Been using a Maxtor 80GB 2MB PATA for slightly less than a year. No problems for now, although I'm still cautious of the problems that may come. At 1st, I was so damn skeptical and reluctant to buy it, but considering that I needed it badly, the price was just right and since it's very difficult to get Seagate here, I just had to do it. The only thing that moved me was the fact (or is it?) that Maxtor bought over Quantum, and that reason alone was why I got a HDD with a potential timebomb attached. I pray to the high heavens that nothing'll happen within another year...

When I got my Maxtor, the salesperson emphasised only one rule when buying HDDs:

Made In Singapore only. I'm starting to think that he may be right.

I second that. The last time I checked, Hitachi is the official storage provider for Alienware systems, so that alone speaks of it's edge over other manufacturers. I'd get a Hitachi HDD on 1st sight, no kidding.