UK-based data hoarder saves thousands by flying to buy 28TB Seagate drives in the US

Amid rising RAM prices and a surge in data center demand, hard drive prices have followed suit. The price of hard drives in the UK, in particular, has climbed so high that one data hoarder decided it was cheaper to fly across the Atlantic to buy them in the U.S.

A Reddit user known as u/cgtechuk shared his story on the r/DataHoarder subreddit. In the post, he detailed that he checked the prices for 28TB Seagate Expansion Desktop external hard drives in the UK, and they kept climbing over the weeks.

After watching prices climb through the holidays, the Redditor ordered 10 28TB hard drives in the U.S., packed his bags for a quick trip after New Year’s, and picked them up in person.

Best Buy and B&H Photo set a customer limit of five drives per store, so he decided to split the order across the two stores in New York. Once his purchases were confirmed, he flew from London and checked into a hotel near JFK.

A scalp-worthy opportunity

So, why did he go through the hassle of traveling to the U.S. to pick up ten 28TB hard drives? The reason lies in the price gap of hard drives in the U.S. and the U.K. The Seagate 28TB Desktop Expansion drive hovers around $350–$390.

Back home in the UK, the same hard drive lists for £500–£560 at major retailers and online stores like Amazon, which roughly converts to around $720. Doing the approximate math, that accounts for savings of around $330 to $370 per drive. For just ten units, that adds up to around $3,300 in savings before factoring in travel costs.

A basic round-trip flight from London Heathrow to JFK can be booked for under $700, and a cheap hotel with basic amenities costs about $200–$300 for four days. Factoring in a few hundred dollars for food and transportation, that still leaves the Redditor with savings of more than $2,000.

However, the Redditor used points to cover his flight and hotel, saving him roughly $700. Having heard numerous horror stories about swapped drives, he took the time to patiently document every drive with its serial number, test them with CrystalDiskInfo and SeaTools, and perform file transfers to check for any tampered or faulty units.

The only remaining hurdle was logistics. He packed ten hard drives with their protective foam into his carry-on luggage and kept the outer boxes and power adapters in a suitcase.

While this feat shaved upwards of $3,000 off hard drive expenses and is a win for the Redditor, it only highlights a problem that has been worsening for months. Hard drive prices for high-capacity units have increased by an average of 46% compared to the same period in 2025.

While SSDs are faster, they’re far more expensive per terabyte, so data hoarders and hyperscalers have stepped back to traditional hard drives.

To make matters even more appalling, Western Digital has reportedly sold out its entire 2026 production line, with some buyers having locked in supplies that stretch into 2027 and 2028.

Buy the Seagate IronWolf Pro 28TB Enterprise SSD on Amazon here