HP forum: help me choose new hp computer tower vs laptop????

For the last 3 years, I'm been on a HP Business class Notebook, 8710, 2 Duo CPU T8100 @2.10 Ghz with 3.00 Gb of Ram, XP, ver 2002.... It's slowing down something horrible, churning and having a hard time redrawing ads on web pages, opening email quickly, etc..... so it's becoming unusable. I upgraded the ram once, but was told that's it. I've scanned for any viruses, etc.... it seems fine. I used that at home, and had a regular tower at work. Since I'm no longer at that job.... my home computer has to be a workhorse and very ergonomically comfortable....

And most importantly, I need something NEW, of course fast as blazes..... a good video card for watching movies/online, I also work with Adobe Indesign, so I need a great graphics card...., but I also like the sleekness of a laptop (but don't need the portability, it stays in my house), but, because of ergonomic issues, I'll need to attach a separate monitor, and keyboard and mouse. So, because of these ergo issues, it seems more sensible to buy a small footprint tower, as sleek as they come--to answer my upgrading issues, and deal with my ergonomic needs easier.....

SO, if I was thinking to do a tower---here's what I could get--- a mini tower HP Pro 3130 MT - 1 x Core i7 870 / 2.93 GHz - RAM 4 GB - HDD 1 x 500 GB - DVDRW (R DL) / DVD-RAM - Radeon HD 4550 - Gigabit Ethernet - Windows 7 Pro 64-bit or a less faster machine and footprint...or a HP Compaq 6200 Pro SFF - 1 x Core i5 2400 / 3.1 GHz - RAM 4 GB - HDD 1 x 500 GB - DVDRW (R DL) / DVD-RAM - HD Graphics 2000 - Gigabit Ethernet - Windows 7 Pro 64-bit -

Or, I could buy another faster HP notebook, and put the whole laptop on one of those stands that raises the screen up to eye level (humanscale has one), and attach a keyboard and mouse. Such as---HP EliteBook Mobile Workstation 8740w Core i5 560M / 2.66 GHz - vPro - RAM 4 GB - HDD 320 GB - DVDRW (R DL) / DVD-RAM - FirePRO M7820 - Gigabit Ethernet - WLAN : 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1 EDR - TPM - fingerprint reader, SmartCard reader - Windows 7 Pro 64-bit - 17" Widescreen LED backlight WVA TFT 1680 x 1050 ( WSXGA+ ) - camera, etc....


So, my questions are....

1. Assuming I'm buying something new quickly, which of the towers I listed is the best and most attractive unit for my home office? Something sleek, with a small footprint? It doesn't seem that HP offers anything in all silver and white, just black.

2. If I went with a new faster HP laptop, would I have to put a laptop stand, to raise up the screen, and then add the ergnomic keyboard... and if so.... is that too ridiculous??, and should I go back to a clumsy tower?

3. Other than those HP all in ones, that aren't good for me, because of upgradability and the critieria I need, is there another reputable brand that has a smaller footprint, and is very sleek and modern, because I have to put it in my bedroom? I don't want something off brand, I like reliability, not thrilled with Dell.... or others, and don't want to have anything built out for me.

So my issues, are need something way faster and better than what I have now. So that's a laptop or tower with monitor. But, do my ergonomic issues with carpel tunnel.... dictate a tower only, to make it make sense, that plugging in all new components (monitor, keyboard, mouse to laptop?)


Thanks so much. An upgrade is a big deal, and a lot of money, and will last years, so I want to do this right.

PS... the only other idea I have is to get one of the towers, and keep my old laptop, and think of a way to make it faster.....

thanks!!!