Laptop purchase advice

I think my power supply may be the only thing that's wrong with my current system... however I've been thinking about getting a new computer anyway since I kind of want a laptop. The problem is that I know very little about computers these days, so I was hoping for some general purchasing advice.

Ideally I'd like to have a laptop that would be capable of the following:

• playing 1080p video
• streaming 1080p video to an Xbox 360 on a network
• portable
  (
• decent battery life
• able to plug into my 24 inch Dell LCD when I use it at home

I've been eyeing the Dell Studio XPS 13 because I'm pretty sure that it would meet those requirements, but I just wanted to double check/get suggestions for alternatives.

Thx.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Most modern laptops without integrated graphics will be able to do that.

Two things:

1) I would consider whether or not you really need a laptop. Higher end laptops are prohibitively expensive. Even if you really need a laptop, you could possibly get a desktop and netbook for the price of a laptop that is not as functional as either of those things. ussually desktop replacements are huge, so a netbook wins in portability, and these desktop replacements rarely beat the performance of a real desktop, especially one that you build yourself.

2) make sure you do some research on the build-quality of the laptop. two different laptops may have the same specs, but build quality can set them apart. My current laptop is an acer that gets so hot it has killed a harddrive and a stick of ram. it has gotten so bad that I cannot play a game on it without the processor speed jumping to 100C (I checked it with speed fan) and the the computer shutting off automatically. You could fry an egg in its touchpad. Even if its an extra couple of hundred, it is worth paying for build quality since it improves what you are getting the laptop for -- using it.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Should I go the desktop/netbook route, what would you recommend as desktop specs? Which netbook would you recommend?

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

I don't think I'd agree with the thought that a desktop + netbook are going to be cheaper than a laptop. You could go with either an HP Pavillion with an 8400m/gs or a Dell XPS-M1330 with the same card, and neither of those options are really going to break the bank. As long as you're not looking for some beast to play games at high settings, then you can get 1080p HDMI output and reasonable performance for a competitive price.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

The dell with 8400 GMS is 1049. That is a lot of money for something that can barely play any recent games. Now, with 700 dollars you can build a very decent computer with a core 216 that can play any game out now (and many future ones) MAXED OUT. 349 is way more than enough for a decent netbook.

of course, this is only important if you plan to play games on your laptop. If not, then any laptop without integrated graphics will probably do.

How ya doing, buddy?