Laptops have to make compromises, because of energy, heat, and space considerations. I've found laptops tend to be less robust and more expensive than an equivalently priced desktop PC. Another consideration is a laptop is more prone to being damaged or stolen. If space is a consideration, you might want to consider a "cube" PC or a small-form factor PC. http://www.tomshardware.com/howto/20050105/microatx-cases-02.html For you nerds out there, Tom's Hardware had an interesting article about the Pentium M CPU, used primarily in laptops: "Dothan Over Netburst: Is The Pentium 4 A Dead End?" http://www.tomshardware.com/cpu/20050525/index.html