I was just about to suggest you go thru Best Buy...
That said, I have had very good luck with them (I totally just jinxed myself!) - DS's college tv died just a few weeks before his warranty ran out (regular 1 year manufacturer's) and they replaced it with a better/bigger model since they no longer stocked the 19"
Last year, my laptop died the very day I was told I needed a CAT scan to rule out a brain membrane puncture and if the CAT scan showed an active cerebral fluid leak, I would be prepped for surgery that same day. Of course, the first thing I did when I got home was turn on my laptop to google "brain fluid leak" only to find out my laptop was kaput. So in addition to worrying about my noggin, I was worried about needing immediate brain surgery and then having NOTHING TO DO (without a computer) while I recuperated.
I went on the to Best Buy site, went on the the clearance section of the site, started looking at laptops, filtered them by price (under $500), then sorted by review, added the ones with the top reviews (5 maybe?) to the "compare" list and then chose the one with the best reviews, lightest weight, and best processor/memory etc. that was in stock and ready to be shipped. 2 days later, I had a 4-1/2 star (review), Gateway 15.6" Laptop, 6GB, with a numeric pad (a necessity for me) weighing 5.5 lbs at my doorstep for $479.00.. .I was thrilled and still am very happy with it. And I didn't need brain surgery. So, it was a good but expensive few days!!
I find that reviews rarely lead me wrong. Again, I didn't look at any laptop over $500.