T9900 vs P8800, 9600M vs GT 130M

I'm pretty much set to order an HP HDX18 laptop. I'll use it in my living room to stream music and HD video to my entertainment center, in my spare room as an extra stand-alone TV/video player, recording/editing live music (and someday maybe video), and to store/edit photo files and play DVDs or video files (e.g., on an airplane) while traveling 3-4 times per year, so battery life is somewhat important. I currently don't game. I'm planning for 4GB system memory (mostly because it seems to be the best price/performance).

I'm torn between these two CPUs:
1) Intel Core2 Duo Processor T9900 (3.06 GHz, 6 MB L2 Cache, 1066MHz FSB), for sheer processing power
2) Intel Core 2 Duo Processor P8800 (2.66 GHz, 3 MB L2 Cache, 1066MHz FSB) for its lower power consumption, and thus longer battery life. Also, it's $210 or $300 cheaper, depending upon the validity of a current coupon.

Also, I'm torn between the following GPUs:
1) 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT - For DDR2 Memory
2) 1GB Nvidia GeForce GT 130M - For DDR3 Memory (at $70-$100 extra, + $20 for the system memory upgrade to DDR3)

Will the faster T9900, w/ its larger cache, be a significant advantage for me?
Will it drain the battery that much quicker, i.e., is the CPU the most significant power suck, or are other components more significant? (I want to be able to make it through an entire movie.)
Will the GT 130 be an advantage to me? Does it affect the HDMI video-out quality?

I don't mind spending the extra $ if these things will future-proof the purchase, but I want to spend smartly and plan smartly for battery-life..

 

Come back mate.

We've got you some answers right here ( http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=415627 ).

 

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Thank you

Thread closed . . .