Which Laptop Should I Buy?

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MiramarMike.co.nz is very nearly wired up with equipment and needs one last thing - the laptop. And for those that have given advice, thanks and please bear with me just a little longer :-)

Everyone tells me to get an Apple MacBook Pro but it's a darned expensive beastie. Having said that I am willing to pay a little premium for the ease of use over and above Windows Vista and Ubuntu.

Also I have a mate currently traveling the US who's willing to pick up a laptop over there but I'm sure how much cheaper they actually are.

And so, three questions I'd love some help with:
  1. Should I go for an Apple MacBook Pro no matter what (and why?)
  2. Should I get my mate to buy the laptop (any make) in the US?
  3. If not buy in US where in NZ/Wellington would you recommend?

What do you think - leave a comment (over at my work posting)


My calcs. You can edit this spreadsheet with more options at: http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pmxKow-YfvkpQWjvBfAcpVw

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