Cheeky...We should keep in mind that the OEM's who buy the ZIP drives have performed a very extensive qualification test on the units. The qualification tests include reliability testing, specification compliance, audits of IOM's quality assurance systems and procedures, audits of the manufacturing processes, etc. Further, its not unusual for the OEM to request, and get, ECN (Engineering Change Control) approval. This means that before IOM can change the qualified drive, the OEM must grant their approval. In addition, a drive that fails and is returned to the OEM by their customer is normally sent back to IOM for a details failure analysis. IOM is then required to submit a corrective action plan to the OEM.
So, you can see that doing business with Dell, Compaq, Gateway, etc. is not very easy. Of course, this does not mean that a "bad lot" of drives can't be shipped to the OEM, and the retail market. Once this type of problem is detected, I sure the OEM's required IOM to remedy the situation ASAP.
In my experience, all the disk drive makers have approximately the same failure rates. The important thing is how IOM, and the other DD manufacturers respond to the problem.
Just thought I would present another light on this subject.
Stock Bull |
