Here and in many threads, it appears consumers are happy with these drives for a few months until they fail within a year. That might explain the positive reviews on retail sites after purchase. But there is no way to check longer satisfaction or percentage of products that fail prematurely.

If the data recovery firm in the article sees one failed drive per week, just in Hamburg, how many other data recovery firms in the world are seeing a similar failure rate? A logical way to determine whether a recall should be issued under lemon laws is to survey such firms. They could also volunteer the information on forums if simply to promote their services. Haven’t governments also spent money on these drives and seek a remedy like the rest of us? By the time the class action suits are settled in a couple of years from now, these drives will have already been replaced.