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Wouldn't it be awesome if there was a really good spec laptop that was designed to run perfectly with free software? This is an attempt to define the specs for that machine. If you are interested in news of the project (i.e. you'd like to know if such a laptop comes on the market and are a potential buyer) then please join here too:

• https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/free-software-laptop

Mark's blog entry for reference:

• [http://www.markshuttleworth.com/archives/131 Willing to buy a high-end, free-software-only laptop?]

Correction from Mark's blog, Openbios is not the new name for linuxbios. linuxbios is the framework, and openbios is the payload

Specifications

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Must have:

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• ACPI that Just Works with Linux (suspend and hibernate)
• LinuxBIOS (faster boot time and more efficient than proprietary bios)
• 5 hour+ battery life (with Ubuntu 7.10 or later, tickless kernel)
• 1024x768 screen (or higher?) - smaller but better for battery life and mobility
• Wireless a/g/n, Bluetooth, hardware on/off control
• phone-quality mic and speakerphone

• hardware-based volume & mute controls

These will make it larger/more expensive, but are nice:

• DVI or Display Port or HDMI (digital video out)
• RCA or S-Video (TV-out)

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• hardware-based volume & mute controls

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• express card slot (54mm)
• multi-format card reader

• consumer IR for remote control applications (like [http://www.pepper.com/forums/showthread.php?t=161 PepperPad])

Please feel free to flesh this out, specifying components that hit the "sweet spot" of battery life and mobility and are known to work with free software drivers. Please don't turn this into a "my dream laptop would have 5Ghz processor with 12 cores and 36 hours of battery life" exercise, let's try to outline something that an ODM in Taiwan could feasibly make today with at most one miracle required.

• LucaCappelletti:

  • 1) 12inch 2) 60GB capable solid state disk 3) Capable of good 3D to manage 3D desktops and compositing

    4) Dual WiFi to allow peer2peer Netsukuku-like routing embedding the device into a new cooperative environment 5) Touchscreen or Wide area touchpad

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• John Teddy: Intel is blatantly unhelpful with the linuxbios project. Intel wants to promote their EFI bios and they are proud of the DRM capabilities it has the potential for, and they tell the big media conglomorates this. [http://linuxbios.org/Supported_Motherboards I don't think any Intel motherboards work well with linuxbios]. They have been deliberately unhelpful to linuxbios people(check their -devel lists) ATI should obviously not be rewarded, yes their old graphics chipsets have open documentation, but that's only because it has no value to them. They only give us the old crud they don't want anymore.

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• John Teddy: Intel is blatantly unhelpful with the linuxbios project. Intel wants to promote their EFI bios and they are proud of the DRM capabilities it has the potential for, and they tell the big media conglomorates this. [http://linuxbios.org/Supported_Motherboards I don't think any Intel motherboards work well with linuxbios]. They have been deliberately unhelpful to linuxbios people(check their -devel lists) ATI should obviously not be rewarded, yes their old graphics chipsets have open documentation, but that's only because it has no value to them. They only give us the old crud they don't want anymore.

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• John Teddy: And as for wireless, ralink and realtek are very very helpful(ask Theo from OBSD), but their technology kind of stinks compared to Atheros, atheros has the binary HAL to subjugate us though. Although they claim it's FCC regulations they're following. But just last week, Matt Norwood and others from Software Freedom law center worked on this whitepaper .. http://www.softwarefreedom.org/news/2007/jul/06/sdr-paper/ "SFLC Releases White Paper on FCC's New Rules Relating to FOSS in Software-Defined Radio Devices" Maybe someone could get Atheros to read that whitepaper from SFLC anyway. The openhal madwifi branch is coming along very well, it works with many chipsets right now [ http://svn.madwifi.org/branches/madwifi-old-openhal svn checkout madwifi-free]. So the one miracle should be openhal branch of madwifi svn working with the card in this laptop.

• JonathanCarter: Laptops with 14.1" WXGA (1200x800) displays are a bit more useful while still being very battery-life-friendly. I would rather suggest this than a 1024x768 display, unless of course you want a 12" display. Mark, what kind of display size do you have in mind? Another consideration, would you rather want a single-core CPU that consumes less power (longer battery life), or a dual-core chip that gives better performance with a slight decrease in battery life?

