Just picked up a Maxtor 160 Gb 7200 w/8 Mb cache at Staples for $179 - $80 rebate = $99 :P
Includes an ATA133 controller card...

Last day for this is tomorrow 6/21....

WoW,

This is a really good deal ;)

I think Best Buy had a Western Digital 160MB drive with 8MB cache for about the same price...perhaps a little more. I'm thinking about $119.

And I do think that Western Digital has the current record for the fastest drive...
http://www.storagereview.com/

Check out that link for the latest benchmarks. Its a third party outfit so you can get a good honest opinon.

Nicos

The problem with Western Digitals is that 9/10 don't work. I prefer Maxtor, it even survives me hitting it, and it still goes. It's like an armored truck, only it's a hard drive.

Agreed. I am sending back my 6th one in less than a year, they either lock up or starting making one helluva clicking noise, they are all from different machines. I haven't had one Western Digital go past the warranty expiration date, which could be a good thing if you don't mind reloading once a year.

Would you be so kind, to offer us some "proof" of this ?

I have seen many brands of HD's during my time around, both private and in my job as a computer tech for the last 14 years.

One thing I know for sure, is that they ALL can go bad on you....
but when I spend my own money, or tell others to do, I say go for Western Digital.

I have only seen 1 WD turning bad, but then the SMART monitor was letting me know in time to backup all the data.

IBM, Seagate and Maxtor are NOT something I like to see, as I have had too many bad experiences, both private and at work.