I recently realized how much more productive I am when I work at the campus library instead of at home. This consequently made me realize what a PITA it is to work on my aging 90′s era Sony Vaio laptop (500MHz processor, no battery, tiny screen, carries like a brick). So, taking advantage of a $500 off $1599 coupon code at couponmountain.com, last night I placed an order for a shiny new Dell Inspiron 6000. I had also been considering an Acer TravelMate 4404, with its 64-bit AMD processor and fancy Radeon X700 graphics, but I decided to go with the Dell for its extremely detailed WUXGA (1920×1200!!) screen and the 2-year at-home warranty service that I was able to configure for about the same price. I’m hoping that the screen will make for a good CAD display, and maybe I won’t be as distracted by games with the Dell’s Radeon X300 graphics chip.

I’ll post a review when the unit arrives in a couple weeks.