Apple recalling 'very small number' of iMac hard drives

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
Apple is recalling some Seagate 1TB hard drives used in iMac systems sold between May 2011 and July 2011 because of an unspecified failure issue.



The Cupertino, Calif., Mac maker initiated the program on Friday. Affected iMac owners who provided an email during the product registration process are being contacted regarding the issue.



"Apple has determined that a very small number of Seagate 1TB hard drives used in 21.5-inch and 27-inch iMac systems, may fail under certain conditions. These systems were sold between May 2011 and July 2011," the company said.



Users who have not received an email from Apple can check the program's webpage to see if they are eligible for the replacement.



The company offers three options for replacing the hard drives: Apple Retail Store, Apple Authorized Service Provider and Apple Technical Support.



Apple recommends that customers take advantage of the replacement "as soon as possible." Customers are also advised to back up their data prior to going in for service. They will also need to have the original OS installation discs that shipped with their product in order to reinstall the "operating system, other applications and any backed up data after your hard drive is replaced."







The program will run through July 23, 2012, at which time Apple will evaluate whether further extensions are needed. The recall does not extend the standard warranty coverage of the iMac.



Apple released the current generation of iMacs in May, adding quad-core Sandy Bridge processors from Intel and the high-speed Thunderbolt input/output port. 1TB hard drives come standard on all but the entry-level model.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 21
    huntsonhuntson Posts: 90member
    If you are looking for a working link please go here:







    http://www.apple.com/support/imac-harddrive/
  • Reply 2 of 21
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    I haven't trusted Seagate since they botched their release of the world's first 1.5TB drive, so I'm not really surprised about this.
  • Reply 3 of 21
    bklynkidbklynkid Posts: 36member
    Sigh, I got that. What a pain in the ass having to bring this 27" iMac somewhere...
  • Reply 4 of 21
    sflocalsflocal Posts: 6,092member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bklynkid View Post


    Sigh, I got that. What a pain in the ass having to bring this 27" iMac somewhere...



    I've never had a problem with my macs. But one never knows. That's why I keep the original boxes, PLUS the shipping box, the bright white "Mug Me" box goes in. So for what it's worth, when I'm walking around Market Street in San Francisco, I can feel a little bit better than no one knows I'm carrying something pricey on the street. And make the box look really ugly too.
  • Reply 5 of 21
    mdriftmeyermdriftmeyer Posts: 7,503member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bklynkid View Post


    Sigh, I got that. What a pain in the ass having to bring this 27" iMac somewhere...



    Complain when you deal with a drive vendor directly through a reseller and they don't honor a replacement. That's worth complaining about.



    Getting a no questions asked from Apple we'll reinstall and set it up for free is the platinum standard in customer service.
  • Reply 6 of 21
    sheffsheff Posts: 1,407member
    My first Mac had its hard drive die just after the warrantee ran out, so I suggest those who fall under recall go to apple store ASAP even if the hard drive is working well at the moment.
  • Reply 7 of 21
    bklynkidbklynkid Posts: 36member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mdriftmeyer View Post


    Complain when you deal with a drive vendor directly through a reseller and they don't honor a replacement. That's worth complaining about.



    Getting a no questions asked from Apple we'll reinstall and set it up for free is the platinum standard in customer service.



    Oh so they'll actually install and then transfer the old hard drive? Still, they should pay for a cab. :/
  • Reply 8 of 21
    revilrerevilre Posts: 67member
    My friend who has been itching to buy a mac wanted the iMac but is saving for a Mac Pro so he can swap hard drives. To quote "There is something about the Seagate I just have a bad feeling about." This was his comment several weeks ago.
  • Reply 9 of 21
    nicolbolasnicolbolas Posts: 254member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by revilre View Post


    My friend who has been itching to buy a mac wanted the iMac but is saving for a Mac Pro so he can swap hard drives. To quote "There is something about the Seagate I just have a bad feeling about." This was his comment several weeks ago.



    anything else your friend thinks about computer parts
  • Reply 10 of 21
    huntsonhuntson Posts: 90member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post


    I haven't trusted Seagate since they botched their release of the world's first 1.5TB drive, so I'm not really surprised about this.



