Go for the new Dell Inspiron Duo- A tablet PC + Notebook in one.
Buy an HP laptop with an Intel i7 Processor.It's the best laptop and cheapest laptop out.
Where do you live?
Cause Best Buy has a deal right now where if you buy an HP laptop, you get a free Xbox 360.
I have the Acer Aspire and it's actually pretty nice. It has lasted me a long time and runs perfect + it's only around $500 USD So you have $400 left over.
Toshiba satellite L450D is great. It's great for gaming/coding/ everything else.
And not so old.
I think "Hewlett-Packard" still makes good PC's I would see what wal-mart has and compare prices.