  • ["MichaelRBernstein"] a 14.1" widescreen would work very well for my needs. I'd like to note that a big contributor to the problem with laptops in business-class seating is the width of the bezel around the screen. keeping this to 1/4" or so (both above and below) will make whatever screen size we have much more usable in that environment. Conversely, a folding arm that can raise the screen an extra few inches (something like the arm on a Samsung 970P monitor) in other situations would be a bonus.

• Nathan DBB: A small 1024x768 screen with all-Intel chips sounds like a Mobile Internet Device (MID). Examples: Convertable-Style [http://www.tweaktown.com/news/7768/index.html Fujitsu Lifebook U1010] (optional 7 hour battery) or Tablet-Style [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_N800 Nokia N800]. The U1010 uses the Intel 945GU chipset (like GMA 950, AFAIK). The 945 is also used in the [http://laptoping.com/dell-latitude-d430.html D430] that JeffWaugh pointed out, and in the upcoming [http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/03/more-details-revealed-on-dells-latitude-xt-tablet/ Dell Tablet PC]. Laptops larger then 12" will not fit well in airline coach, and larger screens draw more power. [http://www.tmdisplay.com/tm_dsp/press/2007/07-03-20.html This WXGA 10" looks nice] and its LED-lit at 300 cd/m2 under 3 watts. A [http://www.synaptics.com/technology/tcps.cfm transparent touch pad] could go over this screen, and could have a [http://research.microsoft.com/~lornab/publications/CHI2007_brewster.pdf on-screen keyboard (U of Glasgow PDF)] with [http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,1697,2153824,00.asp vibration feedback (Nokia PR)]. Just [http://www.starryhope.com/nokia-n800/2007/google-maps-on-the-nokia-n800/ VNC into your mobile device from a desktop to "code"] on a larger screen/keyboard. It should have phone-quality mic & speakerphone. The Intel 945GU/950 should run Ubuntu's desktop effects, but it will be a bit slow.

• QuentinHartman: I'd second that 1024x768 is a bit on the too small side if some level of general appeal is the goal. a 13.3" screen running at a higher resolution would be a good middle ground of usability and power consumption, especially if it were LED backlit. In terms of specs, the new Dell XPS M1330 would likely be a good baseline to measure against. Not too big, not too small.

• LvanderRee: I Agree too that 1024x768 is a little too small, but I think a 14" screen would be too big for a laptop you take with you everyday. I too would also opt for a screensize of 13.3" like in the Sony C- or SZ-series. An Intel graphics card would be fine, as long as compiz can really run smoothly with all features (inc. glass/blur effects).

• HansdeZwart: Would it be a good idea to try and have a decent built-in webcam that would be supported? Currently it can be quite hard to get that working.

• FlorianFaber: Magnesium case (good heat dissipation), 13.3" LED backlight (light & bright), camera, bluetooth and UMTS/HSDPA builtin, Flash disc + HDD and less than 2kg. That's basically what I have extended my Sony S class laptop right now (except the metal casing) with tons of external gadgets. CPU performance is not a big issue (as long as it plays back full screen H264) - it simply has to connect to everything everywhere without carrying more than 2kg.

• IanBicking: If everyone else is anti-1024x768, just to give a bit of balance I am pro small screen, low resolution. It would be neat if it could have a large enough flash disk, with appropriate caching, so that I could do most of my activities without hitting the hard drive.

• VincenzoDiSomma: I wouldn't mind a multicard reader.

• ["MichaelRHead"]: Hey Ian, what's the benefit (for you) in having a low res monitor? I can see the argument for a small (in inches) display, but what's the point of low pixel count?
• Armand CORBEAUX : 12" display, external monitor and S-Video output, passive cooling (that's the miracle part), DVD-DL burner, bluetooth module (for mobile support, calendar/tasks/mails synchronisation) and ROHS certification (we must take care of Earth). Realtek as manufacturer for ethernet and audio chipset. A 56k modem (manufacturer?), 8 USB 2.0 on the back (supported by Intel chipset), firewire and IR ports (?), and external volume ajustement.

• Superjan: a stunning look! The laptop should also look good when powerd-off, and it should be possible to recognize a ubuntu-user from a distance. No more mac-tax for those who want to have an nice-looking laptop

• Kaleo: I woul need a higher resolution to be able to work on it, at least 1400x1050. Trackpoint (thinkpad style stick pointer) is also a very important point which greatly enhances productivity.

