Heh! I've been lurking in this thread.
Glad to see someone else that appreciates vintage equipment.
The laptop I'm on, right now, was built in 2008 (according to the Dell service tag), and it's the fastest machine in my stable, thanks to Peppermint Four Re-Spin and, of course, the newly installed SSD.
This thing was probably pushing $4000+ (going by reviews), when it was purchased by some clueless corporate entity. I bought it on Fleabay, a couple of months ago, for pennies_on_the_wholesale_dollar.
That's the plus side of staying behind the curve. I hope they never figure it out... LoL!