Advice - IBM models vs. newcomers

Hi everyone,
I'm trying to decide what to do about the new T43 models. I am a grad student and my school offers discounts on IBM models. However, these discounts are only updated on a quarterly basis, so it will be (I think) March 15 before the next update.
I need your advice: should I try a different tack (e.g., buy some shares and get the shareholder discount, or buy from Sony, Dell, etc) or should I go with the current offering? I can drop $2200-2500 on this notebook. I would use it mostly for programming (computational modeling in MATLAB being the most intensive program I will use in this domain), word processing, and light gaming (at most I would play, perhaps, World of Warcraft, which is not incredibly taxing, but I do enjoy games). I will travel 5-6 times a year and only need about 4-5 hour battery life.
This is the current best offer my school gives, with a price tag of $2120
- IBM ThinkPad T42p
- Pentium M 1.8 GHz
- RAM 1 GB
- HD 60 GB
- Rambo II
- Gigabit Ethernet
- 802.11 a/b/g Lee-g, Bluetooth
- 15" TFT

I also have one other question: I can't quite figure out what the difference is between T42 and T42p...can anyone enlighten me?

 

The p adds fingerprint scanning.

As for the T43, it sounds like the upgrades will probably benefit you. Depending on your discount though, you might do better bypassing it and waiting for a great offer from an online reseller.

Editor in Chief http://www.bargainPDA.com and http://www.SPOTstop.com

 

T42 is 14" T42P is 15".
There is always going to be a better NB on the horizon. If you need one now, buy one now. The benfits and the performance edge of the t43 are not going to be too noticable. Based on your requirements, the T42p 2373-HVU is your best bet. I just bought it and could not be happier. I got mine for a great deal, IBM was offering in December, 2400.00 with tax. it was 3379 yesterday and now it is 3179.00. Perphaps in the next few weeks, including your discount you could get it in the mid to upper 2k range. Good Luck deciding...

 

Most anyone can get a discount thru http://www.ibm.com/businesscenter/visa.

Today the T42p 2373HVU is $2,543.20 with the Visa discount.

I have my eye on a 2378FVU that's discounted to $1,484.10.

Want to see how much the T43 26684EU will cost before ordering.

I've been keeping up with Thinkpad info. on another forum at http://forum.thinkpads.com

 

It's my understanding that the T42 and T42p Thinkpads come in both 14" and 15" models.

 

I tried opening the webpage ending in visa. But it does no seem to be working. Where can that deal be found and how do i get it? Friend needs to buy a laptop.

 

Link works, need to drop the period off the URL

http://www.ibm.com/businesscenter/visa

Editor in Chief http://www.bargainPDA.com and http://www.SPOTstop.com