[ILUG] preferences for linux laptops?

[Brendan Kehoe]

I'm going to be replacing some hardware that's due to ship out in the next
week or two, and have been looking into the various laptop options that are
available.  It would be a Win98/linux dual-boot, where the main reason for
keeping the Windows stuff installed is to use it for watching DVD movies.  (In
lieu of buying a whole DVD player.)  Doesn't have to be NT, definitely won't
be Windows 2000.

I'm eyeing the Dell Inspiron 7500 as one key choice, while an IBM Thinkpad
390's also kind of pursuasive.  Sony's PCG-XG9 looks good too.

The basic criteria I have for whatever I get are:

	- 15"+ screen
	- good clarity
	- 450mhz or higher, p-iii over celeron, tho k7 could be ok; I
	recognize that when I hit 500mhz or higher (like the newer laptops
	bearing 650mhz), I'll be more limited by disk accesses than what the
	CPU could try to give me.
	- 128mb of memory or higher, higher is better but spikes the price
	- 12-25gb disk, Ultra ATA's preferred
	- dvd-rom + floppy as a removable module
	- decent battery life (>3hrs if possible)
	- don't need a modem, I'll get a pcmcia card for that
	- don't need networking, I'll use my existing 3com pcmcia card
	- Kenneth Harker's http://www.cs.utexas.edu/users/kharker/linux-laptop/
	page would hopefully have it listed and the linked diaries speak
	favorably of linux on it

The price range would be anywhere between $2500 and $4000 (aka between
IR£3000-5000), depending on the quality of the laptop.

I'm having trouble finding dealers inside Ireland who have something like
this, at least easily.  I'm also trying to figure out the logistics of
ordering one from a US company, have it delivered to work, and have work
forward it on to me.  (I'll accept paying VAT if the end result is still less
than buying it here.)

Any theories?  How've others handled this sort of purchase/investment?

Thanks for the hints,
B

-- 
Brendan Kehoe

Web page: http://www.zen.org/~brendan/