"Sonnics" hard drives?

Anyone heard of this brand? Any positives/negatives?
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

"Address the chair!" "There isn't a chair, there's only a rock!" "Well, call
it a chair!" "Why not call it a rock?" (First series, fit the sixth.)

"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote:

Anyone heard of this brand? Any positives/negatives?

They slap their name onto someone else's product. They don't
manufacture anything. You don't know what is inside unless you break it
open. Even then, you'll have to peel off their overlay sticker an hope
the original, if they left it, stays behind to see what they used.
Unlike Corsair that has manufacturers build or supply per a spec that
Corsair dictates, Sonnics is just a reseller. The only products they
"manufacturer" are the silkscreened cases with their name (that they
probably contract to have someone else make) and the sticky labels they
apply over or in place of the originals (that they probably have someone
else print for them). The only specs you'll get on those devices is
what they list on their web site. They sell on-spec, not by the
original brand.

This is their web site:

https://www.sonnics.co.uk/

This is their location according to the address (on the Isle of Man)
that they give in their web site:

https://goo.gl/maps/yxopLHP4WoU18v78A
(exit street view and zoom out to see the Isle of Man)

They say they're on the 6th floor of Victory House. I only see 5
stories above ground. Maybe they count the basement as floor 1.

Would they be considered in your country? Even if so, because they're
on a 221 sq. mi. island (about 0.25% of the size and 1.4% population
compared to the state I live in the USA), check the cost for a returned
item sent back by boat or air freight (they have their Isle of Man
Airport) to there and how long it takes to ship a return to them. If
you're not in the UK, well, you'll be paying international airfare. If
I bought the item and had to return it, cost is $24, or more, from where
I am to get to the Isle of Man. Pretty much means that I'd be trashing
a defective white label product.

In message , VanguardLH
writes:
"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote:

Anyone heard of this brand? Any positives/negatives?

They slap their name onto someone else's product. They don't

That's the impression I get.

manufacture anything. You don't know what is inside unless you break it
open. Even then, you'll have to peel off their overlay sticker an hope
the original, if they left it, stays behind to see what they used.

I'm also not at all sure if they're selling new or refurbished. They're
claiming New on ebay, but where drives are concerned, ebay clearly don't
ca several other sellers list as new, but when you look carefully at
their listings they're refurbished.

Unlike Corsair that has manufacturers build or supply per a spec that
Corsair dictates, Sonnics is just a reseller. The only products they

If they're only reselling new, I don't mind that much. But I doubt it,
to be honest.

"manufacturer" are the silkscreened cases with their name (that they
probably contract to have someone else make) and the sticky labels they
apply over or in place of the originals (that they probably have someone
else print for them). The only specs you'll get on those devices is
what they list on their web site. They sell on-spec, not by the
original brand.

This is their web site:

https://www.sonnics.co.uk/

Yes, I'd already looked at it. Pretty minimal information.

This is their location according to the address (on the Isle of Man)
that they give in their web site:

https://goo.gl/maps/yxopLHP4WoU18v78A
(exit street view and zoom out to see the Isle of Man)

They say they're on the 6th floor of Victory House. I only see 5
stories above ground. Maybe they count the basement as floor 1.

Maybe they're on the roof (-:! [Not sure if the Isle of Man is different
- I doubt it - but actually in Britain, we number storeys as ground
floor, first floor, second floor, so the top there'd only be fourth!]

Would they be considered in your country? Even if so, because they're
on a 221 sq. mi. island (about 0.25% of the size and 1.4% population
compared to the state I live in the USA), check the cost for a returned
item sent back by boat or air freight (they have their Isle of Man
Airport) to there and how long it takes to ship a return to them. If
you're not in the UK, well, you'll be paying international airfare. If
I bought the item and had to return it, cost is $24, or more, from where
I am to get to the Isle of Man. Pretty much means that I'd be trashing
a defective white label product.

I _think_ the IoM counts as part of Britain for postal purposes.
(Possibly the oldest part! Its parliament dates from 9xx - yes, a three
digit year.) But yes, Sonnics does look "well dodgy". (Going by their
prices - which are low - they could be.)
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

"Bother," said Pooh, as he fell off the bridge with his stick.

On 2019-09-28 12:54 p.m., J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
In message , VanguardLH
writes:
"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote:

Anyone heard of this brand? Any positives/negatives?

They slap their name onto someone else's product.Â* They don't

That's the impression I get.

manufacture anything.Â* You don't know what is inside unless you break it
open.Â* Even then, you'll have to peel off their overlay sticker an hope
the original, if they left it, stays behind to see what they used.

