It is that time again. After a couple of years, I have to upgrade my laptop. My old one is getting slow and I really need a worthy replacement.

For some reason, my first, or most important criterion is design: I want my new laptop to be thin and good looking, but I don’t want to switch to Apple – at least not yet. I think (almost) everyone would agree that Apple Macbook Pro and Macbook Air are the best looking laptops in the industry. They are thin, sleek, light and shiny. Everything looks good on those models. They are not chunky, thick and heavy like most laptops with Windows systems. They are simply beautiful!

Now my question is: Why doesn’t someone create a laptop that can rival or match Apple’s designs?

Maybe I would even buy a Mac, but they are expensive and I’m not very familiar with the Mac Operating Systems (I know, you can use Windows on Macs too). I just don’t have much experience with Macs….On the other hand, this would be the perfect opportunity to learn!

Let’s just say, I decided to go with a regular laptop with Windows 7. What do I buy? Which brand/model is good looking? I reviewed most available models in shops, and online, and only one model came close to matching Apple: the HP Envy series. I thought I found the perfect laptop when I saw it displayed in a computer store: It had the color, the design, the specs (i7 CPU, 8GB Ram, 15″ screen and HD display) and pretty good reviews on the Net. The price was ok, too, as it was reduced to below $1,500. I almost went for it…until I saw that there is no optical drive!!! There was no CD/DVD/Blue Ray drive at all! It comes as an external accessory! I didn’t like that, so I gave up!

I have to ask you, my readers, visitors and fellow bloggers: which laptop would you recommend? What should I buy?

Thanks for any tips/advice!