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As far as I know, the NEC Powermate Eco is the only computer that has been built with the foresight to have recyclable parts. A look at just how bad things have gotten (re: computer salvaging) can be found here.

When I follow the link I come to a page where the fonts are all squished up vertically, with outliers like "g" dangling down and colliding with the next line's "P"s. Anyone else see this? Yes I run at 1600x1200 with mozilla's minimum font size set pretty high.

There was a similar question a while ago about sunlight-viewable screens. The information there may be of use.

To parrot my own previous comment, NEC sells a laptop called the Versa DayLite (aka the LaVie MX in Japan) with a special "reflective LCD" screen that makes it usable outdoors. It also allows it (along with a second internal battery behind the screen) to run up to 8 hours.

On the downside, the screen isn't very good indoors - NEC says it's "suitable for occasional indoor use". The user reviews I've read agree with this (but for your application this doesn't seem too important). PCWorld also has a review.

http://www.neccomp.com/v2/products/PowerMate/eco/

It's based on the Transmeta CPU. I couldn't see a typical power rating, but the PSU is rated around 80 W, including monitor. Looks to be basically a notebook on the desktop.

S.

I know I've posted about this before, but quite possibly your ideal laptop would be the Transmeta Crusoe-based NEC Versa DayLite. They're wonderful machines, with a transflective display, backlight you can switch on and off, and something ridiculous like eight hours of battery life if you're using it outside.

I have it's more normal brother, the NEC Ultralite, which has a normal TFT LCD, and it gets five full hours under hard usage, with the screen brightness up all the way, and the hard drive never spinning down, constantly writing, and the 802.11b card going and online. Under normal usage it does even better.

And of course, I'm dumping it once I can find a DayLite that won't cost me US$2500. :)

• 168 MHz MIPS processor
  
• 9.4" SVGA (64k colors) touch screen
  
• 78-key keyboard with a comfortable 17.5mm keypitch
  
• 32MB RAM
  
• Type II CF slot
  
• Type II PC Card slot
  

NEC sells a laptop called the Versa DayLite (aka the LaVie MX in Japan) with a special "reflective LCD" screen that makes it usable outdoors. It also allows it (along with a second internal battery behind the screen) to run up to 8 hours.

On the downside, the screen isn't very good indoors - NEC says it's "suitable for occasional indoor use". The users reviews I've read agree with this. PCWorld also has a review.

Please don't write us off just yet. We have over two years worth of cash in the bank, and we've recently announced our second product. The Crusoe chip has been very popular in Japan, including holding the #1 Notebook Top Seller spot for a while.

Is it easy to go up against Intel? Of course not. This is not an overnight, just-add-water kind of deal. We're trying to change the way people perceive computing. NEC has taken our chip and combined it with a low-power screen for further power savings. RLX is using the Crusoe chip to build ultra-dense server racks. Granted, there's some overcapacity in this area at the moment, but that could turn around.

Yes, our stock price has been beaten down. Yes, Intel is a formidable competitor. Yes, we've had a management shake-up. I don't think it's nearly as bad as the CNET article makes it sound. I'm not looking for a new job, and I'm staying fully vested with the ESPP. Let's wait and see what happens. You may be pleasantly surprised.

I'm currently planning on replacing my six pound Gateway Solo 9300 laptop (P3/800, 160mb, 20gb, 15.1") with one of these two Transmeta Crusoe-based laptops. Mostly because they're uber-light, and with all-day staying power. I'll take offers on the laptop, btw. :)

The first is the Casio MPC-206E Cassiopeia FIVA. It runs the Crusoe TM5600 at 600MHz, which means it's probably comparable to a 400MHz P2/P3. 8.4" TFT LCD, 800x600. Max 192mb RAM, comes with a 20gb HD. Cool toys include onboard 56k softmodem, 10/100 ethernet, 1 Type II PCMCIA slot, sound, VGA out, video out, FireWire, CompactFlash, USB, and an included dual-boot Linux partition. However it's also A5 sized (8.7" x 7.7" x 0.83"), and some people have found it too small to type well on. Nine hours of battery life with the extended life (heavier) battery, and it only weighs 2.18 pounds without.

The other option is the NEC LaVie MX or MX2. Another Crusoe laptop, this one boasts a larger 10.4" 1024x768 reflective LCD (so it's daylight readable) with a backlight you can turn on indoors, and is larger overall. 10/100 is with a dongle, two USB, no FireWire, VGA out is with a dongle, and no video out. Battery life is 8-11 hours standard (no additional batteries to switch in), it's 10.4" x 8.3" x .83~1.16" (?), and weighs 3.27lbs. Battery life is reportedly around half that if the backlight is turned on the whole time.

Dynamism has a neat comparison engine, linked to there showing the LaVie MX2 and the Fiva.

Also, NEC has the Versa DayLite, which is the US model of the LaVie MX, so you don't necessarily have to find an importer like Dynamism for it.

. . .

Please don't flame me, as a helpful AC ( in this post ) has already mentioned this machine's existence.

I've been thinking hard about this one. Byte Reviewed the new Libretto L1 here and it sounds awesome. Not only Crusoe based, but has Bluetooth too. Which may not be to your liking, or cause grief on 2.4ghz, depending on your air interface preferences. But hey, I got a Bluetooth GPRS mobile and it's soooo tempting :)

The informed AC gave a very cool reference for Linux info : on Yahoo Groups to which I can only add this picture gallery froma company I found who sells the things properly localised, but, sadly, not with a distro.

Please forgive me if my post already redundant, but this little machine could rock.

Oooh - oo I just saw NEC have some MIPS based things that look like rebadged HP Jornada 720s, only nicer looking. Wonder if anyone can get Linux support on these???

. . .

Please don't flame me, as a helpful AC ( in this post ) has already mentioned this machine's existence.

I've been thinking hard about this one. Byte Reviewed the new Libretto L1 here and it sounds awesome. Not only Crusoe based, but has Bluetooth too. Which may not be to your liking, or cause grief on 2.4ghz, depending on your air interface preferences. But hey, I got a Bluetooth GPRS mobile and it's soooo tempting :)

The informed AC gave a very cool reference for Linux info : on Yahoo Groups to which I can only add this picture gallery froma company I found who sells the things properly localised, but, sadly, not with a distro.

Please forgive me if my post already redundant, but this little machine could rock.

Oooh - oo I just saw NEC have some MIPS based things that look like rebadged HP Jornada 720s, only nicer looking. Wonder if anyone can get Linux support on these???

Okay, you can accuse me of bias all you like, but I rather like my NEC laptop. I've got a Versa SXi, and had a Versa FX (no longer produced) before that. Both work *extremely* well (at least, they do with Red Hat 7.2).

I haven't heard or read anything about this LaVie U notebook line from NEC. It is not mentioned on nec.com. Will these notebooks only be available in Japan (The press statement only mentions NEC Japan!)?

That would mean a relatively low level of support for the mobile Duron, wouldn't it? It would fit the impression you get when you look at the press statements on NEC's website: They still praise the introduction of the mobile PIII 800Mhz but I can't find anything about the new notebooks.

I haven't heard or read anything about this LaVie U notebook line from NEC. It is not mentioned on nec.com. Will these notebooks only be available in Japan (The press statement only mentions NEC Japan!)?

That would mean a relatively low level of support for the mobile Duron, wouldn't it? It would fit the impression you get when you look at the press statements on NEC's website: They still praise the introduction of the mobile PIII 800Mhz but I can't find anything about the new notebooks.