[SWLUG] laptops

[Gareth Bowker]

On Tue, 2004-10-12 at 17:13 +0100, Rhys Sage wrote:
> I'm thinking of getting a brand spanking new laptop in
> America. Any suggestions as to something that'll:
> 
> Last at least 5 years before it meets the dustman or
> needs repair.
> 
> Has USB, at least 10GB HDD, PCMCIA, CAT5 and a CD R/W
> or even a CD R/W DVD combo.
> 
> Inexpensive and with  available replacement
> chargers/batteries.
> 
> Good battery duration. Less than 4 hours and there's
> no advantage in having a laptop as opposed to a desknote.

Given the battery life, the only ones I've found that realistically last
that long are the Apple laptops. I had an iBook which would
realistically run for 4h45 even after a year. They run Linux quite
nicely and Ubuntu Linux (amongst others) is well-supported on them.
Given you're after PCMCIA (what do you need it for? the iBook may have
it built-in), you'll have to go for a PowerBook, but I believe the
battery life is just as good on those.

Gareth