Just some random links I have pulled up. I use Dell because when I did have hardware issues they got resolved as long as it was under warranty. Sometimes there was frustration in getting it to happen, but I assume that is true when dealing with any warranty.
Dell Inspirion 15
Basic Dell entry level machine, more powerful than you *need* but can't hurt.
Dell Mini 10
I have not looked into Netbooks in a while, but Dell seems to have a similar product as when I did before. They are among the cheapest netbooks, but they used to max at 1 gig of RAM. If they still do, I would spend a bit more and get a the aspire one listed below.
AspireOne
I always thought the first models of these were good machines for the money spent. This model is a bit newer, more powerful, and is a bit more expensive than the older ones (and the Dell Mini 10), but more RAM, HDD. If you wanted to cut costs I am sure they have models that allow you to do so, but my opinion is 2 gigs of RAM is the best bet.