Novice requires help and advice with laptop spec!

[nvening]

I really like the new Dell XPS Studio line, its designed to offer multimedia/ high power with high build quality.

This comes in at £1308.99

Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor P8600 (2.40Ghz, 3MB, 1066MHz)
Microsoft Operating System:
Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium SP1 - English
Enhanced Service Packs:
1Yr XPS Premium Warranty Support - Priority Call In and Onsite Support
LCD:
16" (inch) Truelife 1080p Full HD RGBLED Edge to Edge Display
Memory:
4096MB 1067MHz Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM [2x2048]
Hard Drive:
500GB Serial ATA (5400RPM) Hard Drive
Video Card:
512MB ATI® Radeon™ HD 3670 graphics card
Optical Devices:
Internal DVD+/-RW (DVD & CD read and write) Slot Load Drive including Software
Primary Battery:
Primary 6-cell 56 WHr Lithium Ion battery and Additional 9-cell 85Whr Lithium Ion battery

EDIT - £50 less will give you the 320GB 7,200RPM HDD which will be better choice for performance

[strike-down]

I do agree with nvening actually, you said you were after something unique with good performance, and that ticks those boxes. However if you want to watch HD movies on it, I'd suggest upgrading to the blu-ray drive (cant remember what the cost of that is off hand though).

[ieatwork]

Ok, so here are my options. Price descending (Ex VAT):

New MacBook Pro (17" 1680 x 1050, Core 2 Duo 2.66 Ghz, 4GB DDR3 RAM, 320GB SATA, GeForce 9400M + 9600M GT, DVD R/RW) £1675 (Ex VAT)

New MacBook Pro (15" 1440 x 900, Core 2 Duo 2.80 Ghz, 4GB DDR3 RAM, 320GB SATA, GeForce 9400M + 9600M GT, DVD R/RW) £1620 (Ex VAT)

Enigma (15" 1440 X 900, Core 2 Extreme X9100 3.06 GHz, 4GB XMS2 RAM, 120GB SSD, GeForce 9600M GT, DVD R/RW) £1447 (Ex VAT)

Sony Vaio VGN-AW11Z/B (18" 1920 x 1080, Core 2 Duo T9400 2.53 GHz, 4GB DDR2 RAM, 640GB SATA, GeForce 9600M GT, Blu-Ray R/RW & DVD R/RW) £1137 (Ex VAT)

What I want to know is which one would you go for?

I will be using it for designing websites and brochures, some web development, general web browsing, watching DVDs and listening to music.

Although the 17" Macbook is the most expensive, I am tempted to go for it, the only thing stopping me is the potential heat issues as I know Macbooks, and especially the Pros, can be prone to heating up A LOT!

What do you think?

Any of your views appreciated.

[strike-down]

Just one question, if it is just those things you're doing, why do you need to spend such a vast amount on it? A much cheaper laptop would do those jobs with ease + more. I would only spend that amount of money on a laptop if gaming was my main concern (even then, I'd spend less).

In answer to your question, Id go for the vaio as its the cheapest one, and you arent really gonna notice any difference in performance between those laptops for what you want to do.

[ieatwork]

I think going for the Sony Vaio is probably the best option, and with the money I save from not getting the MacBook Pro, I could get myself a Canon Digital SLR.