So we are in need of a new laptop. Only need a budget laptop to replace the $250 laptop we bought 3 years ago.

I picked up a Compaq and a Sony Vaio. They are almost identical specs except that the Sony has firewire and an SD ard reader. Neither have PCMCIA slots.

The Sony was $40 more than the Compaq.

Suggesstions on which one I should keep?

I have a friend with the Sony, and the one thing I don't like about it, is the speakers don't go real loud at all. Try those out if thats important to you. One thing I'm real picky with too, is the buttons for the touchpad. Don't know why, but its almost exclusively why I order Dells

Toss up. Probably doesn't matter.

The Sony with firewire and the SD card reader IF you do video or have a digital camera thaty also uses an SD card.


...without any other specs to go on, either is probably a decent choice.

On the other hand, my intuition says that the HP/Compaq might have better support for drivers and updates and such. (I have no facts to base this on...)

You better go with the Sony, if only to help those poor suffering corporate people who lost $3.3 Billion on the PS3

Sony loses $3.3B