Whenever people ask me what they should buy (desktop or laptop) I always suggest making a 3 part list. On it, put down what you need it to do, what you'd like it to do and what you might want it to do in the future. With a desktop, the last one isn't as important because they are so easy to upgrade. For a laptop, it becomes a little more important. Use that list when shopping for your laptop. Right off the bat, get the largest HD you can afford. If your wife will be doing anything of a graphic nature then get the most memory and fastest processor you can. Go with an active matrix screen (TFT variant), your eyes will thank you later. If you're shopping over the internet, go to a local store before buying and try it out. That's a must if just to see if you like the size/design and definitely (sp?) try out the keyboard. Search for reviews on the internet to see if there are any problems with the model you are looking at. Check battery life and type. Worst thing in the world is a really cool laptop with a battery life of 60 minutes. And finally, don't get pulled in by the gee-whiz factor. That means, don't get sucked into buying a laptop with 15" screen, 2.5GHz processor, 2gigs RAM and built in subwoofer if all you're going to do is use MS Office and surf the internet on it. That goes the other way too. If you need to spend a couple hundred more for a feature that you don't need, but really want then do it. Helps keep the "I shoulda" thoughts from popping up after you guy. Final note, once you do buy...stop looking at laptops. You will invariably, this is without fail, find a system that is cheaper with the same/more features or in some way better if keep looking. It doesn't matter when you buy, this is a universal constant. -=>Donald