u/James_Jack_Hoffmann

(Post got deleted from a different sub, hopefully this one sticks)

I have been tracking the WD Red Plus for the last couple of months both 10TB and 12TB here and it's been quite a wild ride. I'm meaning to get two of either to have redundancy on my data and for a slowly materialising NAS build. These drives will temporarily live on my desktop and will be unplugged when not in use.

When I started tracking the stock and prices of these drives, they started from 10TB=A$499 and 12TB=$549, with stock absolutely sporadic, so there's no secure way to get these drives unless you were to risk preordering them. Over the next few weeks, the prices jumped from 10TB=A$549, 12TB=A$649. Now, stock levels seems to not be recovering at all, and when they do, the prices jump a shit tonne. A 12TB now is $799.

I need to land a plan on storage in the following weeks given some capital ($1200-ish) as my immediate need for more space is getting perilous, the ever change bad prices isn't helping. So far, my options are:

1. 2x 8TB WD Red Plus at A$1018. Pros: I get redundancy by keeping master/slave copies. Cons: 8TB might be too small?
2. 1x 12TB WD Red Plus at A$799. Pros: I get exactly the drive I wanted, but only 1 out of 2. Cons: No redundancy plan until I have capital for a second one, next drive price might be very expensive..
3. Refurb 2x 16TB WD Ultrastar DC HC 550 at A$1299.95 from Neology. Pros: so much space + redundancy. Cons: item is refurbished, store warranty for 12 months only, noise issues.

I have been considering alternatives such as Amazon as the prices do seem a little palatable. But seeing reviews, my experience with Amazon on electronic goods, and potential issue with warranty (drives ship from US to here in Australia), I'm not inclined to go with them. At these prices, I'm even considering a brand new ultrastar since it's seems to be the saner price among all of them.

Am I at a point where on my options, the answer is just "it really depends" or "its up to you"? do any of my options spell more trouble than gain? any alternatives you recommend? Thanks heaps!