, that you did/do this type of
activity either professionally or as a hobby.

I hope this clarifies what I wrote previously.

John