• JeffWaugh: A laptop exists that is very close to the specifications suggested here: the [http://www.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/latit_d420 Dell D420] (and now, the slightly more modern [http://www.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/latit_d430 Dell D430]). I'm extremely happy with mine (including the dock, which has a DVI port for the 24" screen on my desk), and will be bringing it along to Ubuntu Live. Given the existing relationship with Dell, perhaps the D4x0 series or the similarly delicious XPS m1330 (which is in Dell's "poweruser" range rather than "business") might be good candidates to negotiate from.

• BenWilber: I am definitely interested in something ultra-mobile with excellent power management. 5 hours would be thrilling. Is this something that would run Gobuntu or Ubuntu Mobile?

• ChrisSmith: You guys are going to think I'm crazy, but I really want a 1920x1200 display. It seems like if you can go with the smaller displays, it isn't too hard to get a fairly Linux compatible system, even get something sold by a place that specializes in Linux laptops. But 1920x1200... that you can only get for the big guys, with only specific hardware, and Linux support is always dicey.

• TomasTtKrag: The closer to a Lenovo Thinkpad X60 the better. Stick pointer, small size and weight, great solidity, wireless b+g, bluetooth, decent docking solutions, 12" display etc. And all that with free drivers.

• Lemsto: I was reading all that's already asked up there, and i was thinking about 2 Laptops?! A "business" one (12" or 13,3" screen, no webcam, monocore cpu) and a "leisure" one ( 14" or 15" screen, good soundcard, webcam, dualcore cpu). And i'd like in both: 5 or 10Go Flash disk for / + HDD for /home, Bluetooth, Wifi, and a dock.

• DanTrevino: I disagree with the small screen/low res (1024x768). A good amount of screen real estate is always helpful. I'd personally trade a few minutes of batter for 1400x1050 or better, plus 3D support for my non-working hours.

• AgostinoRusso: 13.3" is a good compromise, better with LED backlight, res 1280×800 should also be a good compromise, weight less than 2kg, and battery life greater than 5hr under real usage, wireless 802.11b/g/n, multicard reader, built-in mic. Durable hinges, and power connector. Optional: built-in camera, bluetooth, HSPDA/3G. The Dell XPS M1330 should be a good starting point.

• WritingSama: Support 720p HD, so a 1280x800 screen is a must. A webcam can be implemented at the top of the screen very cheaply nowadays. Intel is coming out with a new line of mobile GPU's that are much, much better than the GMA950 - if they follow suit with the GMA950 open source driver release, that might be a good choice. TV-out of some sort - S-Video at the least - is a good and useful feature. I'd also have to suggest a dual-core CPU and at least 1.5gb of RAM, because virtualization is becoming more and more important. Personally, I have to boot into windows to use decent voice recognition, as I have severe tendinitis. It's my only use for Windows anymore.

• Sveinung2: I want the OS, BIOS and all other firmware that can do as they want to the computers RAM to be Free software. If it is not possible to have Free firmware on devices like WiFI an IOMMU should be installed to prevent the unfree firmware from becoming a security/stability problem. I also suggest generalizing the spec to mention functionality under free software instead of vendors and standards. "ACPI that Just Works with Linux (suspend and hibernate)" for example should IMHO be "Suspend, hybernate, sensors and power control that Just Works with Linux using only Free software"

• JacobPadilla: At least 720P, and 1280x800 at 14 in. would be perfect for me. I recommended it to Dell Idea Storm back in February [http://www.dellideastorm.com/people/jacobpadilla/articles] (some developer from OLPC was my only commenter). Speaking of OLPC / XO-1, this thing should be standard so that if some weirdo wanted to install Windows/OpenBSD/Solaris/OS2 Warp on it then they could (but Ubuntu will run better of course). You can't do that with XO-1, it's not proprietary but it's not industry standard either. So needs to be industry standard. One major goal should be to promote development of drivers that should be usable on other laptops. HDMI would be great in that it outputs both video and audio, plus it's smaller than a DVI or VGA port. A Firewire port would be pretty key if we'd like media types to adopt this thing. 1920x1080 is pretty worthless without modern hardware MPEG2 and MPEG4 acceleration in drivers. Finally, If this thing is to support community software I can't stress enough how strongly I feel the proceeds it generates should benefit free software communities. Funding better-video-driver evangelism would be a great place to start! Of course the folks at FFmpeg need to be included somehow so that libavcodec has some kind of documented/easily programmable facility for drivers to work with. Trackpoint gets my vote too. I'm the user of a beautiful Thinkpad T23 that (video drivers aside) is still up to snuff for me to do most things and it only has a Trackpoint. Love it! In summary:

