Howdy - I'm looking for a laptop but not sure what to search for maybe someone can help me refine my criteria. It must have a screen that can be drawn on / written on (tablet) 15" or more display (laptop) dual core chip, 1 gb + ram etc etc ~$1k Am I dreaming or can this be found?

Yes, you are.

for 1300-1700, you can look up the Acer TravelMate C210 or the Toshiba Satellite (R25-S3513) As for 15"+ display, you're out of luck. The 15" tablets are rather rare and I've never seen anything bigger.

Take away "tablet" and you can probably find something. Tablet notebooks are designed to be able to be held on your hand/across your arm, and as a result you won't see one larger then 15", and they are more expensive then laptops of otherwise equal specification because they not only have touch screens, but are also designed more like ultralights (ultralights can often be twice as expensive due to the even lighter/more portable parts used) to reduce the burden of holding it.

The Gateway CX210 is probably the closest you will find at 14". It's one of the few convertibles that have a dedicated gfx card. This is the one I'm looking to get once they start putting Vista on their machines.