New laptop

[Lithium381]

Looking for a simple laptop to carry to school, and i am looking for a 15" screen. 512mb ram is fine, a decent sized HD, no need for a great graphics card, since it'll be mostly school stuff, maybe DVDs. since i've got my main system at home. The only other requirement is wireless, but every system and their mothers have wireless these days so it's almost a moot point. recommendations ?
Update, i went to the store and saw a Sony Vaio that i really liked too, i'll spec them out here

Core duo 1.66ghz
i THINK theyr'e both 80gb
1GB Ram
15.4" Screen
Wireless
DVD burner

The dell i can get for 1,199, which includes a 4 year warranty, since i get a discount through school

the sony is 1099 without warranty(it's another $300 if i want it for four years)

the HP and the compaq i saw were speced a bit lower: less ram and only a cdburner, but were only $700 + warranty

 

[Rockinacoustic]

Go with the HP. The DV5000 runs cheaper than the Dell, so you can get a decent notebook without all of the bells and whistles for great price. They currently will double your memory to 1gb for free, and even though you don't need a graphics card, get the go 7400 for 50 bucks more as it will off-load the memory the integrated graphics will borrow. Nvidia's decoders will also make dvd playback look better. HP's service and support is great also.

 

[fbrdphreak]

dv5000 hands down. Great bang for your buck. If mobility isn't a priority, do get the NVIDIA graphics. We reviewed the AMD-based dv5000z, the chassis is the same as the dv5000t:
http://www.laptoplogic.com/reviews/detail.php?id=107

 

[postmortemIA]

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak
dv5000 hands down. Great bang for your buck. If mobility isn't a priority, do get the NVIDIA graphics. We reviewed the AMD-based dv5000z, the chassis is the same as the dv5000t:
http://www.laptoplogic.com/reviews/detail.php?id=107

is this what you are recommending?

"CONS


No discrete graphics option; no 5400RPM hard drive option above 100GB storage capacities; no 7200RPM option"

 

[fbrdphreak]

Originally posted by: postmortemIA

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak
dv5000 hands down. Great bang for your buck. If mobility isn't a priority, do get the NVIDIA graphics. We reviewed the AMD-based dv5000z, the chassis is the same as the dv5000t:
http://www.laptoplogic.com/reviews/detail.php?id=107

is this what you are recommending?

"CONS


No discrete graphics option; no 5400RPM hard drive option above 100GB storage capacities; no 7200RPM option"

I'm recommending the dv5000 notebook in general, not the specific configuration since the 5000z is relatively outdated. You can get a dv5000t configured with Core Duo T2400 1GB 80GB 5400RPM 128MB Go7400 DVDRW TV Tuner 12-cell for $1297 before $50 MIR. I call that one hell of a value

 

[Lithium381]

two votes for the HP so far eh? i just saw a vaio i really liked at the store today for about the same amount....

 

[postmortemIA]

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak

Originally posted by: postmortemIA

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak
dv5000 hands down. Great bang for your buck. If mobility isn't a priority, do get the NVIDIA graphics. We reviewed the AMD-based dv5000z, the chassis is the same as the dv5000t:
http://www.laptoplogic.com/reviews/detail.php?id=107

is this what you are recommending?

"CONS


No discrete graphics option; no 5400RPM hard drive option above 100GB storage capacities; no 7200RPM option"

I'm recommending the dv5000 notebook in general, not the specific configuration since the 5000z is relatively outdated. You can get a dv5000t configured with Core Duo T2400 1GB 80GB 5400RPM 128MB Go7400 DVDRW TV Tuner 12-cell for $1297 before $50 MIR. I call that one hell of a value

I configured core duo 1.6GHz, 1GB RAM, X1300, 60 GB 5400rpm drive, all-in one printer for $826. Dell E1505.

 

[Fireball77]

I just got a Inspirion 6400 1.6GHZ Dual Core, 1gb Ram, X1400, 60GB 7200rpm Hard Drive for $1,000. I am really happy with it.