  • Santa Rosa
  • X3100
  • Industry Standard
  • Use proceeds to fund development of drivers and codecs
  • libavcodec
  • Firewire
  • ULV Core 2 Duos (I just added that one)

  Another idea would be to partner with a company, like AMD, that doesn't have good open source support and market the laptop as a sort of non-profit development kit.

• BerniePallek: Since mankind has finally settled on a "true HD" format (1920x1080), why not make that a standard mode in the video controller for the laptop, and provide a quality output connector (HDMI?), so the laptop can easily be used with HDTVs? Use a 16:9 or other well-known aspect ratio (and 1280x720 sounds great -- and very technically affordable -- for a built-in laptop screen) to reduce scaling/sizing issues. Provide a decent number of USB ports (5?), each with a fully independent host controller (again, to counter the corner-cutting by device makers). Finally, chalk up one more vote for the trackpoint-style input device -- it's compact, fast, accurate, reliable, and those who don't like it just need more practice.

• Toma4: If we're talking about new hardware, you could make a special onboard section of RAM/ROM that could house the kernel and all its juicy free drivers, leaving more RAM for you and me to play with, possibly speeding it up using a better system bus? Mind you, thats ALOT of work. But, possible. the Free/Open motherboard. Just a pipe dream.

• wdsl: Display: 13,3", 1280*720 LED-Backlight, Using sunlight to use it outside;Connections: 5x USB (2right, 2x back, 1 left), Bluetooth, Wlan (802.11g/n), 1-2x GBitLan, HDMI+VGA out, stereo out/in with mechanical control.Components: energy efficient CPU/GPU + Chipset, 1-2GB RAM, 64GB Flashdisk, DVD-DL Writer;other: less than 2kg, 5 hour battery life,keyboard with lighting letters, Trackpoint, touchpad with 3 Buttons and marked Scrollareas

• PeterVanderKlippe: Is there any chance of a transflective screen? They are great for battery life and visibility outdoors. Oh, and if we can get this to be as upgradable as possible. 1-2 ExpressCard Slots, Lots of USB (at least 4), Mini-pci Wlan, DVI out, Bluetooth. I know everyone is voting for a 13-14" 1280*720 screen, but here is a vote for a 15" 1920x1080 screen. As soon as we have resolution independent GUI bits this will be the best choice. Oh, and please 2 full ram slots.

• AaronWhitehouse: The difficulty here is evident on this page already. Current Linux users are predominantly technophiles and each is very demanding and very particular about what they like. It will be very difficult to satisfy those that want a performance desktop-replacement, an ultra-mobile and an economic balanced option with the same machine. One approach, of course, would be to offer a range of machines. The most important requirements from your list from the freedom point of view is the full driver, OpenBIOS and ACPI support. Specifying the rest will mean that the project constantly argues about "important specs". It is also true that a range of machines already meet most of those requirements (with the exception of the BIOS) - even my old Dell Inspiron 510m. Perhaps a better approach is to get together with FSF, LSB, other distributions, the Linux Foundation etc. etc. and put some weight behind a "Fully Free Laptop" badge (and search/review site). I think you may end up trying to satisfy everyone and satisfying none.

• DonSmith: While I definately agree that linux users are demanding, other companies seem to service their customers with only 1 or two product entries (Apple for example only has 2 general laptop models, then scales based on screen size/drive space/processor/memory). My dream would be pretty simple, a 13.3" tablet with dvd burner, 1394, 3 usbs, a card reader, external display, ethernet, wifi, bluetooth, and a camera. This may seem extravagant, but hp has a low end model that meets 90% of the requirements. It uses AMD instead of intel, which cuts cost, but if switched to intel would probably meet all the driver requirements except for bios, which from what I understand, amd is leading in. Even with amd, the only thing that jumps out is the geforce, which nouveau already drives, albiet slowly.

