I have been thinking about getting a laptop. Seeing all the laptops at OSCON made me want to get one now. The problem is, I am not sure which one to get. I want to get a small, light one. I have never gotten the point of the big laptops; the point is to carry them around. I would also like a Core Duo processor.
Unfortunately, the really light ultraportable tend to be underpowered, expensive, or both. I really like the [Samsung Q35](http://www.samsung.com/uk/products/mobilecomputing/ultramobile/np_q35t001suk.asp) with Core Duo, but it is expensive (and not available in the US). The [Gateway NX100X](http://www.gateway.com/products/gconfig/proddetails.asp?seg=hm&system_id=nx100x) and [Dell Latitude D420](http://www.dell.com/content/products/features.aspx/latit_d420?c=us&cs=04&l=en&s=bsd) both look nice and are not too expensive but are only Core Solo. The [ThinkPad X60](http://www.pc.ibm.com/us/notebooks/thinkpad/x-series/index.html) is supposed to be great but is expensive.
I like the [Apple MacBook](http://www.apple.com/macbook/macbook.html). The keyboard is usable, the screen is good. The extras, like the camera, are nice. And it looks nice; the black one is really nice but the premium is too much. The low cost is also nice. The only problem could be the weight. It weighs 5 lbs, which is at least a half-pound heavier than the competitors. I am not sure if lugging that around will be a problem. I will likely install Linux, either dual-booting or using virtualization.
There are a few contenders at four pounds. The [Lenovo 3000 V100](http://www.pc.ibm.com/us/notebooks/3000/v-series/) is heavier and cheaper than its ThinkPad cousin. Unfortunately, it only comes in two configurations either cheap and more limited, or expensive and more powerful than I wanted. The [Dell XPS M1210](http://www.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/xpsnb_m1210?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19) also sounds like a good compromise between power and cost. Dell and Lenovo also have 14″ models, the [Latitiude D620](http://www.dell.com/content/products/features.aspx/latit_d620?c=us&cs=04&l=en&s=bsd) and [ThinkPad T60](http://www.pc.ibm.com/us/notebooks/thinkpad/t-series/index.html) and Z60t.