use what i have now or cash in

i have a laptop that's several years old (my fear was that it wouldn't be able to handle Sonar and various 3rd party plugins) but it just may be enough for me to use it to test drive and learn Sonar.  My other concern is that I will have spent a lot of time installing and setting up the DAW, 3rd party plugins, samples, soft synths, registering, etc.  So I can do what I've mentioned and use the laptop for about a year (in that period of time technology may improve and the prices on computers and parts may be cut).

or.. i can sell my laptop now, cash in and apply that money towards a new computer (sort of like trading in a used car to apply it to the sale of a new one).  the disadvantage to this is that i'm forced to get whatever is on the market, paying the price for the newer i3, i5 or i7's that aren't fast, powerful and affordable as I'd like them to be. 

or.. i can sell my laptop now, cash in and just put that money away in a savings account for a year.  In that meantime I would just watch Sonar videos, order Scott's Sonar 8 Power book and just learn what I can on this forum.

so i have several choices and I want to choose the one that benefits me the most.  hope you guys will enlighten me with some insightful feedback.