I'm also not at all sure if they're selling new or refurbished. They're
claiming New on ebay, but where drives are concerned, ebay clearly don't
ca several other sellers list as new, but when you look carefully at
their listings they're refurbished.

Unlike Corsair that has manufacturers build or supply per a spec that
Corsair dictates, Sonnics is just a reseller.Â* The only products they

If they're only reselling new, I don't mind that much. But I doubt it,
to be honest.

"manufacturer" are the silkscreened cases with their name (that they
probably contract to have someone else make) and the sticky labels they
apply over or in place of the originals (that they probably have someone
else print for them).Â* The only specs you'll get on those devices is
what they list on their web site.Â* They sell on-spec, not by the
original brand.

This is their web site:

https://www.sonnics.co.uk/

Yes, I'd already looked at it. Pretty minimal information.

This is their location according to the address (on the Isle of Man)
that they give in their web site:

https://goo.gl/maps/yxopLHP4WoU18v78A
(exit street view and zoom out to see the Isle of Man)

They say they're on the 6th floor of Victory House.Â* I only see 5
stories above ground.Â* Maybe they count the basement as floor 1.

Maybe they're on the roof (-:! [Not sure if the Isle of Man is different
- I doubt it - but actually in Britain, we number storeys as ground
floor, first floor, second floor, so the top there'd only be fourth!]

Would they be considered in your country?Â* Even if so, because they're
on a 221 sq. mi. island (about 0.25% of the size and 1.4% population
compared to the state I live in the USA), check the cost for a returned
item sent back by boat or air freight (they have their Isle of Man
Airport) to there and how long it takes to ship a return to them.Â* If
you're not in the UK, well, you'll be paying international airfare.Â* If
I bought the item and had to return it, cost is $24, or more, from where
I am to get to the Isle of Man.Â* Pretty much means that I'd be trashing
a defective white label product.

I _think_ the IoM counts as part of Britain for postal purposes.
(Possibly the oldest part! Its parliament dates from 9xx - yes, a three
digit year.) But yes, Sonnics does look "well dodgy". (Going by their
prices - which are low - they could be.)

If I wanted to buy a new hard drive (which I'M not) I would be buying a
Western Digital or Seagate, not some oddball unheard of brand,
regardless of price

Rene

"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote:
Anyone heard of this brand? Any positives/negatives?

I haven't, but why do you ask? Are they that much cheaper than the
known and reputable brands?

AFAIC, today's hard-drive prices are so low that I only buy known and
reputable brands. But as always, YMMV/YMWV.

J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
In message , VanguardLH
writes:
"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote:

Anyone heard of this brand? Any positives/negatives?

They slap their name onto someone else's product. They don't

That's the impression I get.

manufacture anything. You don't know what is inside unless you break it
open. Even then, you'll have to peel off their overlay sticker an hope
the original, if they left it, stays behind to see what they used.

I'm also not at all sure if they're selling new or refurbished. They're
claiming New on ebay, but where drives are concerned, ebay clearly don't
ca several other sellers list as new, but when you look carefully at
their listings they're refurbished.

Unlike Corsair that has manufacturers build or supply per a spec that
Corsair dictates, Sonnics is just a reseller. The only products they

If they're only reselling new, I don't mind that much. But I doubt it,
to be honest.

"manufacturer" are the silkscreened cases with their name (that they
probably contract to have someone else make) and the sticky labels they
apply over or in place of the originals (that they probably have someone
else print for them). The only specs you'll get on those devices is
what they list on their web site. They sell on-spec, not by the
original brand.

This is their web site:

https://www.sonnics.co.uk/

Yes, I'd already looked at it. Pretty minimal information.

This is their location according to the address (on the Isle of Man)
that they give in their web site:

https://goo.gl/maps/yxopLHP4WoU18v78A
(exit street view and zoom out to see the Isle of Man)

They say they're on the 6th floor of Victory House. I only see 5
stories above ground. Maybe they count the basement as floor 1.

Maybe they're on the roof (-:! [Not sure if the Isle of Man is different
- I doubt it - but actually in Britain, we number storeys as ground
floor, first floor, second floor, so the top there'd only be fourth!]

Would they be considered in your country? Even if so, because they're
on a 221 sq. mi. island (about 0.25% of the size and 1.4% population
compared to the state I live in the USA), check the cost for a returned
item sent back by boat or air freight (they have their Isle of Man
Airport) to there and how long it takes to ship a return to them. If
you're not in the UK, well, you'll be paying international airfare. If
I bought the item and had to return it, cost is $24, or more, from where
I am to get to the Isle of Man. Pretty much means that I'd be trashing
a defective white label product.

