I've had many notebooks.
Dell Inspiron IBM ThinkPad Toshiba Tecra Sony VAIO Compaq Armada
I have to say the best machine(s) I have seen or had are:
in second place : IBM ThinkPad 390x (15") version in first place my latest which is an IBM ThinkPad T22 900MHz.
Lightweight and absolutely robust, maybe because of the clever UltraBay 2000, the sleek slim look, and its Corporate reputation which is worldwide makes it the No 1 choice for professionals, but in my experience (whether its Linux or W2K) its the only machine that I can describe as 100% trustworthy. Unlike the Dell C600 the IBM defrags in a matter of a few minutes compared to 1 hour on the Dell !