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If the difference between the 2 MB buffer and 8 MB buffer is only $8, I would get the 8 MB version.
Buffers anywhere store small pieces of information for quicker access. Accessing memory takes nanoseconds. Accessing the HD by physically spinning the platters and moving the head takes milliseconds. If you can cut down on the number of physical reads, you can speed things up a great deal.
The buffer simply stores information from the HD that you have used recently and will likely use again. That way, when the processor requests data in the buffer, it will come from the memory (fast) instead of the drive itself (slow).
Obviously, the bigger the buffer size, the more it can store and the more likely a data request will result in a "hit" (the data already being in the buffer).
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Linear Mode
