I have an Acer Aspire One notebook that has given me good service. I use it for programming speedos and a bit of surfing on the move. It's adequate for that, and stores photos, etc. for which the screen (small) is again, adequate. I got it for £229 at PC World a couple of years back.
For your suggested usage, I would recommend the fastest processor and biggest RAM you can get. Mine's has little of either and it can be a bit slow when viewing video on websites. I am comparing that to a top-end MacBook Pro, however!! It's ace for Skype, having a little camera in the lid.
I'd buy another Acer as it is well made and battery life is good. HTH
