Quantum-Maxtor new vs refurb

[Jeff]

A couple weeks ago I decided to buy a second Quantum Atlas 10K II 18 GB drive since the first one has been great. I looked on pricewatch and found the low in-stock price was from MegaHaus at $255. When it came a week ago it was not recognized at all, and the amber fault light was blinking continuously, so I called the store and they said they were out of stock. So I called Quantum and while their tech said they would replace it with a new drive since I had only had it for 3 hours, their RMA department said that it would be a refurb drive. They went on to say that they were skeptical that the store would have new drives since 'they had not been made for a while'. I told Quantum to cancel the RMA, but they sent a refurb drive anyway which I now have to send back to them (no refurb sticker - apparently there is no way to visually tell a new from a refurb, but they confirmed on the phone that it is a refurb) . The store has pushed their ship date for my new drive RMA with them back another week now. I don't think I should accept a refurb drive, because my idea is that while the one part which is broken is replaced, the rest still have the wear and tear from potentially years of continuous use, plus all the potential damage from ups, install, uninstall, ups back, etc, and so even if it passes all the checks, my idea is that a refurb drive is probably more likely to fail sooner than a brand new drive.

Anyone know when the Atlas 10K III's will actually be released? If all I can get is a refurb 10K II, I may be best off just to wait...