The new laptops you mention, like the Toshiba deals going around various resellers like a bad cold, are HUGE and HEAVY (if you plan on carrying it around 12 hours/day). If you are looking for something smaller, the price of a brand-new 12" 3.5 lb. laptop can be quite shocking, so buying used becomes much more attractive. I tend to carry a lot of books and notebooks wherever I go (a vocational affliction), so schlepping around a 15" notebook that weighs more than my cat is very impractical.
But I know what you mean. Generally speaking I think people expect a little too much money for used laptops. I just bought a Dell Latitude C400 (apparently very good back in its day) for more than a new low-end Toshiba, but I think it was worth every penny (especially considering it's still under warranty--I got really lucky). And before that I had sold an old Inspiron on these forums for around $125. It was a 14", 466MHz Celeron, weighed over 8 lbs., etc., and given its age and spec's I could not with a clear conscience ask for more.
I had been watching used laptops closely for a couple months at ebay, here, and elsewhere, and I have to say it's amazing how many of them never get sold. A majority are purchased, but still there are quite a few that go unsold. Though of course there are exceptions, where someone inexplicably lays down $800 for a machine that's probably worth half that.
Anyway, good question. I'd been waiting for someone to ask it.
ADDENDUM: The tiny nature of laptops adds a premium to their cost, as fitting everything in such a small case isn't easy. Most of the time the parts aren't modular and need to be developed and manufactured for a specific line of notebooks. This R&D, to say nothing of the actual manufacturing and assembly, drives up the cost. For desktops the parts are already designed and manufactured by other companies, so it's just a question of buying them in bulk (reducing costs) and throwing them in a box, which is also probably designed and manufactured by someone else. The components for desktops don't change much over time (how old are the ATX and PCI standards?), whereas those for a given notebook computer by one particular company can change annually or more often.
Also, laptops aren't necessarily fragile. Making sure the innards are well protected and secure is yet another factor bringing up the price. A good example of this is the Thinkpad or the Toughbook.
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