Laptop help

[DangerPaul]

I am considering buying myself a laptop for work instead of using a desktop. Looking for people's preference and experiences with them. I have never been a fan of these things, but the time has come for me to get one.

Basically I need a simple machine with a ton of power. My office software minimum specs is 1gb of ram and 2ghz processor plus other misc bullshit. Also, I will be loading AutoCad on it, so I will be drawing blueprints up with it. In other words, I need a machine that has no bells and whistles but is fast as fuck with great computing power. Any recommendations?

[Tikker]

i switched to laptop about a year ago now, and absolutely no regrets

how big of a screen do you need? is battery life important?
do you need a rugged machine to carry on site with you?

We've switched from Lenovo(ibm) to toshiba laptops at work, and they're pretty good

I've always personally really liked compaq's but they're not the same since HP bought them out.

I've got a big dell at home, for my personal machine and it's great, if a bit of a furnace

[10sun]

You'll want a dual core with a blazing processor for loading autocad shit.

Not sure how much you are out in the field, but you may even want to consider getting a Toughbook.

-Adam

[DangerPaul]

who makes the toughbook? I have heard of it before.

[10sun]

Panasonic.

To be quite honest, I had only laughed at the thought of them until I had seen them in action.

One took a direct blast from a steamhose and got knocked off the table and onto a concrete floor.
Picked it back up and it was still working just fine.

-Adam

[DangerPaul]

The only thing I am not down with is the fact you cannot purchase it through a local outlet. Which means you have to deal with online purchasing, which sucks for support etc. Going to think this through some more.

[Tikker]

on the last cisco course I was on, the instructor had one

on the back of the lid, he had a pretty good dent

he said it was from stopping a bullet while doing contract work in Iraq

(he was a military guy, and had pics of him in iraq)

[Project DARC]

we have a few toughbooks for our maintenance people those suckers can take a beating. we had one fall off the top of a press (approx 8-10 feet) and still work fine. the magnesium casing is worth it if you do any hazard work at all.

i absolutely hate the drivers and support though. and replacing the hard drive can be a bitch since its encased in so much impact absorption.