I have the same problem I did back when a 64MB drive was the hot thing - how do I know I'm buying a quality drive? Even between the same brand, one drive can b

I have the same problem I did back when a 64MB drive was the hot thing - how do I know I'm buying a quality drive? Even between the same brand, one drive can be great, the other is slower than dirt (even with USB 3), is unreliable, etc.