need laptop advice

So i am looking at getting a new laptop to use as a development machine but I am not up to speed on the current state of the laptop market. What specs and prices are usual? Who to buy from/avoid?

I would prefer an AMD processor and a large HD, with as much RAM as possible. Any information or websites/retailers to check out would be useful.

Thanks

I like Dell myself, especially if you can get one with the next day, on-site warranty. You can usually find corporate refurbished off eBay that still have that warranty for at least another year. My friend and I have both used this warranty and couldn't be happier. However, I don't think Dell offers an AMD , and I'm sure there will be some anti-Dell folks out there.

I have an opportunity to get this laptop for £999.99. It is usually retailing at 1299.99 but this one had a mobo replacement and was reduced. It still comes with a 2year warranty. Is it a good deal and should I go for it?

laptop spec

personally, I wouldn't reccomend Toshiba, my not last, but before that laptop was a satellite model. I had many problems with the motherboard and the floppy drive locking up the whole system. also, the bit to turn off the LCD on closing the lid would sometimes not let it come back on after. needless to say, after a year or so, I dumped it (read: took it apart) and bought a dell...

I've been looking into getting an IBM Thinkpad myself. They seem to be pretty solid machines but they are a little pricier than some other systems. Also I'm not sure how much you plan on traveling with this laptop but if it will be alot I would recommend that you look into getting a Centrino (or at least a Pentium M proccessor).
I'm normally an AMD guy myself but the Pentium M processor had been designed for laptops and to consume less power so the batter life can be signifigantly longer than it would be on a system with a regular Pentium or AMD chip.