• VladCodrea: Wireless cards that don't require downloadable firmware are already available. Examples include [http://rt2x00.serialmonkey.com some cards by RaLink]. Dialup modem: back in 2001 IBM released a Thinkpad dialup modem with a completely Free/Open Source driver called [http://www.linux.com/base/ldp/howto/ACP-Modem/index.html ACP Modem (Mwave)]. [http://LinuxBIOS.org LinuxBIOS] is actively being developed, and the main OpenBIOS developer (Stephen Reinauer) now spends his time working on LinuxBIOS, so LinuxBIOS is preferrable to OpenBIOS.

• StuartLangridge: me personally, I don't care about how many pixels are on the screen. I'd like to see a power supply with a thin lead and no (or a very small) power brick; current laptop power supplies are huge and take up lots of room in a bag (other than the Apple ones, which is the model for what I'm talking about). A built-in camera (a la the Vaios) would be nice for conferencing. Bluetooth and wifi supported out of the box by free drivers, as mentioned. (I've [http://www.markshuttleworth.com/archives/131 made some notes] before about what I'd like to see in a laptop.) Basically, the very existence of a laptop supported by and supplied with Gobuntu will be such a marvellous change that the details of exactly what hardware specs it has can be hashed out later.

• SAAAllen: Screen resolution to me would be last on the list - 1024x768 is fine as long as the graphics chip is capable of antialiasing and resampling to eliminate any low-resolution artefacts. I have an older desktop PC running Compiz-Fusion smoothly to the specs of P4 1.7GHz / 256MB DDR / 20GB HDD / Intel945GM onboard graphics. F/OSS can push the hardware limits further than I ever could have expected, and I *don't* need to upgrade anything for years to experience hardware accelerated effects written for a modern society. That's what I would expect this laptop to do, prove that it's not the small system capabilities that makes a slow system - but a bloated, patent-lawsuit-ridden, poorly-designed operating system (which GNU/Linux is not, ofcourse).
• TyraelTLK: Integrated Smart Card Reader. To login, sign, encrypt with GnuPG smart card like the FSFE Fellowship Card (ehy! What about an "Ubuntu Card"?).

  http://www.fsfe.org/en/card http://www.fsfe.org/en/fellows/tyrael/fsfe_card_complete_how_to_ubuntu_feisty CardMan 4040 PCMCIA http://omnikey.aaitg.com/index.php?id=products&tx_okprod_pi1[product]=27

• AlanPope: [http://uk.computers.toshiba-europe.com/cgi-bin/ToshibaCSG/jsp/productPage.do?service=UK&PRODUCT_ID=122147&toshibaShop=false This Toshiba Portege M400] has the Intel 945 video (so compiz works) and Intel 3945ABG wifi, a 12" screen running at a very useful 1400x1050, GPRS, SD card reader, 3xUSB, 1xfirewire, bluetooth and finger print reader. It's also a tablet. Battery life is a little sucky, but you can add a second one in the slim media bay. It's not a massive laptop so it doesn't have a lot of room for a battery.

• Stephen: Working in laptop repair, the single biggest point of failure for a laptop is the power socket - every second hardware repair is due to the pin in it breaking, or the socket snapping off the motherboard. Apple has the right idea with this one - say what you like about their new connector, it won't break!

• IronHide: InstantOn! Regardless of the specs after powering on it should take one to the "desktop" already without going thru those pesky BIOS POST tests. Those who are old enough to have owned and use an Apple ][ knows what I'm talking about after the power on (AppleDOS cursor blinking and waiting for your next command).

• MatsWichmann: if it could be "anything on the market now" it would be the compact Sony TX series (current "best" is known as the VGN-TXN29N/L in the US if someone wants to search), there looks to be a lot of hardware that won't run open drivers. Compact means expensive, too. I'm liking the concept of hardware decoding, where the "license" becomes part of the cost of the hardware (see Future section below).

