->My current favorite is the Western Digital with the 8 MEG buffer. Mine ->runs like a charm, and it's certainly a lot cooler than the Maxrots I ->have. Fast, quiet, reliable. It's never a bad idea to shell out the extra ->$15 or so for a hard drive cooler though.... -> While I agree I'd also like to add the new Seagates (ATA IV) are also very good. It has nifty liquid bearings and is the quietest harddrive I've ever owned. For preformance I'd go with the Western Digital Special Editions (aka 8mb buffer) and the other advantage is that the Special Edition drives have a 3 year warranty rather than the 1 year warranty offered by the other drive manufacturers.
The Seagate (ATA IV) drive has the advantage of price as according to NCIX.com it currently runs for $149 for 80GB and $119 for 40GB while the Western Digital Special Edition drives run for $163.85 for 80GB and $122 for the the 40 GB.
IMHO the extra $20 is well worth it.
Other than that I'm happy with both.