What Laptop Should I Buy?
SwellJoe: I just did a bunch of shopping two weeks ago, and ended up with a Dell Latitude E6500.  Maybe a bit bigger than you want (15.4" widescreen), but very light for its size (5.x lbs depending on configuration).  I got it for under $1300, very well equipped: 2.4GHz Core Duo, 4GB, 250GB 7200 RPM, LED-backed upgraded resolution display, 9 cell battery, Intel WiFi, nVidia Quadros 160 video, built-in webcam, Bluetooth, 1394, backlit keyboard, etc.  The identical specs, with half the RAM and fewer ports, in a MacBook Pro 15 was $638 more (but it had a $150 rebate from Club Mac to bring it to a theoretical $488 more, assuming the rebate actually arrives...I've had very bad luck with rebates, and pretty much always get screwed, so I simply don't count them in my buying decision any more).  It also came with a 3 year warranty at no extra cost.I also got a Dell Mini 9 to go along with it for $50 more, as part of some promotion they were, and maybe still are, running.  So, I have a tiny lappy for when I'm traveling light, and a big lappy for when I'm doing real work.  I think it's an acceptable compromise for me.  My prior lappy was a 12.1" widescreen model, and a little lighter.I'm very happy with it, so far.  Fedora 10 installed in a dual boot config without a hitch, and after installing the nVidia drivers suspend/resume began working.  With the Open Source nv driver it failed to resume, though I read that's fixed in the next kernel release.  Anyway, I opted to upgrade the WiFi to Intel to have Open Source drivers, so it worked out of the box, but the Broadcom WiFi it comes with by default is supposed to work with drivers from Dell; but they're closed source, and will always be something you have to add, which I didn't consider worth saving 30 bucks over.  Even the built-in web cam worked in Linux right off.  Since you're wanting Windows, you don't care about that, but Linux compatibility was vitally important to me, and this was the nicest new laptop experience I've ever had.The chassis is really nice and simple.  Some sort of alloy, so it feels quite sturdy.  Massive metal hinges.  Tremendous battery life with the 9 cell battery I upgraded to.  Something like 8 or 9 hours when not working it too hard, though I haven't timed it out precisely.  But, it's good enough that I don't even think about whether I have the charger with me when I take it places.It feels as solid as the higher end ThinkPads I've used, and even has a nipple mouse.  I haven't put enough time on it to know if it'll hold up like a ThinkPad, but I have an old Dell Inspiron that's over three years old and has held up well, including weathering a couple of pretty big drops.  So, I feel pretty good about its reliability.Comparing to the MacBook Pro, it is roughly the same weight (depending on configuration), roughly the same size (1" high vs. 0.95" in the Mac), and slightly less powerful on the video front (the nVidia Quadros 160 is roughly a 9300, though with lower power, and a few enhancements).  Appearance-wise the Mac looks prettier, but only by a little.  The black alloy with small silver Dell logo is very swish, and looks better in person than on the web.