• Oleg: Good idea, but is it possible at this time FULLY free software only laptop? What about AMD Turion X2 based laptop with linux/OpenBIOS and Nvidia Video Card e.g Geforce 7800go at the first step? (In the future, when possible, replaced with the Video Card with open drivers).
• DJ Losch: As far as batteries go, there normal batteries (8 cell), extended cell batteries (9-12 cells), bay batteries (4-6 cells, which slide in and out of the bay used for the optical drive), and slice batteries (4-6 cells, which plugs into the docking base port). A laptop with an extended cell, bay, and slice battery could have 17-24 cells. Rather heavy but it would also have a 15+ hour battery life. Make sure that the discharge order is slice, bay, main battery. The future of computing no longer uses optical disks, and many people can go without them most of the time.
• Anonymous: I intend to rarely use the optical drive on the laptop, and hence, would also like to see multiple options for the connection of extra batteries as suggested here above. The batteries would not have to be restricted to a "perfect fit" of the rectangular laptop case (I think Gateway offers a model that features this), ie. I would like battery options that stuck out from the sides, thus allowing the inclusion of batteries with more cells (eg 9 cell rather than 6 cell modular bay battery, or 15 cell rather than 12 cell primary battery) and battery shapes that are other than strictly rectangular (eg L or T shaped batteries?) - this of course assumes that all battery cells are equal in terms of "running time capacity". Also, batteries that could be connected via other options (such as usb ports).

however, these may not be popular options and may not gather enough support to be added to the final product.

• cbTapir :

  CPU: Turion 64 X2 TL-60 Motherboard: VIA codename "K8T900" RAM: 2GB 667 Mhz dual channel Graphics: Found this in VIA's homepage: ...integrate S3 Graphics technologies based on shared memory architecture, from UniChrome™ through to the latest Chrome9™ IGP core. Screen: 14.1\'\' for mobility + bettery life and easily readable text 1440x900 is the resolution to go. A bright(glossy) screen option must be included. HDD: 7200 RPM with 80 to 160 GB option. Wireless: Atheros & Bluetooth Battery: 6 or 9 cell option. Life should be at least 4.5+ hours with a 9 cell battery. Weight: Maximum 5.5 pounds with a 9 cell battery Ports/Slots: 1 x Express card, 1 x Smart Media, 3 x USB 2.0, 1 x Powered USB 2.0, 1 x Firewire, DVI / HDMI / S-Video.

• ["Davidjones"]: : A 1024x768 screen is really pointless, for software developers like me. Native HDTV resolution would say a lot about being entertainment-focused. For the visually impaired, lowering the resolution is not the solution, it's just a band-aid. Putting a higher resolution screen on the laptop would create a truly uniquely valuable product for a lot of people, and would also put more focus on developing the Ubuntu desktop into a properly resolution-independent display medium. As a side note, when I decided to buy a new laptop earlier this year, the screen was my biggest concern -- I ended up with a Macbook Pro at 1440x900. I wouldn't settle for anything less, plus it's a great platform for Ubuntu.

• LimSweeTat: I will like to see laptops do away with screens, and just project to the eyes vis-a-vis wearable computers. Where we are seeing PDAs and phones converge, nothing has been done yet to see a convergence of wearable computers and laptops, and this is where a Linux cool factor, can do it attitude can make hardware vendors do it.

• KaHa : (Excuse me for my bad English)

  • Full 64 bits, dual core with virtualisation enable technologies CPU.
  • 12.1 inch wild screen with at least 1440x900 resolution, LED backlight, Outdor wiewable
  • Tablet PC with wacom technologie or dual with touchscreen.
  • Low or middle end new generation ATI graphical card (ATI because i believe AMD will release the open driver) (somthing like an HD2400).
  • Wifi and bluettoth. Maybe wimax or GSM 3G quad band WWAN.
  • 8 or 10 Go flash drive for system and Hard drive for home.

  • Dual layer DVD writer with maybe LightScribe. Media bay with optionnal batterie.

  • Two batteries so we can change one when the laptop run on the other.
  • Internationnal power supply.

  • Some expandable apability : many usb (3 ??) FireWire, PCMCIA or ExpressCard and docking station.

  • Backlighted keybord.
  • Harware button for turning on and off : wifi, bluetooth and backlignt.
  • please less than 2kg.
• ["MichaelRBernstein"] : I'd like
  • a 7+ hour battery life, even if some performance had to be sacrificed.
  • I'd also prefer lower weight (4/4.5 pounds max).
  • As for the screen debate, higher resolution is better, but 1024x768 12" is entirely usable. Do consider smaller widescreens as well though (ie. 14" widescreen). A 12" widescreen is too small, though.
  • CD/DVD combo drive. Doesn't need to be a burner.