I _think_ the IoM counts as part of Britain for postal purposes.
(Possibly the oldest part! Its parliament dates from 9xx - yes, a three
digit year.) But yes, Sonnics does look "well dodgy". (Going by their
prices - which are low - they could be.)

Sonnics prices higher than Microcenter for the cheap drives.
https://www.microcenter.com/category...al-hard-drives

In article , Rene Lamontagne
wrote:

Anyone heard of this brand? Any positives/negatives?


....

If I wanted to buy a new hard drive (which I'M not) I would be buying a
Western Digital or Seagate, not some oddball unheard of brand,
regardless of price

that's what's inside.

all they do is put the drive in an enclosure with a usb bridge, which
they probably also source from someone else.

In message , Paul in Houston TX
writes:
J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
In message , VanguardLH
writes:
"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote:

Anyone heard of this brand? Any positives/negatives?
[]
Sonnics prices higher than Microcenter for the cheap drives.
https://www.microcenter.com/category...al-hard-drives

Looked there, applied filter of 3.5", sorted by price, first two we
500G $29.99 (WD)
2T $52.99 (Seagate*)
and that's before adding shipping to UK, where I am.


* I've noticed lots of people selling the Seagate drives a "BarraCuda";
why the capital C?
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

"Not an electronic sausage!"

In message , Frank Slootweg
writes:
"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote:
Anyone heard of this brand? Any positives/negatives?

I haven't, but why do you ask? Are they that much cheaper than the
known and reputable brands?

Yes.

AFAIC, today's hard-drive prices are so low that I only buy known and
reputable brands. But as always, YMMV/YMWV.

The one I'm looking at is I think a rebadged Seagate anyway. I suspect
Sonnics are selling refurbished as new, though (as are many sellers).
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

"Not an electronic sausage!"

In article , J. P. Gilliver (John)
wrote:

The one I'm looking at is I think a rebadged Seagate anyway. I suspect
Sonnics are selling refurbished as new, though (as are many sellers).

that's illegal.

"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote:

I _think_ the IoM counts as part of Britain for postal purposes.
(Possibly the oldest part! Its parliament dates from 9xx - yes, a three
digit year.) But yes, Sonnics does look "well dodgy". (Going by their
prices - which are low - they could be.)

From reviews at Amazon and elsewhere, users that submit reviews after
many months (instead of immediately, so they don't know about longevity)
that have problems said they would've preferred to spend another $15 to
get a known or name-brand product rather than a white label product.

I don't know how Amazon works regarding returns. Have bought only a few
times from there and haven't encountered the need for returns. Without
a URL to where you were considering buying, no idea if the site was
selling the product or, like Amazon (and Walmart, Newegg, and many
others), the site provided a storefront for the seller. That means any
returns are between you and the seller, not between you and the site.
At Newegg, Walmart, and others, I make sure to restrict the search to
items THAT site is selling.

Newegg is pretty good with returns within the return period. You should
know inside the 30-day return period if the item is working or not, so
don't buy, try once, and shelve hoping to use it later, but you should
test many times or place into repeated/continual service before the
return period expires. Newegg sells the Sonnics drives.

Sonnics 500GB USB3 HDD: $78
https://www.newegg.com/p/1B4-04TU-00...5030-_-Product

Notice the ad says "First from Asia". Despite Sonnics listing an IoM
office address, the product comes from elsewhere. That's no unusual;
however, I tend to shy away from any products at Newegg where Newegg
identified it as "First from Asia".

From Newegg, you can get 2TB USB3 HDDs for $59 (where condition = new
and seller = Newegg), so the Sonnics one mentioned above is more than 4
times more expensive. They have a 1TB USB3 HDD for $49: twice the
capacity, not a white label product, and at 64% the price. The 500GB
was the largest Sonnics that Newegg sells. I can get much larger USB
HDDs for the Sonnics price, like the 3TB @ $80 at:

https://www.newegg.com/model-wdbu6y0...1Z4-0049-000S7

I don't what who be a popular computer e-tailer in your area. I've
found nothing that would qualify Sonnics products as ruggedized drives
to account for their higher pricing. Sonnics products look like white
label products: nothing special. White label products can be just as
good, but I don't see why Sonnics should command higher or even equal
prices.

"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote:

I've noticed lots of people selling the Seagate drives a "BarraCuda";
why the capital C?

