This is a really long thread and to be honest I didn't read everyones input, but my suggestion is this: When I went through college I did just fine with a PC and not a laptop. Laptops are overpriced, and underperformers. I just bought a new comp a couple weeks ago for 1050$ and built it myself. I am the furthest thing from a computer whiz, but if you can read, you too can build a computer. I ordered all my parts through newegg.com and the comp is smoking fast. I have a quad core processor rated at 2.4 ghz, but it is overclocked to 3.0ghz running at super low temperatures and extremely stable on a gigabyte motherboard. I have overclocked it to 3.4 ghz with no problem. 4 cores at this speed is ludicrous though. I got a ATI Radeon 3850 HD and it runs all the newest games at full res flawlessly, and it hasn't even been overclocked. I have 2 gigs of ram at 1066Mhz, and a 500Gb SATA2 HD. I really don't like Dell... I was going to order from them but their options are way too limited and you end up paying way too much for useless options. Also, IMO Windows Vista (which is standard with most dell configs) is absolutely useless. Its the windows 2000 equivalent, which no one uses.
Anyway, I would order a comp off of newegg and build it yourself. If you need an OS and MSOffice I can hook u up with corporate copies (which u can legally have hundreds of copies of). My comp is super fast, super quiet, and everything came to my doorstop in under 3 days. I have all the software you could ever need, and the ram (which is 2 GB under your config) will outperform the 4 GB of 667 in that laptop. With the money you save on this config, you can even get a 24" sweet *** monitor as well, or just a normal-sized LCD for school work. Either way, I would strongly advise against a laptop, unless you want to be one of those Starbucks laptop users lol
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Again, I did not read all the posts, I just threw in my 2 cents... If you want a laptop then you are limited in your options. If not, I would go through Newegg, as they have some of the best customer service and return options/warranties there are. I couldn't be happier with my comp configuration, and there is plenty of room for upgrades too (like running crossfire gfx cards).
Daniel