Fuck sonys, thеy are terrible.
If you are planning on gaming with it, particularly eve, allow for an Antec Notebook Cooler - I have
this one after my laptop got so hot triboxing that I melted the veneer off a motherfucking table.
If I was buying a new laptop now, and your mileage may vary, but the HP NC8xxxP range have been solid for years for me now. You could get a dell if you had to, but I'd be steering clear of the obvious shit - acer, lg, etc. Last laptop I got was an NC8240P (i think) and was about 3.5k AUD, but that was when exchange rates were gayer than LASARBОNGHITS so v0v.