Take Apple's MacBook Air, for example. These nice-looking, thin laptops start at US$1,799 with a 1.6GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 13.3-inch screen, 120GB hard disk, and 2GB of RAM. That would be expensive in a good economy, but there's a cheaper option that's available.

Apple also sells for $999 with a 1.6GHz Core 2 Duo processor, an 80GB hard disk, and 2GB of RAM.

The refurbished laptops are units that have been returned to Apple, which then replaces any problem parts, cleans them up, and tests them before offering them for resale. Unlike other PC makers that offer limited warranties on refurbished computers, the refurbished MacBook Air comes with Apple's standard one-year laptop warranty that can be extended for up to three years with the $249 .

Another good option for thrifty shoppers are the crop of small laptops based on Intel's Atom processor.

The Atom chips aren't as good with heavy multimedia tasks, but they have more than enough power for Web surfing and e-mail. Prices on these machines, called netbooks, can range from a few hundred dollars to nearly $1,000, depending on how they're equipped. Resist the urge to go for the more expensive models, and look for models with more basic specifications.