I’m looking at buying a laptop and I need your suggestions.

I’v been wanting to buy a second PC at home but decided that a laptop would help me out in many ways. While I have been doing a fair bit of research, I’d love to hear your opinion.

In short, this is what I’m looking for.

Cost effective : My wallet is tight. So obviously, a lean price tag will be preferred.
Wi-Fi : Oh definitely. I really need Net access on the move.
Silver color : Ok, this one is not an absolute must but I’ve found silver colored laptops much more cooler looking.
DVD Combo : Yeah, need that to burn CDs and to watch movies.
Light Weight : Prefer laptops which are lighter than 3 KGs.

Here’s what I do not need.
No Windows: I don’t want to pay for a pre-loaded XP. I’ll choose a backdoor entry here.

Now, to my questions.
1) In your experience, which is a good brand to buy?

2) Is it really cheaper to buy it from the US than in India? Would you recommend this?

3) Yesterday’s Indian budget says zero-tax on some IT components. Does this bring down the laptop prices in India?

I’d love to hear your opinion. Any little info you can provide would be helpful. Really appreciate your time and effort. Thanks in advance.