My drive of choise seagate. I have 200GB seagates in two of my systems and they are extremely quiet (as in can't hear them at all), relatively cool and fast enough for me. In my laptop, I'm running an IBM/Hitachi 7200RPM drive that kicks ass, but it's also pretty hot meaning I have to be careful with the laptop to make sure it's getting good airflow from underneath.
In general, I have noticed most failures coming from older IBM Deskstars, but from what I hear, they are awesome now. Maxtor is now owned and manufactured by Seagate. I used to hate Western Digitals, and I still think their bargain consumer stuff is still crap. I don't know, just don't go ultra cheap on your drive and you'll be happy. Seagate does have one of the best warantees in the business at 5 years. Not sure what the other manufacturers have. For reviews on drives, look at Toms Hardware and Anandtech
In general, I have noticed most failures coming from older IBM Deskstars, but from what I hear, they are awesome now. Maxtor is now owned and manufactured by Seagate. I used to hate Western Digitals, and I still think their bargain consumer stuff is still crap. I don't know, just don't go ultra cheap on your drive and you'll be happy. Seagate does have one of the best warantees in the business at 5 years. Not sure what the other manufacturers have. For reviews on drives, look at Toms Hardware and Anandtech