help buying a new hard drive - from where? what brands? etc

[theRealMacoy]

hello fellow posters,

i would appreciate as much advice as possible as i know very little about hardware.

i am interested in buying a new hard drive for my computer.

i want approx. a 160gb internal hard drive (this isn't set in stone but i guess i want to spend approx $100).

i live in canada but have a friend in washington state so i could buy online (even from US sellers) and send it to them.


1-what brands are solid?
2-what specs are important?
3a-from where can i get the best/most reliable deal?
b-is it safe to buy online (it seems cheaper)? what happens if it breaks?

cheers and thanks
sean -the real macoy


i found this great radified guide for partitioning if anyone is interested... partition stategies