The most common question this time of year seems to be: "What is the best 2008 laptop that I can buy?". Now that really depends on a number of factors:

1. What size screen do you want?

2. How much do you want to spend?

3. What size keyboard should it have?

The questions can almost endless. I think most people really just want a few suggestions, so here is a list of the current 2008 best laptops that I've found this year. Some are just outright fantastic, others really give you your moneys worth, and some just really perform great.

(Note: Its best to check for the very latest price)

HP Pavilion dv7t laptop

This HP Pavilion comes with a 17-inch screen and a cool "liquid metal" exterior with Intel’s new Centrino 2 processor lying inside. It gives high-octane performance in a very hot package.

• Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo Processor P8400 (2.26 GHz)

• 4GB DDR2

• Weight: 8 lbs

Current Price: $1,589

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Gateway P-7811FX

This Gateway offers a combination of high-end components and nice low price. The 17-inch Gateway P-7811FX may be the best deal of the year.

• Intel Core 2 Duo (2.26 GHz)

• 4 GB DDR3 SDRAM

• Weight: 9.3 lbs

Current Price: $1,449

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Dell XPS M1730

The Dell XPS M1730 is a great laptop for 3D gaming, office multitasking and video editing. , It has a top-of-the-line graphics card and 17-inch widescreen display. It also includes a physics game accelerator.

• Intel Core Duo processor 2.8GHz

• 4GB RAM

• Weight: 11 lbs

Current Price: $2,400

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Lenovo ThinkPad X300

This lightweight ThinkPad X300 is futuristic with a big screen, full-size keyboard, and lots of features that on the go geeks want.

• Intel Core 2 Duo (1.2 GHz)

• 1 GB DDR2 SDRAM

• Weight: 3.2 lbs

Current Price: $1,896

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Apple MacBook

Apple takes great care in their design and it surely shows in this 13 inch MacBook.

• Intel Core 2 Duo (2.2 GHz)

• 1 GB DDR2 SDRAM

• Weight: 5.1 lbs

Current Price: $1,185

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Alienware Area-51 m17x

Gamers watch out! This is the machine for you.

(But its gonna cost ya, no doubt about it.) The Alienware Area-51 m17x, is an ultra performance gaming machine.

• Intel Core 2 Duo (2.1 GHz)

• 1 GB DDR II SDRAM

• Weight: 10.5 lbs

Current Price: Still Waiting on the price

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Dell Inspiron Mini 9

Ok, so you dont want to spend $5,000 on a laptop. I can understand that. This easy on the power Dell Inspiron Mini 9 is an excellent low cost laptop.

• Intel ® ATOM (1.6 GHz)

• 512 MB DDR2 SDRAM

• Display: 8.9

Current Price: $349

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Of course, which laptop you choose really is going to depend on how much you want to spend versus how much power you want. Most often I would recommend a middle of the road deal, like the HP Pavilion dv7t laptop or the Gateway P-7811FX.

And now, its time to look ahead... I can't wait to see what is offered Next Year!