Toshiba portable 1TB HDD sticky cover surface

[cc_in_oh]

This drive has a dimpled top surface that has somehow become extremely sticky, uniformly across the top and upper half of all sides to where it joins the smooth bottom half of the case. It's kind of like what I would expect with heavy shipping tape heated/melted, then removed. I can press it against a sheet of paper and the paper soaks up some of it. It has to be some kind of flaw in the material or coating. Is this a known defect and is there any way to clean it? I'm guessing that even if I find a way to clean it, it will just go on exuding more goo...

I should mention that the drive has been in more or less full-time use (rarely actually accessed but permanently attached to powered hub) for at least a year, but so have 4 other portable drives with no problems, though those all have smooth, glossy cases.

Thanks...

 

[Boogieman_WD]

Hey there, cc_in_oh.

I've never heard of something like this before. Perhaps it might prove useful if you can post a picture of what you're talking about. Here's how to do it: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/faq/id-2176231/guide-posting-screenshot-forum.html.
Other than that you could contact the drive manufacturer's customer support, to see if the guys there can help out.

Hope that helps.
Boogieman_WD

 

[cc_in_oh]

Hey there, cc_in_oh.

I've never heard of something like this before. Perhaps it might prove useful if you can post a picture of what you're talking about. Here's how to do it: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/faq/id-2176231/guide-posting-screenshot-forum.html.
Other than that you could contact the drive manufacturer's customer support, to see if the guys there can help out.

Hope that helps.
Boogieman_WD

Thanks - the problem is so bizarre that I never really expected to receive any feedback. I tried to access the Toshiba support site but it doesn't accept either the drive's model or serial number. It's clear like shipping tape residue so I don't think a picture would help - you have to feel it to believe it. I should have also mentioned that it's a model that was available in several colors, and this one is red, which suggests to me that some coating of the plastic case is involved (and maybe the dimpling is to help the various color coatings adhere - my other Toshiba portables are basic black with smooth surfaces...)

 

[Boogieman_WD]

It's even weirder that the drive's model and S/N as well are not accepted. Isn't there an option to contact them directly via e-mail or phone support, without going through product registration?
You could contact the vendor you got the drive from as well, having in mind that the model is not recognized by the manufacturer's website.