Need a new laptop for college

1_What is your budget?

~$1200. But I can go a little more if it means I can get what I want.


2_What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?

13" or 14", preferably 13".


3_What screen resolution do you want?

Whatever. I do prefer 16:10 over 16:9 though.


4_Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?

I am looking for a balance of battery life, power, and size.


5_How much battery life do you need?

As much as possible.


6_Do you want to play games with your laptop? If so then please list the games that you want to with the settings that you want for these games. (Low,Medium or High)?

I do not plan to play games on this laptop. However, I would like to have the ability should I choose to. That being said, playing on "High" settings would not be a priority.


7_What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo / Video editing, surfing the web, playing music, watching movies, Etc.)

I do a lot of video encoding (i.e., ripping DVDs and encoding them for my iPod). That's pretty much the most strenuous thing this computer will be doing.


8_How much storage (H.D.D Capacity) do you need?

As much as possible. Preferably at least 320GB, but I'm flexible on that.


9_If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post the links to them.

Any reputable site/company.


10_How long do you want to keep your laptop?

At least until I'm through with college. So three to four years.


11_If you would like to mention some other things about purchasing your ideal laptop, post them.


12_Please tell us about the brands that you prefer to buy from them and the brands that you don't like and explain the reasons.


13_What country do you live in?

USA

Go for ASUS N81 IMO,the best 14" notebook available,great specs + great price
http://www.xoticpc.com/asus-n81vpd1-p-2609.html

My friend pointed out the HP dv3t series to me. I would appreciate some feedback on whether it's a good buy or not.

http://tinyurl.com/l49tf6

I have it upgraded to the following specs:
• Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (64-bit)
• Intel Core 2 Duo Processor P8700 (2.53 GHz, 3 MB L2 Cache, 1066MHz FSB)
• 4GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
• 500GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive
• 512MB NVIDIA GeForce G 105M
• 13.3" diagonal WXGA High-Definition HP LED BrightView Widescreen Display (1280 x 800)
• LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-RW with Double Layer Support
• Webcam + Fingerprint Reader
• Intel Next-Gen Wireless-N Mini-card
• 9 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
• Microsoft(R) Works 9.0

Total price: $1163.99

A specific question about it: I was wondering about the difference between a high-capacity 6-cell battery and a 9-cell battery. Like, what would be the difference in runtime? Also, if anyone has a 9-cell, I was wondering how much bigger than the 6-cell it actually is.