Or are you just hell-bent on getting a mac and none of this discussion really matters?
Failing that, it makes me nauseous thinking of paying over 1k for hardware that is as poorly constructed and ugly as most PC laptops tend to be.
Exception: Sony VAIOs. Pretty little thangs, and the predominance of intel hardware makes me think they're Linux compatible. If I can configure a sharp looking VAIO with dedicated graphics for under 1k, she's mine.
"I want a mac, but anyone have suggestions for decent PCs under 1k with DVD burners?"
and then when your karma hit 150, you could start a poll for "how many people use macs" like you asked --
...instead of a tirade about electrocuting batteries and whatever the heck else you talked about cause mix a mac survey with computer suggestions and you're looking for a mess.
And seriously, VAIOs? You might as well go for a Mac. I mean, all that tells me is that you care about how your lappy looks and not about what it does. Get a Sager for god's sake. you can configure one for about 1k and it will run better and last longer than any silly overpriced vaio out there. I mean if you're looking for 1k computers, you should chuck the word vaio out the window.
Who said macbook was the only way to go over 1k? ever read zed shaw's horror story? yeah.