Is it going to be your only computer, or do you have a desktop as well? Because if you do have a desktop you could get a DVD burner for that for about $200, as well as various other bells and whistles at a comparable price, things that make a laptop a lot more expensive. So if you have a desktop setup to upgrade, and you only use the laptop for writing, get the smallest and lightest model that you can. 12" is perfectly fine for writing (unlike say graphics work). Also it needs practically no memory. In fact you should be able to get a light, robust writing laptop for $400 - $500 from a swapmeet, or www.comtrader.com.au Now on the other hand if the laptop is your only computer, and besides writing you are going to use it for watching DVDs, and maybe playing games as well, you need a better laptop than the ones you are looking at - a bigger hard drive than 40gig, and 256MB RAM is really quite slow. Also, I just noticed, but the Dell that you're looking at has no DVD burner, just a DVD player and CD burner.
Okay, so in conclusion: if you can, upgrade your desktop, with a DVD burner, extra memory, better video cards, etc. This should only be about $500 - $800, depending on the kind of stuff you want. AND get a small, light, robust laptop with very little memory, not very fast, with no bells and whistles, because for writing it'll serve perfectly. Macs are very robust, other than that IBMs are very, very good quality. Or if the laptop is going to be your only computer figure out what else you're going to use it for, even if rarely, and what you need for that. But a laptop with a DVD burner, the kind of speed you need for watching DVDs, and the hardrive to store them, is going to cost you at least $2500-$3500, unless you buy a laptop with no-name parts (and really, really don't).
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So if you have a desktop setup to upgrade, and you only use the laptop for writing, get the smallest and lightest model that you can. 12" is perfectly fine for writing (unlike say graphics work). Also it needs practically no memory. In fact you should be able to get a light, robust writing laptop for $400 - $500 from a swapmeet, or www.comtrader.com.au
Now on the other hand if the laptop is your only computer, and besides writing you are going to use it for watching DVDs, and maybe playing games as well, you need a better laptop than the ones you are looking at - a bigger hard drive than 40gig, and 256MB RAM is really quite slow.
Also, I just noticed, but the Dell that you're looking at has no DVD burner, just a DVD player and CD burner.
Okay, so in conclusion: if you can, upgrade your desktop, with a DVD burner, extra memory, better video cards, etc. This should only be about $500 - $800, depending on the kind of stuff you want. AND get a small, light, robust laptop with very little memory, not very fast, with no bells and whistles, because for writing it'll serve perfectly. Macs are very robust, other than that IBMs are very, very good quality.
Or if the laptop is going to be your only computer figure out what else you're going to use it for, even if rarely, and what you need for that. But a laptop with a DVD burner, the kind of speed you need for watching DVDs, and the hardrive to store them, is going to cost you at least $2500-$3500, unless you buy a laptop with no-name parts (and really, really don't).