    Completely agree and feel the same way.
  • Reply 11 of 21
    charlitunacharlituna Posts: 7,217member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mdriftmeyer View Post


    Complain when you deal with a drive vendor directly through a reseller and they don't honor a replacement. That's worth complaining about.



    The fun part with Apple is that often they are the ones pushing the vendor on the issue. They have offices up in Cupe that review the repairs going on, the type of machines etc and they look for unacceptable rates of failure. I was able to get an out of warranty drive replacement on one of my laptops last year because my serial number was linked to a batch of 'unacceptably high failure rate' drives.



    And yes while it is not in the general scope of service if a store has a relatively empty repair room and someone that can do it they will often offer to transfer your stuff from your old drive overnight. However, don't count on that being possible and make the backup and find your disks etc
  • Reply 12 of 21
    revilrerevilre Posts: 67member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by nicolbolas View Post


    anything else your friend thinks about computer parts



    Well he does work in storage for a living so his job for the past five years has involved dealing with thousands upon thousands of hard drives. I guess he'd probably know if he didn't like a drive.



    He is okay with the 2TB Western Digital or Hitachi drives that Apple is using though.
  • Reply 13 of 21
    vadaniavadania Posts: 425member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by huntson View Post


    If you are looking for a working link please go here:







    http://www.apple.com/support/imac-harddrive/



    I'm very happy mine didn't come up!!!
  • Reply 14 of 21
    slang4artslang4art Posts: 376member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bklynkid View Post


    Sigh, I got that. What a pain in the ass having to bring this 27" iMac somewhere...



    would allow you to have at-home repairs in most areas and shipping costs covered in most areas. FYI
  • Reply 15 of 21
    slang4artslang4art Posts: 376member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by revilre View Post


    My friend who has been itching to buy a mac wanted the iMac but is saving for a Mac Pro so he can swap hard drives. To quote "There is something about the Seagate I just have a bad feeling about." This was his comment several weeks ago.



    derp derp
  • Reply 16 of 21
    Does anyone know if Apple uses Seagate HDDs on the MacBook Pros? If Apple doesn't, maybe getting a fully-spec'd 17-inch MacBook Pro with a new ThunderBolt display would be a better option (although more expensive).
  • Reply 17 of 21
    zunxzunx Posts: 620member
    Seagate drives fail too much. This has been a known issue for many years now. Avoid them like a plague!
  • Reply 18 of 21
    vadaniavadania Posts: 425member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by wrassmussen View Post


    Does anyone know if Apple uses Seagate HDDs on the MacBook Pros? If Apple doesn't, maybe getting a fully-spec'd 17-inch MacBook Pro with a new ThunderBolt display would be a better option (although more expensive).



    You don't know until you get it. My dad just got me a 27" iMac with all the bells. My number doesn't come up with a recall.



    A long time ago my uncle said "electronics are funny, they can last 1 minute or 1,000 years."



    That's what got me interested in the field...
  • Reply 19 of 21
    mdriftmeyermdriftmeyer Posts: 7,503member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bklynkid View Post


    Oh so they'll actually install and then transfer the old hard drive? Still, they should pay for a cab. :/



    APPLE CARE. They'll pay for the shipping. Duh.
  • Reply 20 of 21
    MarvinMarvin Posts: 15,310moderator
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mdriftmeyer View Post


    Complain when you deal with a drive vendor directly through a reseller and they don't honor a replacement. That's worth complaining about.



    Getting a no questions asked from Apple we'll reinstall and set it up for free is the platinum standard in customer service.



    It says in the article they don't transfer the data for you:



    "Customers are also advised to back up their data prior to going in for service. They will also need to have the original OS installation discs that shipped with their product in order to reinstall the "operating system, other applications and any backed up data after your hard drive is replaced.""



    Personally, I wouldn't want to haul an iMac into a store just for a warranty drive replacement. They cost $50-60. It's not worth the time and effort IMO. It might be for a Mac Mini as it can at least fit into a backpack.



    I wish they would just make the iMac drives easily removable so you just open a flap at the base of the machine and slide it out (2.5" of course). It's also the coolest part of the machine. Right now, the drives are above the logic board so the heat from all the parts passes over the drives on the way out the vent.



    They can have 2-3 slots at the base of the machine so you can have e.g SSD + 2 x HDD RAID-1 or SSD + storage HDD + Time Machine or whatever.
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