If you were to use another brand of laptop what would be your first choice? If you had to choose something that wasn't a Thinkpad.

Dell Latitude or Toshiba Terca, primairly because they have non-glossy screens and better build quality than others I have used (hp pavilion seems sturdy but ...)

Apple, I love OSX.

If I absolutely had to, I'd go with the recent Dell Latitude e6400. I don't trust others, and don't like Macs.

i had serious issues with Macs before. I would most likely go with HP business with a trackpoint.

Wow, tough question.

My second choice after a ThinkPad is an HP EliteBook 8530p

OK... I answered the question now get your hands off my ThinkPad.....

Cheers...

Sony Z series #1 choice, in fact if I could afford it I would trade the thinkpad for it.
13" Macbook pro #2 choice

Apple or Toshiba ToughBook

EDIT: Actually, Panasonic makes the Toughbook, whoops.

If I can't have an IBM ThinkPad, I'll settle for a Lenovo ThinkPad, please.

I have recently abandoned the Thinkpad brand for an Osborne 1 ultraportable. I had a little trouble moving my emails over and I suppose the battery life could be better, but otherwise I get along just fine.

Very interesting. Out of all the choices available, how did you select the Osborne 1 ultraportable?
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Thanks
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The power and portability were nice, but what really got me was the dual memory card readers. The moment I saw that, the X200 I had in my sights went out the window.

The Ultraportable aspect leaves a slight question: 24.5 pounds?
Make sure you don't hold it in one hand gripping just the left corner!

I'd probably use an Apple, but my opinion could probably be swayed easily. Whatever the case, it'd have to be pretty linux-compatible. It's been years since I've used a laptop other than a Thinkpad.

For me it would be a tossup between HP's and DELL's business notebooks, because of the trackpoint, which is mandatory to me, and traditional business features like docking station support.

Kinda leaning towards DELL, because the keyboard arrangement is closer to a Thinkpad and the navigation keys are where they should be.

Panasonic Toughbooks are interesting models as far as size/weight ratios go, and I understood them to be quite sturdy as well. However lack of trackpoint is a no-no for me.

Having had Toshiba, Compaq and Dell laptops in the past, I couldn't possibly go back to using something other than a ThinkPad. So, I would login to eBay and buy a Smith-Corona portable typewriter and a HP programmable pocket calculator.

I'd also have to go with a Dell or HP, that had the Trackpoint style keyboard. I'll never understand how the trackpad became the dominant pointing device on a laptop. For me, keyboard shortcuts are just as fast as any mouse gesture tricks on a trackpad.

That's a painful question. Most likely a HP 6930p.

That was my main focus for a primary business machine until finding out I didn't need to go with HP or Dell.

Most likely an HP Elitebook, or Fujitsu (one which has a Trackpoint like device). Second choice would be a Dell Latitude.

I would have said Apple MacBook/MBP - I even had a purchase order for one ready to go at work a month or two ago - but cancelled it due to the despicable way they have been handling the Mini DisplayPort to Dual-Link DVI adapter issues that have been rampant for the last 6 months. For people that rely on hardware working properly (strange as it may seem ), it's absolutely inexcusable. Apple still just doesn't get how business computing works, it seems.

Desktop wise, as far as name brand machines go, I've had good experience with Dell Precisions and a Compaq desktop whose model I forget; and barely acceptable-at-best experiences with my current desktop at work, a Dell Optiplex. Looking forward to that being replaced with a quad-core HP Z400 Workstation real soon now...

Could you elaborate please on the issues and their handling (just curious).

If I were in the market now, I'd probably say a Latitude e6400. I consider it to be a fine machine. It has a better warranty and Dell offers a better return policy than Lenovo.

My answer is quite predictable to anyone who knows me...Panasonic ToughBook...

No trackpoint, different keyboard layout altogether...etc. etc.

Right.

If I can't have a ThinkPad, I won't buy a machine that emulates it or even resembles it, but something completely different...as immortal Pythons would have it...

When my much-pampered and adored '62 Benz (W111) was destroyed in a head-on collison over two decades ago, saving my life in the process, I haven't gone out and bought another Benz, but a Citroen DS instead...a car as different from W111 as it gets, still extremely interesting, and in a class of its own...

My $0.02 only...

If IBM and Lenovo computers never existed, I would use Apple computers.

I like your way of looking at things. To think of all the experience to be gained trying completely new things like that. Interesting....

I agree with some posters above going for a DELL or a HP business laptop with trackpoint. I just hope they don't get ditch out eventually in the future, even by Lenovo. Enough I've had with the standard screen - widescreen transition, and now they want they darn LCD manufacturers to produce 16:10 panels just to save money.

It would be kinda cool though if Lenovo could cram the most powerful Core 2 Duo on the sexy T4x chassis, that would be my dream Thinkpad.

With the new Mac Minis, Pros (one of the two monitor ports) and MacBook lines, they use a mini Displayport connector, and you need to use an adapter to hook up external monitors. The adapter for a Dual-Link DVI connector costs US$100 or so (though to be fair, it isn't a passive adapter) and was delayed for several months once it was announced.

When it finally does come out, it causes ghosting in the images, and regularly loses sync of the two DVI link channels. Since October, Apple still doesn't even acknowledge that there was a problem, first blaming third party 30" monitors for the problem, then quietly retracting this statement once they realised their own 30" Cinema Displays don't work reliably either.

They did recently release a firmware update for the adapter (while at the same time, still not mentioning this problem), but the adapter itself isn't updatable - you need to go into an Apple Store and ask for the adapter to be swapped over for a new one. But this update seems to make the display corruption worse, not better.

The problem is still not fixed, so anyone who sunk a huge amount of cash for high end stuff (e.g. MBP + 30" monitor) still doesn't have a reliable computing solution, and people thinking about buying such products (which supposedly "just work") are playing Russian Roulette. It's the kind of shoddy attention to detail you'd expect from a $4.99 gadget from eBay, and definitely not what you expect from the highest level pro-grade components from a premium computer manufacturer.

Excellent explanation, rek, much appreciated.

The proprietary mini-DP connector which requires a proprietary Apple adapter was a fishy solution to begin with, but the fact that the adapter even fails to work properly is somewhat surprising. I agree, not something you would expect from Apple. If anything, they have been known to make stuff that at least works well with their other stuff (and of course with very few other things)...

Not a Mac

I think if I had to use another brand I'd rather slit my wrists... That sounds more fun.

Panasonic Toughbook seems to be the only laptop brand that doesn't suck these days, and maybe even they suck (I haven't tried one). They're at least 4x as expensive as thinkpads and I can't afford them. Some Dells seem decently made but I never want to buy direct from them because they never stop sending you catalogs after that. An online acquaintance of mine recently had to get a COURT ORDER to get off their mailing list. As far as I can tell, Lenovo's main competitor is Apple, which has its own suckage problems.