mitbeaver writes "I'm planning a round-the-world trip. 6+ months in developing countries, including Everest base camps 1 & 2, the deserts of Namibia and lots of places in between. I want to bring something to write (blogs or the Great American Novel) and burn DVD photo backups to mail home. I don't really need much in the way of power. But I do need it to survive the altitude, dust, moisture of tropical locations, and being hauled around non-stop for the better part of a year.
I will be carrying my life in my backpack, so every pound counts. It looks like some "semi-rugged" ultraportables exist, but the truly "rugged" are all pretty heavy. These are pricey, and the risk of theft is non trivial. A smaller laptop is easier to keep on my person more often, which is safer (in most countries) than leaving it in the hostel/hotel. Still, the rugged guys are 2x the price — almost worth buying a cheap one and planning an on the road replacement purchase. Help!
Any Slashdotters out there have a favorite backpacker-laptop? Any other advice?"
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I will be carrying my life in my backpack, so every pound counts. It looks like some "semi-rugged" ultraportables exist, but the truly "rugged" are all pretty heavy. These are pricey, and the risk of theft is non trivial. A smaller laptop is easier to keep on my person more often, which is safer (in most countries) than leaving it in the hostel/hotel. Still, the rugged guys are 2x the price -- almost worth buying a cheap one and planning an on the road replacement purchase. Help!
Pick Two (Score:2)
I will be carrying my life in my backpack, so every pound counts. It looks like some "semi-rugged" ultraportables exist, but the truly "rugged" are all pretty heavy. These are pricey, and the risk of theft is non trivial. A smaller laptop is easier to keep on my person more often, which is safer (in most countries) than leaving it in the hostel/hotel. Still, the rugged guys are 2x the price -- almost worth buying a cheap one and planning an on the road replacement purchase. Help!
Rugged, light, cheap: pick any two.
redundancy (Score:1)
Get an external hard disk (like the WD passport) and backup early and often. Get two!
Then get a cheap, light laptop, maybe two and backup, backup, backup!
JGT