  • WiFi, of course. But can we get a little creative with Software Defined Radio or Mesh networking here?

  • microphone and headphone jacks
  • If the hardware is fully available for control from software, we can dispense with most external controls and extra buttons, like volume controls and specialty keys. Simplicity is a feature.
  • 10/100 Ethernet
  • 80Gb hard-drive is plenty
  • 1 USB 2.0 port
  • ruggedizing/weatherizing would be nice. Beyond that I'm pretty flexible. I don't much care, for example, how *thick* the laptop is if it is light enough. I don't care if there is a modem, I don't care about bluetooth, I don't care about firewire. If the networking works, I don't need a PCMCIA card slot.

    One note: Since there seem to be many conflicting requests here, maybe a pro could be brought in to conduct a rigorous survey? Someone like Howard Moskowitz. Remember there is no perfect laptop, there are only perfect laptops.

• AzraelNightwalker: I'd like a keyboard that has a normal (Desktop PC like) keys layout, which's most important part for me is the layout of Ins, Del, Home, End, PgUp and PgDown - I really hate when these keys are aligned vertically. When you switch often between a laptop and a desktop PC you'll feel that. These keys shoud be aligned like this:

(Ins) (Home) (PgUp)
(Del) (End)  (PgDn)

Many HP Compaq and IBM/Lenovo laptops have this keyboard layout.

• - Anonymous: I would like to see a keyboard layout that was as close to a normal full keyboard layout as was possible (as can be found on some of the larger laptop models from the more popular manufacturers). And of course, I would like to see 15.4 or 17" screen options. The weight of the laptop is not a concern for me.
  • - Dual labelled (in different colours!?) keyboard that can button-switch between QWERTY and DVORAK modes (there was a desktop version of this idea a few years ago but I don't remember which company offered it)

• - digital and analog TV signal and AM/FM radio and GPS reception capabilities!?

* GeryMate : somehow touchpads are pretty common these days, however, as some people pointed out earlier in this document, not everybody likes using them. I think, this is heavily based on the fact, that scrolling, which is a quite common task nowadays, is a pain with touchpads, and even scrolling areas don't solve this problem: they just make interaction with the computer a more complex task. This is a configuration problem that arises from tradition. Instead of the right button bringing up the context menu, it should enable the mouse (touchpad) movement to scroll in all four direction, while the context menu should be available on pressing the right button and the left button at the same time. It may seem weird at first glance, but it is an easily adoptable change (we are talking about freedom, aren't we?), which seems to highly empower Touchpad users. It would be nice to see this in Ubuntu the first time. For more details: https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+bug/129413 .

• ["MichaelRHead"]: Hmm... I find I need at least 1000 vertical pixels to get enough lines of code on the screen when I'm working. A smaller (12-13") screen with high res (1400x1050 or 1680x1050) would fit my needs better. Also, it's critical (for me personally) for the laptop to have a thinkpad-style stick pointer. Touchpads are useless to me.

• DekeClinger: Reiterate the requirement for Thinkpad-style pointer. I also really really like having three mice buttons built into the machine as on the Thinkpad: X11 is much less useful without that third button.

• John B.: I second the necessity for a thinkpad style stick pointer. I just cannot use a touchpad. Also don't limit to only Intel graphics. I currently use the open source radeon driver for my Mobility 7500 and it works flawlessly. You might also want to consider AMD chips as they run cooler/more efficient per my experience. I always loved thinkpad styling/layout, so check into Lenovo as an OEM.

• MariusGedminas: a ThinkPad-style keyboard, please. Don't mangle the right Shift, Ctrl, Alt keys. With a trackpoint and 3 mouse buttons, of course.

• MartinDengler: Making the touchpad multi-touch (a la MacBooks) would be a real nice plus (and is clearly feasible without exorbitant costs). I'll add a vote for trackpoints. If a Thinkpad-like (travel, "feel") keyboard could be added that would be a massive plus, too.

• NatTuck: I don't see any sense in demanding everything + a pony. If a reasonably light laptop with current-generation hardware that works with Gobuntu & OpenBIOS becomes available at a reasonable price, I'll most likely get one. When I say "works", that definitely does include stuff like suspend and hibernate.

