RCA DRC8030n HDD Questions

[KZRide]

I need to replace the HDD in my RCA DRC8030n. My experience in is computer service so I feel pretty confident about the upgrade but I haven't found answers to the following questions:
1) What is the maximum size HDD that this unit will support? RCA tech support says 80Gb but references on this site indicate it will take at least 160Gb which, if it is similar to computers, should make even larger drives an option. If I am going to replace this at all, I want the biggest workable drive I can get.
2) Will any standard IDE drive work? I'm presuming a SATA drive will not because of experiences working with computer upgrades and the hardware incompatibility frequently run into.
3) And related to that is it limited to 5400 rpm or will 7200 rpm work? This is more just a matter of curiosity.
4) Finally, it is my understanding from reading other threads that simply installing the HDD and powering up the unit will automatically format it correctly. Is this correct?

Any help is appreciated.

Don

[jman98]

I am not an expert, but the experts haven't replied yet.

Here's a couple of links:
http://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/showthread.php/rca-drc8030n-formatting-1846.html?
http://www.fixya.com/support/t1718631-larger_hard_drive_in_drc8030n

1) Guy in the 2nd link says he used 500 GB.
2) I would think that you would have to use IDE, but you'll need to open up the recorder to see what it uses.
3) Unless something weird is going on, faster is generally better but it generates more heat. That's why they use 5400 rpm. And 5400 rpm may be a little cheaper.
4) Don't know.