Good deal?

[alomar111]

http://www.hsn.com/cnt/prod/default....earch&oCm=seis

I am going off to college in less than a year and I need a laptop. This looks like a great laptop for the price. Anyone willing to offer up a better option or second my statement?

Thanks in advance.

[Jaggannath]

What are you wanting to use it for?? Just word processing and web trawling, or is there some form of gaming you also want to do??

[thefultonhow]

That actually looks like it's a little on the expensive side after you factor in the Dell deals you can get. I also would not get a P4 laptop -- the Pentium-M is a much better option.

[alomar111]

I don't plan to do much gaming. More mp3 stuff and surfing.

Could anyone recommend a site with a better laptop at around the same price?

[thefultonhow]

Originally Posted by alomar111 I don't plan to do much gaming. More mp3 stuff and surfing. Could anyone recommend a site with a better laptop at around the same price?

If you are buying now, take a look at this page:

http://www1.us.dell.com/content/prod...Pbv60038155069

Dell Business has some deals right now that make their laptops attractive. If I were you, I'd choose either the Inspiron 630m or the Inspiron 6000 with integrated graphics (the one on the right). Those will give you the most bang for your buck.

You want the Pentium-M version and not the Celeron-M version if you get the 6000, so choose the middle config. You can get away with the base processor, 512 MB of RAM, and a 60 GB hard drive on either and they will do what you need them to, but you have room in your budget to upgrade if you'd like to. Remember to select the free DVD burner upgrade.

I recommend that you choose the three-year Business Mobility plan as the warranty on the second page. This will give you three years of warranty and accidental-damage protection. To me this is the most important option on a laptop for non-performance-oriented users. I recommended the same thing for my mom and for my cousin in law school.