My experiences, here we go---
Till now used 6 Seagates (4 Patas n 2 Satas) n no probs at all. At times used some of them very badly but still superb on performance. +Really Strong built PCB, can withstand power-shorts, trips etc. Draws less power. As for RMA, never faced any issue till date so've no xperience. Temps of 250gb r too hot.
Used 160gb sata Hitachi Sata, died in between unknowingly (was out of warranty), but it runs super cool n no noise! Less power consume.
Using 80gb Samsung Sata n 40gb Pata , temps r cool. Bt 40gb went bad suddenly, no bad sectors bt some partitions created not geting accessed. N yesterday only my 80gb Samsung's pcb went bad.(my mistake though). +Delicate PCB, cant withstand power-shorts, trips, molex fluctuations. Samsung=Very DELICATE! + Power hungry. Battles with other devices attached to adjoining Molex.
Using Maxtor 250GB Sata n 160S ata N 40 Pata, performance n temps similar to Seagate. Eats more power bt less than Samsung.
Using WD 180 Pata, runs cool n ok. Less power consume.
I will say, u've good xperiences with Seagate, so stick with it. Else opt for WD. But no to samsung.
