ditto on the Stinkpads. I bought a 2621 back in the day and it worked like a champ.. until my ex-wife tossed it out of the window one day
it was in the targus case, dropped from two stories and landed on grass. only broke the screen, everything else worked.
o.k. so the dvd quit about a year later but hey... a real testament to their build quality. I liked the thinkpad enough to consider rebuilding it even though it's already four years old. anyone sitting on some old 2621 parts they wanna get rid of??
as for other suggestions, bought my g/f a toshiba earlier this year and it appears to be a solid performer. the Vaios are nice too