@ZeeGee - Ouch! I always thought of Seagate drives as good ones too! That really doesn't seem right that a refurbished drive replaced a new one. I'm sure all businesses try to cut corners as much as possible, and that might be the standard policy any more. Yeah, the bottom line with all computers is generally a daily/nightly backup.
I went looking at a lot of reviews and comments. Many didn't like Seagate and much preferred Western Digital. WD My passport seems to be a good deal.
http://nymag.com/strategist/article/best-external-hard-drives-reviews-amazon.html
I also read that leaving them plugged into your computer cuts way down on their longevity. So, you just plug in as needed.