Lightweight laptops  I've been looking for a lightweight, compact, laptop for a long time. The Dell Axim PDA worked for most of my needs for a while until I cracked the screen. I used a foldable keyboard and could take notes in meetings and write up notes on trips. It was small and portable, but not quite powerful enough for my needs. There was no usb port, no wireless connectivity without purchasing add-ons, so I never got the screen repaired.

I recently discovered the Lenovo Thinkpad X40. It weighs 2.7 lbs., has a full keyboard, and has a long battery life of 5 hours. Here's a review.

It's still too much computer at too high a price. Why hasn't someone produced a really lightweight laptop with basic abilities, possibly with Linux as the OS. It just seems that there is a sweet spot between a PDA and laptop that isn't been filled.

[postscript] The Fujitsu LifeBook S2110 Notebook is getting close to what I need. It weighs 3.6 lbs., has 512MB memory, has a CD/DVD drive, and has wireless LAN, all for $1200.
posted by Bruce Wright at 1:07 PM #