May not be what you were looking for but I'll throw it out anyway - get a small netbook and a desktop if you can.

I have decided I cannot stand laptops after I've seen expensive laptops with pretty hefty price tags die for stupid reasons about a week after the warranty expires. Maybe it's just my fault but I've known it happen to a few people. You're also looking at more money for similar specs on a PC.

Netbooks on the other hand are pretty great. They're tiny little things, but that's fine if it's just Linux and some small wm, plus you can ssh to things if you ever need something a bit bulkier. Mine has also lasted me about 4 years and still going strong, which can't be said of my laptop.

Just my two pence.