Installing Maxtor One Touch III - Driver issue?

[tattoosydney]

I'm running a Toshiba laptop on XP with a Matshita DVD drive. My hard drive was almost full, so I bought a Maxtor One Touch III 300GB with both Firewire and USB 2.0 capability, which I am trying to install.  
 
The software appears to have installed properly from the CD, but when I go to the next stage of plugging the drive in to one of my USB ports (I don't have firewire), it finds the USB hardware, the "Found New Hardware" window comes up, I click on "Install Hardware Automatically", the wizard churns away for a while, then says "The hardware was not installed because the wizard cannot find the necessary software."
 
I have tried uninstalling everything and reinstalling. I have tried directing the wizard to the Drivers folder on the install CD. I tried copying the USB Drivers folder from the install CD on to my laptop and then directing the wizard to that. I've turned the laptop off and done all of these things again. I've searched the internet to see if I can download the driver from somewhere and couldn't find anything.  
 
I'm no tech, but I've been using computers for years and know my way around most stuff. It's plugged in right, turned on, and I have all the right bits. I've searched this forum and other web sites (although perhaps not very efficiently as it's 2am and my brain hurts), but all the Maxtor and hard drive install related problems seem to be a few steps further down the install process from where I am...  
 
Every review I read of the One Touch talked about how easy it was, and how you just plugged it in and it recognised the drive. This makes me think I am either doing something stupid, not seeing something obvious, or there is something wrong.  
 
Can anyone help, please?  

[panboy]

Try it on a Different Computer

If it wont work , it may well be broken
Get a Replacement

But before that Check for the Driver on the Maxtor site

[tattoosydney]

Thanks for your advice.

I spoke to Maxtor helpdesk, who were very helpful, and confirmed it should plug and play. I took it and plugged it into a different computer. It didn't play. I took it back to the shop I bought it. They plugged it in and said "well, that doesn't work", and replaced it.

The new one works fine, so it was all easy.

[panboy]

most shop's wont give you hassle for out of box failures, except Dixon's, but then you demand consumer rights, get a cop if you have to and then they'll give you a full refund ^.^