Spirited debate about drives

[ComputerDave]

I'm having a spirited debate with myself about drives. Typically, we pull these no-name brand drives (pictured) out of new machines we offer and replace them with a brand we trust, such as Samsung or Crucial. Is in vain? Are they all made by the same parent company?

 

[Markverhyden]

There's really only a handful of companies making each type of hardware. So I wouldn't be surprised if all those brand X's were from the same plant if they are the same size.

 

[britechguy]

@Markverhyden

The same is true for computer service items as is true for automotive service items, and that's that there are very few actual manufacturers for these, and multiple brands use the same manufacturers.

The items are made to spec, and so long as they meet the buyer's specified spec, everything's fine. And this often means that a massive run is made for SSDs or oil filters that meet the most stringent spec from one of the buyers, and exceeds the spec for many others. These all end up with the various brands and on shelves with the labels of those brands.

It's way cheaper for a mass manufacturer to follow this practice and sell the item to "all comers" than it is to set up separate production runs that remove things not specified for each respective buyer. Meets or exceeds is what the law requires (as well as convention, you don't stay in business long if you're selling things "on spec" where said spec is not even fully met).

 

[britechguy]

BTW, I wouldn't call "Lexar" a no-name brand. The others, sure, but not Lexar.

 

[GTP]

It's way cheaper for a mass manufacturer to follow this practice and sell the item to "all comers"

This ^^
90% of PC hardware comes out of Foxconn and has for several years now. Don't be surprised to know they probably made all these NVMe's!

BTW, I wouldn't call "Lexar" a no-name brand. The others, sure, but not Lexar.

Agreed!
"Lexar" a no-name? I don't think so.

Also, TWSC is "Taiwan Semiconductor Corporation," and they are also a well known company in the semiconductor space.

Personally, I would have no reservations in using any of these drives.

 

[britechguy]

Also, TWSC is "Taiwan Semiconductor Corporation," and they are also a well known company in the semiconductor space.

Personally, I would have no reservations in using any of these drives.

I am so not brand loyal for RAM or SSDs because I know that, by and large, it's literally all the same. Brand stickers and specific boxes are used to market precisely the same item in many, many cases.

I am more than willing to "roll the dice" as a result, and I have yet to be burned, even slightly, by having elected to take this approach.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

We stick with Crucial when we can.
They make their own memory in the USA....many models of their SSDs are also made in USA, and others in Mexico.
They've been very reliable for us/our clients.

Since I'm a gear head and my father started teaching me to wrench on cars when I was around 10...and always wrenched all my cars since then, and boats, and restored Harley motorcycles....there are differences in car parts also. Oil filters for example.....I could type pages about the differences in them, quality, durability, where made (not all made in the same overseas factories), same with many car parts. While yes...cheap chain stores like auto zone, pep junk boys, etc...sell cheap china made stuff, for those who prefer quality...plenty of domestic, or at least made in Mexico or Canada parts. For example, my preferred oil filter is WIX. Better quality components, steel mesh backed scaffolding to support the filter element, steel spring instead of plastic for the bypass, special type of rubber for the sealing gasket...to name a few things. But they were recently bought up by Mann & Hummel....as well as Pulolator filters...which is another quality brand that stood above most other "cheap" brands (including some that many people think are good...but aren't).

 

[GTP]

I am so not brand loyal for RAM or SSDs because I know that, by and large, it's literally all the same. Brand stickers and specific boxes are used to market precisely the same item in many, many cases.

I am more than willing to "roll the dice" as a result, and I have yet to be burned, even slightly, by having elected to take this approach.

As am I not "brand loyal."
The only SSD/NVMe I ever had fail was an OCZ Toshiba SSD 240GB. I bought a batch of 10 at the time and
It was replaced by the supplier with and identical drive that I deployed without issue.
AFAIA they are all still working.

I've deployed many different brands including SUNtek, WD/Sandisk, PNY, HP, (FX 2TB, which I used in my new PC build a couple of weeks ago), Intel, Samsung, Adata, MSI, Gigabyte, Crucial, Corsair, Patriot, DGS, Team Group, Macron, Startek, and many others brands without any issues.

If one could follow their lineages I'm sure they would all come from the same factory - Foxconn!