Hi Mate...

All the new Vaio's look good on paper and look good when you play with them for the first time. I have had two Vaios. One bought in 2004 and one replaced (after a FFUUCCKIING hassle in 2005). Both are toss.

I think of all the Laptops I have used, Toshiba, Panasonic and IBM are the ones I liked the most, although Samsung are pretty solid from what I hear.

Basically forget the RAM and HD spec and concentrate on the quality of the other stuff... You can upgrade a Laptop Hard disk in 2 seconds (you will most probably want to if you are doing audio stuff (the standard 5400rpm jobby that comes with most Laptops is not up to the job)) and RAM is easy to get too... Just make sure it has space for a shit load of aftermarket RAM, a proven track record of not ****ing up (hit the forums) loads of USB ports, a big screen, a solid build quality (rag the show model around till the screen distorts, that is what they are there for) and a good warranty.

Good luck mate, and remember...

DON'T BUY A VAIO. EVER