Looking at your list I would be concerned about the "name brands". From some of the articles I've seen on Sun it appears they are moving to being a software only company. If I was on my work notebook I could give you the link. When I was doing tech support the brand of notebook I had to work on the most was Dell. I'm currently using an HP Compaq nc6220 for work and my personal notebook is a Compaq Presario 915 that's 5 1/2 years old. I've never had an issue with either one. Well, I have had to replace the battery on the Presario