[pyn]

http://discussions.info.apple.com/we...7w.3@.68b5bd29

CompUSA repair guy told me since i can reach the grey apple part that means it is a software problem.... however i think it's dead. read my apple discussion thread

[seanc]

If smart status is failing, and disk utility is having problems then you're HDD is definitly dead.

[GSixZero]

CompUSA repair guy is an idiot. Almost no data is read off the disk until the grey apple, so it would be hard for software to screw that part up.

[tooki]

SMART is like Apple Hardware Test: if it says it's OK, there may still be a problem it just doesn't recognize. But if either one says there is a problem, you know for certain that there is.

Call Apple and conduct the repair by mail.

tooki