What's your price range?
And just looking up autocad, please let me know if this is wrong for spec's you'll need.
Intel® Pentium® III or later, with 800 MHz or faster processor, or compatible
Microsoft® Windows® XP SP1 or SP2 (Professional, Home Edition, or Tablet PC Edition), or Windows® 2000 Professional SP4
512 MB RAM
500 MB free disk space for installation
1024×768 VGA with true color
Microsoft® Internet Explorer 6.0 SP1
CD-ROM drive
Mouse, trackball, or compatible pointing device
With that in mind, you can get away with a lot under $800.
I'd recommend NOT going with the bare minimums on this one.
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.p...acture=Toshiba
That would do you fine for example. it all depends on what brand you want to go with. Personally, I like Acer, while others will curse at it. Dell is also a decent brand. You need to do some shopping around for this, find out what you like.
You also have to make a few more decisions for the laptop. Intel or AMD? Dedicated or Integrated graphics card?