Apple is putting A LOT of pressure on other players in the laptop market.  At the low end, they are selling the iPad starting at $500.  For basic needs such as internet and e-mail, it is just about as good as any laptop.  Considering traditional laptops, Apple’s Mac Book (priced at $1250 with the 3 year warranty), is outselling every other laptop on the market.   Business class laptops from Dell simply cannot sell at $1100.  IBM / Lenovo is having issues selling their business laptops also.    Prices on Windows laptops are being driven DOWN!!

So if you want or need a Windows laptop,  now is surely the time to buy.

I’ve talked before how the only Windows laptops I endorse are the Dell Latitude 6410 / 6510 and the Lenovo (IBM) Thinkpad T410 / T510 (and their predecessors).  Beyond those you are really taking a risk.

One year ago, the Dell Latitude 6410 routinely sold for $1200 to $1300 new.  It is a well built machine, perhaps with even higher build quality than the MacBook.   In this week’s specials at Dell.com, you can get a 6410, properly configured for $692.  That’s right, under $700 with a 3 year warranty.   If you are shopping for a Windows laptop, this is the bottom of the market price wise.  Check out this link

http://www.dell.com/us/business/p/latitude-e6410/fs

To arrive at $692, I took the base model ($589) and added the 3 GB RAM upgrade and the $3 option for Recovery media.  You’re good to go.