I recently bought a Dell 660s with Windows 7. I was seriously considering HP, but at the time I was ready to buy, the only new HP desktops I found came with Windows 8. Just chiming in with 2 cents more..Like some others here, I felt it was time to get a new computer, as my husband's is rather old and running XP, and I don't like Windows 8. My old PC is a Dell Inspiron 560, which my husband will get to replace his, and I have the Dell Inspiron 660s. Both Inspirons are running Windows 7, my hope being to hold out until Windows 9, if it is more to my liking than "'8" and I live so long (I am an old lady already, though not retired!) This may well be our last Dell. Our last 4 or 5 computers were Dells, and we have not had any trouble with them. BUT, this time I found it very frustrating to make a recovery disk in case I need to return to factory condition. The Dell Insp. 560 made that easy with a prompt right at set-up. This time, I had to search through some programs Dell had set up, one part of which, by the way, referred to clicking on a "tile," although this is a Win 7 machine. Then I got a message that some necessary file(s) had not gotten installed correctly (that would be at the factory!), so I had to download and install them, and they didn't appear in my PC for some time, so I didn't know if I had succeeded or not. Finally, an icon appeared that allowed me to make the restore disk. Particularly frustrating was the way certain explanations from Dell would tell all about the restore disk and other things, but not contain a button to click to actually DO them. That is possibly the fault of the faulty software installation I mentioned. Whatever...this experience has really soured me on Dell. Next time I will probably be looking for other recommendations here.

If I were in the market for a new desktop, which I'm not, I would take quick look at the new HP Touch Smart. It comes with a 19" wide screen touchscrren monitor, and is just very, very slick looking. I ran into it at Best Buy earlier tonight and my mouth about dropped open. Also, it's stacked with some hot stuff inside. Take a look at the specs: Processor AMD Turion 64 X 2 Dual Core RL52 with AMD PowerNow and AMD LIVE! Technology Operating system Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium Memory 2048MB PC2-4200 DDR2 SDRAM memory (expandable to 4GB) Graphics card NVIDIA GeForce Go 7600 graphics with 256MB video memory Hard drive 320GB 7200RPM SATA hard drive Primary CD/DVD drive Slot-loaded SuperMulti Drive DVD burner with LightScribe Technology Secondary CD/DVD drive N/A Memory slots 2 SoDIMM (both occupied), HP Pocket Media drive bay (available) Front-access ports 8-in-1 memory card reader, 2 USB , 1 IEEE 1394 (FireWire) port, headphones, S-video, audio (L/R), composite input (analog video/audio) Communications Wireless LAN(802.11a/b/g) with built in WLAN antenna, Integrated 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet network interface, Sound Integrated audio, 6 speaker configurable and Built in 12W 2.0 speakers Monitor Touch Enabled 19" diagonal BightView LCD with height and tilt adjustment, Aspect Ratio 16.10 Dimensions 18.88(l) x 21.77" (w) x 11.37 (d/h) Web Camera Integrated 1.3 megapixel webcam with built in array microphone Personal Video Recorder NTSC TV Tuner and over the air ATSC high definition television tuner The price is $1799 Here is a link that might be useful: HP Touch Smart

Where is it gonna find all the laptop drivers. What will they do when it tries to use the same windows registration online.

If the old machine has a 40 gig drive and you have a 500 gig external available, I would just transfer everything. That way if you realize down the road you missed something, it's still available. If you need space on the external, move it to the new machine (just create a folder and move everything there). Most modern printer install from CD or a file you can download from the manufacturer's web site (which may be necessary if the original CD didn't include Windows 7 drivers). Don't plug in the printer initially, follow the on screen instructions and at some point during the install process it will ask you to plug in the printer.