Joel -

Head straight for the dell outlet - you'll save a ton of dough.

You should able to find a well spec'd insipron C2D desktop with without any issue. There are tons of 15% off coupons floating around (try the slickdeals forums).

Figure ~$500 for that system, and then you can go to newegg and get whatever power supply and graphics card you want, plus the extra ram you'll need.

Dell's support isn't stellar, but at least you know what you're getting, and you could do a LOT worse.

Don't forget about the business systems - the specs should be exactly the same, and all of them will come with a three year warranty standard.

Cheers.
Blitz

one more idea:

HTC Shift:
http://www.engadget.com/2008/03/19/htc-shift-is-finally-coming-to-the-us-on-the-24th-with-sprint-3g/

One other computer idea: HP 2510p
12" ultralight notebook, with SSD and mobile internet options. Has an LED screen, and claimed battery life is 9+ hours w/ the 9 cell. (I think that's before the SSD comes into the picture)

It's a bit thicker/heavier than the x300, especially once you slap the 9-cell on, but not alarmingly so.

Also saw this thread on slickdeals:
http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?t=758460

Sent you an email about an LG i've got sitting around, but I'd have to throw in a vote for the F3 as well.