IMHO I would not buy a new PC or laptop until February 2007. Microsoft is on the verge of releasing Vista, it's new operating system. In the processor department I would not purchase a P4 processor. I'd lean toward a Interl Core 2 Duo. Benchmark tests on this processor are very impressive. Performace is something like 50% faster than even on the core duo. I don't have the exact numbers but that info is from a very credible source.