Welcome back Christine Austria and Curvature’s Server & Storage Solutions Sales Engineer, Matt Swann, as they discuss myths about pre-owned IT hardware market in our recurring series Ask the Expert.
Myths About the Pre-Owned IT Hardware Market
Christine: Hey, welcome to another episode of Curvature’s Ask the Expert. I’m Christine Austria and today, we’re talking about myths about Pre-Owned IT Hardware with Matt Swann, Curvature’s Server & Storage Solutions Sales Engineer. Hey, Matt.
Matt: Hey, Christine, what’re we starting with today?
Christine: There’s a lot of myths surrounding pre-owned IT hardware that prevent some people from taking advantage of it. Can you share some of these myths and provide insight into why they aren’t true?
Matt: Of course. One of the common myths perpetuated is that since the hardware has previously been used, it is “old” and more likely to fail than newer gear. Interestingly, IT hardware has what is called a burn-in period, which explains that if a piece of hardware is going to fail, it is most likely going to fail in its new “infant” stage, usually as a result of manufacturing defects. Once this burn-in period is complete, components tend to function without issue for a very long time.
Christine: Isn’t this also called the “bathtub curve”?
Matt: Yeah you’re right. It is. It’s worth noting that while this burn-in period technically applies to all IT hardware, it is most noticeable on DIMMs and hard drives. Another big myth is that if you buy hardware from the pre-owned market, you won’t be able to access important software updates. While there are certain caveats to this, a majority of important firmware and BIOS updates are actually publicly available for download directly from most OEMs, so that’s also something you don’t need to worry about.
Christine: Can our customers rely on Curvature to assist them in finding these downloads?
Matt: Yeah, we’re always also happy to try to point you in the right direction. To round out the third and final myth around pre-owned hardware is that since it isn’t being purchased from the OEM, it won’t be eligible for support. While this is true in the sense that OEMs tend to not offer support on gear bought in the pre-owned market, other companies exist, such as our parent company Park Place Technologies, that specialize in third-party maintenance on pre-owned gear. Many of the engineers at Park Place used to work for the OEMs, so you’re essentially getting the same support, for a better price.
Christine: Thanks again Matt for joining us! If you have any questions for one of our experts, simply leave a comment below or contact us – and we’ll see you next time on “Ask the Expert.”
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