Are you kidding? You think every dell/hp are ugly compared to an overpriced mac?
In my 7 years of using windows pc's I have received only 1 BSOD and that was my fault by installing too much ram. I have never had any bad customer service with my dell desktop I had for 2 years. Kill Bill - don't make fanboy comments.
You can get an hp notebook with a dual core processor, vista with sp1, 2gb ram, nvidia geforce 8400m graphics, and a special imprint finish for $698 - That will EASILY do what the op needs.
@Kill Bill, you've never heard of lenovo? You really need to read more. They sponsored the 2008 olympics AND own IBM PC. You know, thinkpads? ....