New Laptop Suggestions - Decent Battery Life and Price?

[Sushi Warrior]

I am looking at getting a new laptop for school that I will hopefully be able to use for 2 years (Grade 11 and 12). I am upgrading from a netbook (Atom/2GB/80GB, Lenovo S10) Here's what I want/prefer:

Price: As low as possible, but I would pay for quality and style. Hopefully something between $600-900. I would pay more if I was still getting good P/P

Performance: Enough for older games, Counter strike, COD4, nothing taxing at all (will play on low settings for sure). As far as CPU goes enough for light photoshop/lightroom editing and the ability to multi-task SEAMLESSLY. I don't want any hiccups because I have too many Firefox tabs or photoshop windows, but I usually don't have that many in the first place.

Battery life: 4 hours minimum, 5 preferred. Anything over that is unnecessary, I will only be using it for 1 day through school. The 2 1/2 to 3 hours I get now just isn't cutting it.

Style: I really prefer something that looks good, but I'm not anal about it. Just as long as it isn't an ugly brick I suppose. I prefer styling like the HP Envy/Macbook line as well as HP's G42/62 and the Asus ULx0 series.

Currently looking at:

Sony Vaio VGN Z710D: P8700, 9300GS, 4GB/320GB(7200), 1600x900, 4 to 4 1/2 hours battery, $849 refurbished.
I like the style, CPU, build quality, and screen. I tried it out in person. This is from the Sony Outlet store and it is $849 for what was a $2,000 model in early 2010. This says a bit about build quality Battery could be a bit longer though

Asus UL30/50/80: SU7300, G210/310, 3-4GB/250-320GB, 1366x768, 6-10 hours battery, $570(refurb)-$800
I like the styling, battery life, GPU, keyboard, and finish. Not sure which model fits me best?

HP G42/62: i3 330m, GMA HD, 4GB, 500GB(7200 and fast), 1366x768?, 3-4 hours battery, $450-600
I LOVE the looks of it, not a fan of the keyboard, liked the build quality, didn't like the fact there was no option for a GPU. The price looks great. Main problem is battery life - I would like more like 4-5 hours.

HP Envy: i3 330/i5 520?, 5650, 4GB, 500GB?, 1366x768, 4-6 hours, $1000US
This is my dream lappy pretty much, I love the looks, specs, battery, build quality, you name it. But it costs a lot and doesn't have the best screen (1600x900 is a $200 upgrade).

Dell Studio 15/16: i3/i5, GMA/5730, 4GB/?00GB, 1920x1080(!!!!)/1600x900RGB LED, ~4 hours/~4-5 hours, $900-1100
Doesn't look bad, I like the looks, screens sound awesome, battery isn't quite up to par, and the 5730 would be awesome. Price is a bit too much though and the 16 is pretty big (almost desktop replacement apparently?).

Dell Vostro 3300: i3 330, GMAHD, 3GB/250GB, 1366x768, 6+ hours with 8 cell, $750.
Battery life is awesome with 8 cell (also has 4 cell), I like the size, and it looks decent. CPU should be plenty. Screen isn't particularly amazing and it gets very hot according to reviews. Also is well built.

Right now, I am leaning towards the Vaio for best middle-ground, G42 for best low end, and Envy as optimal laptop.

Thoughts? Suggestions?

[Desiato]

I'm partial to Thinkpads for business/school because of the firm keyboard/chassis, durability and reliability. I don't know what it's gaming performance is like, but an off-lease or used X60 might work well for you.

[Dar_ell]

I own a asus ul80 and i have the friend that has the ul30. They are both
great laptops, only difference is that the ul80 is 14 inch while the ul30 is 13 (i might be mistaken on the correct measurement) . Battery life is awesome and the quality is awesome. Only complaint is that is has soo much bloatware. Quick format fixed that, good luck with your

[Sushi Warrior]

If nothing changes, I will be buying either an Asus UL50 ($570 refurb at tigerdirect) or B1lk1's UL80. There are just some awesome deals on them!

[Sagath]

Originally Posted by Sushi Warrior

If nothing changes, I will be buying either an Asus UL50 ($570 refurb at tigerdirect) or B1lk1's UL80. There are just some awesome deals on them!

imo B1lk1's is the better buy. I love my UL80, and his comes with upgrades to boot for 650 taxes in!

[ADay2Long]

Please take B1lk1's UL80, I have the same one with the same drive in it and it's simply amazing!

I would have grabbed it in a heartbeat 2 weeks ago.

Laptop has some +/- but for that price it's one hell of a deal!

[Sushi Warrior]

Yeah I was leaning towards B1lk1's it definitely is a better deal but someone else may snatch it up first! I don't have all the cash ATM as I need to sell my netbook first.