The key features of this drive are:

• The drive can be formatted to storage capacity of 10.2 GB (1 disk, 2 heads), 15.0 GB (2 disks, 3 heads), 20.5 GB (2 disks, 4 heads) and 30.0 GB (3 disks, 6 heads).
• Low profile only 1 inch in height.
• 7200 RPM third generation performance.
• 3 1/2 inch form factor
• Emulation of IBM PC ATY task file register and all AT fixed disk commands.
• Windows NT and 9x certification for best performance.
• Average seek time is 8.5 ms
• Average rotational latency of 4.17 ms.
• New Ultra ATA interface with Quantum patented Ultra ATA /66 protocol supporting burst data transfer rates of 66 MB/s.
• 2 MB buffer with 1.9 MB Advance Cache Management.
• Auto Task Register update, multi-lock AutoRead, Multi Block Auto Write features.
• Quad burst ECC and double burst Edd on the fly
• Support for all standard ATA data transfer modes with PIO mode 4 and multiword DMA mode 2, Ultra DMS modes 1, 2, 3, and 4.
• 625,000 hours mean time between failure in the field
• Auto retry on read errors
• 288-bit interleaved Reed-Solomon Error Correcting Code, with cross checking.
• SMART 4 (Self-Monitoring Analysis and Reporting Technology)
• Patented Airlock automatic shipping lock, magnetic actuator retract and dedicated landing zone.
• Transpaent media defect mapping
• High performance, in line defective sector skipping
• Reassignment of defective sectors discovered in the field, without reformatting
• Shock Protection System to reduce handling induced failures.
• Data Protection System to verify drive integrity
• Power saving modes
• Downloadable firmware
• Cable select feature
• Ability to daisy-chain two drives on the interface.

What does all this mean to average user, usually nothing. What does say is that this is a very reliable hard working hard drive. It is fast and easy to setup. It corrects errors and helps the user know the data and programs that are loaded will be able to be accessed in a very timely fashion.

Something else the end user needs to be aware of is the limitations of the operating system they are running. For the most part this drive will work with all popular systems. If you use Win 95 or DOS, then you have a limit of how much you can do with partitions. That is you can only use 2.1 GB partitions in 16 bit, while in FAT 32 you can use 2.2 Terrabytes in partitions. You will need to know your machine and what the limitations. If you have newer machine you have no problems, but those of you with older machines, need to know if you are using FAT or FAT 32. This is limitation is only due to your BIOS limitation. You should check with the manufacturer to see if there is an update for your BIOS if you find you cannot use this. Most likely you will be able to use this with no problem if you have Windows 98 Second Edition or Windows 2000.

Overall, this drive was a breeze to add to my existing system and works like a charm. In fact, it is very quiet and handles all the functions. Of course, I do have another Quantum drive that it works with. You will need to make sure you know what kind of hard drive you all ready have and you might want to check to see if it can work with the Quantum. So far I have not a found a hard that will not work with a Quantum, but each drive is different and it also depends on your system.

As for pricing on this drive is $399 for the 30.0 GB.

You can contact you local computer stores for this new drive or go to Quantuam's website for more information. The website address: http://www.quantum.com and point to Fireball Plus LM.

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