Theres nothing in Vista anyone needs.
Anything bigger makes it less portable.
Aldi has better graphics so better for gamers.
Agree about Vista. As it's just been released, there will no doubt be hundreds of bugs in it. Also, I can't imagine you needing any of the new features any time soon. Perhaps upgrade to Vista in a year or 2 (after most of the bugs have beeen patched) if you decide then that you do need the extra features. the other thing about Vista is that you should really have 2GB RAM to get the most out of it.
On portability, if you intend bringing it with you to different places (and using it while travelling), then the smaller the better. If 99% of the time it's going to be on your desk in your home, then your eyes will appreciate the bigger screen.
I think you have the 2 laptops mixed up there aircobra19, The Lidl one is infinitely better for games. 256MB (dedicated) Nvidia GeForce Go 7600 is excellent for a laptop. Aldi's inbuilt intel graphics card using 128MB (Shared!) won't work with 90% of modern games (for good reason!).
If you're not comfortable buying today, you will be able to customise with Dell and get the laptop perfect for you (if you know what you're looking for!). Prices range from bargain to ripoff, so you might need to get a knowledgable friend to sit down with you when choosing!.
As regards support, I don't believe in it! (But I am fortunate to be able to fix any/all software problems myself). Because computers are so complex (unlike any othere device you might have), it can take days/weeks to fully resolve an issue over the phone (and often to customer support will try and blame some other software you have on the computer and that they don't support it!). If the problems is hardware, it's usually cheaper to replace the component than pay an extra 100-200 for support. (for example, if the dvd drive was to go bust in 2 years time, it would probably cost €50-€75 to replace it with a brand new (and probably better) one. But if you're uncomfortable with dealing with possible problems on your own, perhaps support might be appropriate.