If I were you I would check the internet and electronics stores for something within your price range and with the features you want. Then go online and do some reasearch. Look at reviews and such. The sad part is computers on clearence or sale are usually
a: Obsolete (or heading there fast)
b: crappy in build with some design or functionality flaw
c: open box item, so it was probably malfunctioning before
Intel's core processors are newest tech. Somewhere near the 2.0Ghz range is normal for these. 512MB of ram is minimum these days, a GB is becoming increasingly neccessary. DDR2 is the newest memory standard, but DDR is ok too. I feel any HDD under 80GB is too small. If you plan on using Vista anytime soon, you need a very nicely equiped machine.
but it is all based on what you need.
side note: Tablet style laptops are becoming increasingly popular.
