>The few hundred is, if your HDD's controler / head is damaged and a professional goes to work :)

True enough.

I've been fortunate that I've never had a major loss of data without a backup.

Only real problem (knock on wood ) that I've ever had....from 2004 to 2007 I had 3 Toshiba laptops where the motherboard fried after about 15-18 months.

Once was on a client trip...laptop died on a Monday during a week long trip. I had to drive 50 miles that night to the nearest Best Buy to get a new laptop.

In 2007 I switched to HP (though I've owned some Asus machines as well). I've had an HP Desktop, an HP laptop, and now an HP 2-1 Spectre. Some of my developer friends have brutally chastised me for buying HP - they feel HP is low quality. Well, I beat and abuse the living hell out of my machines - and I have not had a single problem with HPs. Go figure.