Need other opinions on new (multiple?) comp

[Semperfiero]

I have had a hard time deciding what to buy and was hoping for some outside opinions and ideas on a new computer/s.

I am a Junior CS and History major and in the market for a new mac. I currently own a 500Mhz G3 SE Graphite DV iMac. The 500 is with me at college running OS 10.2.8. I am going to be buying a new computer before this year starts up. Having a slight dilemma. I have around 4Gs to blow but I want more than one computer. I am on the track team so I do alot of traveling therefore a laptop would be an indispensable luxury plus most of my campus is wireless and I will be in Ireland for a month for class. However, I do want to run a lot of high process apps (i.e. Maya, Lightwave, Dreamweaver) so a G5 Tower would be ideal as far as upgradability. So far the two options I have thought of are these:

12" iBook 1GHz ($1115)
Add AE and BT
Combo Drive
20GB iPod ($269 - C&J Rebate)
HP Deskjet 5150 ($89 free w/ rebate)
Dual 1.8 G5 ($1742 ADC Student Membership)
Radeon 9600
AE and BT
17" Display ($599)
Total: $3814 before tax (which kinda gets negated with rebates)

My other thought was this:
PB 1.33GHz Combo ($1512)
5400 drive upgrade
20GB iPod ($269 - C&J Rebate)
HP Deskjet 5150 ($89 free w/ rebate)
20" Display ($1169)
Extra Battery ($116)
Apple Care ($239)
Total: Total: $3513 before tax (which kinda gets negated with rebates)

Now the the first options seems like the obvious choice but here the catch. I am going to need my next set up to last me at least for the next 6 years. I will be continuing on to get my Masters in both CS and History and a PHd in History. With my second option I would wait until the financial hit fully settled in and then wait for the next upgrade in G5s (Early Next Year?) and hopefully pick up a DP 2.0 or DP 2.5 at lower price (once again Student ADC) and will pick up a better graphics card (a must). This will be more expensive but will be better in the long run since the PB will be able to take full advantage of Tiger and I would rather have the 20" for apps as opposed to a 17". My first semester is less intensive this year so not having the G5 immediately isn't a huge problem. I have pretty much ruled out 15" and 17" PB as well as iMac for the reason of price + ultimate portablility + upgradablility. The laptop will just basically be my peon for taking notes moving class to class with small use of programming (C++, Java, VB).
Anyway some other opinions would be appricated. Price is a large factor since this is my own money and since I pay for my own college. It is not the deciding factor since I need something for the long run.

Thanks in advance.

 

[slughead]

I'd go with a non-apple display, as Samsung (for instance), makes ones that have a higher contrast ratio and cost half as much.

I'd also go with a cannon printer:
Printer companies practically give away printers because they like to force you to buy their proprietary ink later. It's a very mean scheme.

However, Cannon's price on ink is much lower than HP or epson, and of course the printer quality is about the same (if not better).

Finally, I'd go with the G5 and the iBook. CS majors have to compile things from time to time, I'd imagine the G5's RIDICULOUSLY superior processor would help with that.

 

[SolidGun]

If you want the comp to last you 6 years, you should definitely choose a desktop and portable. The fact that you can upgrade certain parts will give you that advantage.
If you do decide to go with your second option, why would you get the printer, extra battery and 20" display?
Printer would be available at your school, I don't know why you would rather have extra battery than just carrying the charger around and spend so much more money on 20" display than cheaper 17". Of course it is your decision to make, but I am just curious as to why you want to spend extra money that way.
Also, what about software purchases? Are you doing what I think you are doing to get the software, or did you just forget to include it in your calculation?
IMO, you should save that money and place it into future purchases as opposed to hitting everything at once. But then again, I don't keep my comps for more than 18months.

Edit: I see the thing about your battery usage with traveling a lot. So I guess you will have to spend money on that.

 

[Semperfiero]

I guess I should have made things a little clearer. With the 12" PB I would be picking up a DP 2.0 or 2.5 the beginning of next year or whenever Apple puts out another bump in processer speeds so that the current models are cheaper. So essentially the 20" would give me a bigger screen for the PB but would ultimately be for the G5. The printer would be for smaller papers but for large printing jobs I use the colleges computer labs anyway so I won't use a whole lot of ink in the long run. And the battery I will need for longer trips aka plane/bus rides and we commute 6-8 hours for track meets quite often so a battery that only last one way isn't really going to cut it. Thanks for the input so far. I will look into other displays for price comparisons. Oh and most of the software my dad has anyway so thats not a problem.