Hi, I am looking into getting a laptop (never bought one before) and am doing some research.  So far I have decided on the Pentiumn M series (no celeron).  I know I want to get either 15 or the 17" screens.  The intent of the laptop is more or less business use, i.e. browse the web, maybe watch a movie, have multiple programs open such as Excel, Word, Photoshop, etc.  I think I am going to stick with 512 megs of RAM.  I am also willing to buy top of the line screen and heard that Sony has among the best...
 
What brand should I look into?  So far I gathered that Sony and Toshiba are the best... Dell is debatable (I've heard good and bad stuff about them) what else should I consider?  I refuse to buy Gateway and Compaq (although I heard HP bought Compaq?)  I don't know jack about IBMs.  Thoughts?  Thanks.

For those uses, you won't need top of the line specs.
But if you WANT it, go to ASUS. Their prices are cheaper than Sony and offer really good specs. I think you should check it out yourself.

I think Dell notebooks have the best price/performance/quality/warranty ratio.
If money is not concerned, IBM notebooks are the Cadilac's.
 
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IBM has the best notebook for buisness use no question about it.  That is only if your pocket book is big enough though.  My T42 is smaller, lighter, more durable, and lasts longer (battery) than any other notebook I have seen to date.
Next best for buisness use would be a contest between the new HP pavillion notebooks and the new Dell Latitude notebooks.  I'd lean a little more towards the HPs because of the much smaller form factor.
 
<A HREF="http://www.folken.net/myrig.htm" target="_new">My precious...</A>

Wow, kinda surprised by some of the answers on this post.  I'm a avid gamer and have done tons of research in buying gaming laptops.  IBM is definetly out.  I would break it down like this.  If weight and bulkiness is not issue, then alienware and voodooPC for gaming laptop.  If your into lightweight and sleek look, then sony viao.  The LCD on sony's x-bright technology has no comparison.  Since visuals are such an important part of gaming, I don't see the point in getting a dell laptop with high end vid card to display it on a lousy dull screen.  I do LAN gaming frequently and have been able to compare my Viao with some other laptops (dell, IBM, alienware) and the LCD is definitely superior.  Only problem with sony is that you pay a hefty price for upgrades (i.e RAM, vid card, etc.) and delivery often gets delayed for weeks since they aren't as accustomed to custom rigs.  But, in the end, for a laptop that only weighs 3.5 pounds and shows the best LCD in town, I think the sony viao is a must for gamers who want portability.

Hi all, thanks for the response.  Yeah, that's what I gathered too, that Sony has the best screen available BUT they also overcharge (the price that is).  
 
One thing of concern though, the new Dells support much higher resolution, like what, 1920 x something while the Sonys (like most other laptops) are still stuck at 1280 x something.  Should this be of consideration?  All these WXGA, SXGA, QXIDA acronyms are confusing.  Thanks.

About the resolution, make sure your comparing apples to apples.  Most 17" LCD on the market have resolutions upto 1900 but 15" and lower rarely do (think about it, screen is smaller so the "effective" resolution is great at 1280).  The VIAO I have is the S series which has a 15" widescreen LCD which looks great with 1280 resolution.  At that size, there's really no point to having higher resolution (it would only slow down processing time for miniscule improvement in visuals).

I believe the standard is/was this:
XGA - 1024x768
SXGA - 1280x1024
UXGA - 1600x1200
 
With all the crazy screen sizes out today though there are LOTS of variations on that.  I've seen lots of cases of SXGA being 1400x1050.  I know for a fact the dell SXGA is that.
 
<A HREF="http://www.folken.net/myrig.htm" target="_new">My precious...</A>

No, dell are quite right - they call there 1400x1050 display an SXGA+ (although the slip up sometimes)...
 
1024x 768 - XGA
1280x 800 - WXGA
1280x1024 - SXGA
1400x1050 - SXGA+
1680x1050 - WSXGA (+)
1600x1200 - UXGA
1920x1200 - WUXGA
2048x1536 - QXGA
 
and those are pretty much the resolutions available.
 
RaPTuRe
 
Who's General Failure and why's he reading my disk?

Prostar and Sager notebooks might be other brands to look at.
 
the mobile computing forums at hardocp.com and anandtech.com are also good places to ask your question.

Hey IronHell
 
I just bought a laptop in the begining of march and I saved at least 300 dollars when I meaured the specs with comparable brands.  I have heard no one mention this company, but you might want to consider the Acer 4500 travelmate (which is the one I own) or any Acer laptop.  I pretty much run the same applications as you're looking to run on yours.  And its got all the specs you're looking for.  Plus the added wifi capabilites are nice.  Sometimes its better to go with smaller companies b/c you may luck out and save a couple hundred bucks.  
 
MSI 865PE Neo2-P mobo
Asus ASUS V9280S 128MB video
P4 2.66GHz (533 FSB)
PC2700 Kingston HyperX 512MB
Sparkle PSU 300W
80GB Western Digital HDD 7200rpm
 
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Thanks for the advice of looking into smaller companies.
 
I guess I went with the assumption that bigger names such as SONY have the best screen available, is this true?  To me, the qualify of the display have to be top notch and is one of the top things I look for in a laptop.  How is the quality of the Acer display?  I've seen some really crappy displays on some cheapo Dells and told myself to never ever get one w/ a crappy display.  Thanks again.

I just re-read your initial post and I failed to see that you were looking for a quality display.  The Acer display on my laptop is pretty good, I've seen better but then again, my model isn't top of the line.  Sony is probably your best bet or Fujitsu if money is really not an option.  But definitely continue to check with smaller companies if you feel like putting in the time.  You may not have to spend top dollar, but then again, I am a cheap basturd lol.  Good luck with the search.
 
MSI 865PE Neo2-P mobo
Asus ASUS V9280S 128MB video
P4 2.66GHz (533 FSB)
PC2700 Kingston HyperX 512MB
Sparkle PSU 300W
80GB Western Digital HDD 7200rpm
 
<font color=red>Urban Geek </font color=red>