CamelCase, and the same as Seagate uses to name their family lines.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camel_case
Some folks want to use one word instead of two (helps with searches).
In this case, Seagate probably didn't like using Barra Cuda. Cuda could
be CUDA (Compute Unified Device Architecture) used in nVidia GPUs (aka
CUDA cores), and would get into a trademarking conflict. Cuda, short
for Barracuda, was also a late 60's Plymouth muscle car, and Barra Cuda
could be miscontrued to mean some sub-model of the 'Cuda model.

This is a barracuda (a ferrocious ray-finned fish species):
https://www.hatchmag.com/sites/defau...e/IMG_2720.JPG

This is a Barracuda (uppercased for the Plymouth model name):
https://www.musclecarfacts.com/wp-co...-Barracuda.jpg

This is Seagate's BarraCuda (camel-cased for an HDD product line):
https://static.bhphoto.com/images/im...30_1345917.jpg

On Sat, 28 Sep 2019 20:15:04 -0500, VanguardLH wrote:

"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote:

I've noticed lots of people selling the Seagate drives a "BarraCuda";
why the capital C?

CamelCase, and the same as Seagate uses to name their family lines.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camel_case
Some folks want to use one word instead of two (helps with searches).
In this case, Seagate probably didn't like using Barra Cuda. Cuda could
be CUDA (Compute Unified Device Architecture) used in nVidia GPUs (aka
CUDA cores), and would get into a trademarking conflict. Cuda, short
for Barracuda, was also a late 60's Plymouth muscle car, and Barra Cuda
could be miscontrued to mean some sub-model of the 'Cuda model.

This is a barracuda (a ferrocious ray-finned fish species):
https://www.hatchmag.com/sites/defau...e/IMG_2720.JPG

This is a Barracuda (uppercased for the Plymouth model name):
https://www.musclecarfacts.com/wp-co...-Barracuda.jpg

This is Seagate's BarraCuda (camel-cased for an HDD product line):
https://static.bhphoto.com/images/im...30_1345917.jpg

Are you seeing BarraCuda in that last image? I'm only seeing Barracuda and
BARRACUDA, no sign of BarraCuda.

Char Jackson wrote:

Are you seeing BarraCuda in that last image? I'm only seeing Barracuda and
BARRACUDA, no sign of BarraCuda.

Yep, their printer screwed up, or the employee that made the print
order.

https://www.seagate.com/internal-har...hdd/barracuda/

Sellers are probably just duplicating what Seagate says or what Seagate
prints on their products. I suppose if there was a label misprint that
some seller might be selling Seagate BurroCuba drives.

Char Jackson wrote:
On Sat, 28 Sep 2019 20:15:04 -0500, VanguardLH wrote:

"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote:

I've noticed lots of people selling the Seagate drives a "BarraCuda";
why the capital C?
CamelCase, and the same as Seagate uses to name their family lines.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camel_case
Some folks want to use one word instead of two (helps with searches).
In this case, Seagate probably didn't like using Barra Cuda. Cuda could
be CUDA (Compute Unified Device Architecture) used in nVidia GPUs (aka
CUDA cores), and would get into a trademarking conflict. Cuda, short
for Barracuda, was also a late 60's Plymouth muscle car, and Barra Cuda
could be miscontrued to mean some sub-model of the 'Cuda model.

This is a barracuda (a ferrocious ray-finned fish species):
https://www.hatchmag.com/sites/defau...e/IMG_2720.JPG

This is a Barracuda (uppercased for the Plymouth model name):
https://www.musclecarfacts.com/wp-co...-Barracuda.jpg

This is Seagate's BarraCuda (camel-cased for an HDD product line):
https://static.bhphoto.com/images/im...30_1345917.jpg

Are you seeing BarraCuda in that last image? I'm only seeing Barracuda and
BARRACUDA, no sign of BarraCuda.


Look at the photo here. You'll find a good deal of CamelCase in the advert.

https://www.amazon.ca/Seagate-BarraC.../dp/B01IEKG402

And that drive is very likely to be the Sonnics 2TB one.
It has no breather hole, just like the Sonnics. And the
indentation in the upper right, is the same. It's possible
this drive is a 3 platter one (it's relatively old,
but the 2TB model happens to be a keeper). Other devices advertised
on the same page, are likely to be of a different generation.

I don't know what they did with the breather. That's not
a Helium drive, as it's too cheap for that. And the covers
are wrong for Helium. For the breather to work, the hepafilter
has an adhesive surface and needs a good surface to work on.
You can't glue it to just anything, and the sheet metal
is likely to be pretty clean and flat.

If you could remove breathers, they would have done
that long ago. It must be "hiding".

Paul