Which computer should I purchase?

[KMT0622]

I am going to be graduating high school this year and attending college so my parents will be buying me the laptop of my choice to use for the next four years. For the past four years, I have owned a Dell Inspiron 600m which I have had an OK experience with. My dad loves his Dell computer and would like me to choose a Dell, but I could talk him into something else if I really want it. I definitely want a lightweight computer because I will be traveling with it too and from school fairly often. I have been considering the Dell XPS m1210 as well as the Lenovo Thinkpad Z61t, however I am open to other suggestions as well. I do not know too much about computers, and any feedback would be appreciated.
Thank You!

 

[Trotter]

What all do you want the lappy to be able to do? Just school work and surfing? Light gaming? Heavy gaming? The intended purposes will have a bearing on what you would want the lappy to have.

 

[KMT0622]

Sorry to leave that out. Just school work and surfing. I won't be doing any gaming.

 

[darksideleader]

no gaming? you won't need anything big then
Inspiron 1501 Details
that should be enough.
Better Upgrades, unessary though
Inspiron E1405 Details
Dell Home Systems Inspiron E1505

But just surfing and working, i would just get Celeron or Sempron. Too bad i don't see any there

 

[saltynay]

why do you need to replace your current laptop when it obviously surfs, and can use word?? my laptop is 4 years old all I use it for is lessons it is small, light and has wireless and sufficient hdd

 

[fastrandstrongr]

xps m1210 for sure. small, good battery-life plus you can get it configured with a dedicated graphics card.

as a college student i *highly* recommend a small laptop and something like a 22" lcd monitor to have in your room. right now i've got a 12" lappy, and a 37" lcd tv and it is the best of both worlds.

 

[motoxer4533]

ya you really don't need an XPS for what you want to do with it. An Inspiron or Latitude would do fine.

 

[Phantom118]

ya you really don't need an XPS for what you want to do with it. An Inspiron or Latitude would do fine.

Agreed.. Insprion should be fine..

 

[KMT0622]

Thanks for the responses. To respond to a few points made on here:
Keeping the computer I have now is not an option. 3 times in the past year it has developed a problem where it refuses to connect to AC power and despite being fixed by Dell, it is currently in the process of breaking again in just the same way.
Also, I have looked at the Inspirons and Latitudes but my college recommends these high end features that I would like to have on the computer I purchase, or as many as possible at least, to ensure that it will last the whole four years:
2.16 Core Duo or 2.26 Pentium M Processor
1.5- 2.0 GB Ram
80 GB HDD
CD-RW/ DVD+-RW
256 MB Discrete Video
Wireless/Bluetooth/Express Card Slot

Money is not really an object, so I would like the best computer possible to absolutely last for four years, rather than an inexpensive computer that would simply meet my basic needs.
Thanks again for the help!

 

[james henson]

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