• ezTol:
  • make it flexible (like Dell or other internet shops), so everybody could choose the components he likes: CPU, RAM, glare/non-glare display, HDD/Hybrid-HDD/Flash, DVD-burner, webcam, Bluetooth..., maybe making deals with different distributors?
  • because of so many different opinions about screen-size, maybe two laptops: 13,3" and 15,3" widescreen with different resolutions, 15,4": 1650*1050/1440*900/1280*800 and 13,3": 1440*900/1280*800
  • Tochpad: Synaptics? with no marked scroll-areas!!! (I like them small, others have bigger fingers and need them bigger, it's easily configurable in xorg.conf, but needs new GUI, since existing tools don't give enough options), IBM like track point for those who like it, I don't
  • if posible: internal Mic not inside laptop chassis, but next to webcam on top of the screen (less background noise), at least 1 Power USB 2.0 (1A), additional battery instead of DVD possible, I don't care about modem, but it shouldn't cost to much either, right?
  • must have: good thermal management, low noise, low power consumption when idle (graphics hardware also needs good power play), Dell D830 for example needs 15W (minimum) when idle, battery lasts 9 hours (idle) and 4 hours while surfing with WLAN, working CPU Scaling, ACPI Suspend to RAM/HDD
  • HDMI (with HDMI to DVI adapter), S-Video

• PhilipHunt: If I was to buy a laptop, I would be using it as a desktop replacement machine. Therefore specifications would take priority over small size and long battery life. My minimum requirements:

  • a 17" 1024x1280 display (what I use now)
  • usable with an external wireless mouse
  • internal 160 GB hard disk
  • some USB ports, ethernet and wifi
  • internal speakers; they don't have to be top quality

Ideally I would like:

• the screen to be detachable from the keyboard so I could put it in a nice viewing position
• as big a screen as possible (maybe a range of screens as ezTol suggested.
• slots for flash memory cards
• the wifi interface to use software radio so it can reconfigure itself to be a mobile phone, GPS receiver, FM/AM radio, TV receiver (maybe), and to talk to other nearby laptops in an ad hoc network (maybe it could act as a wifi router to do this)
• a top end graphics card, and some open source games that use its full capabilities. Some thing like "Rome Total War" would be ideal -- especially if the ad hoc networking allowed me to play against my friends.

Stuff like DVD and CDROM drives can be external. Within this specification, light weight is more important to me than long battery life. Looking at other people's comments it seems some people want a highly specced machine while others prefer a light machine with long battery life. For the latter group, how about something based on the XO-1 with perhaps more flash memory?

• Macavity3:
  • We should extend the free software principle to the documentation and parts available for the machine. There ought to be full technical manuals available to allow system builders and refurbishers to replace and upgrade all the components. Also, the manufacturer should be able to supply a complete set of parts individually to suppliers for worldwide distribution to the end-user. This will help keep these laptops in circulation for longer and therefore increase the number of people using free software (which is, after all, what this is all about!). Availability of technical manuals and relatively low-cost parts is the reason why there are so many refurbished Thinkpads and Latitudes still out there. Although I am only an amateur enthusiast with no training, I have been able to repair several Thinkpad T23s using Lenovo's comprehensive manuals and parts from eBay UK. I could not do this with my wife's Advent machine!
  • At the risk of being shot down in flames, I shall tentatively suggest that it might be a good idea if someone were to make Windows drivers for the laptop available. We are not in the business of forcing people to use a particular operating system via hardware incompatibility, like some companies I could mention. This would reassure potential customers who like the free software principle, but are nervous about making the switch to Linux. Of course once they experience the clear superiority of free software, they will never look back :-).
• Fedorowp:
  • 802.11a is very useful in congested areas and where there are cordless phones that interfere with 802.11bg on the 2.4GHz band. Intel has two wireless chipsets, the IPW2915 and the IPW3945, which supports 802.11a in addition to 802.11bg. A truly free version was reverse-enginnered by some BSD folks, and it looks like that version has been ported back to Linux.
  • A very low-power FPGA on the SMBUS with a small bit of FLASH and static RAM would open the door to additional capabilities. Possibilities include:
    • E-Book mode which allows the laptop to be hibernating - CPU, chipset, and RAM all off.
    • Low-speed mesh networking.
  • A high-speed FPGA suitable for capabilities such as:

    • GnuRadio - Digital radio, perhaps even HDTV, or 802.11 everything.

    • AES Encryption
    • Prototyping/implemention of the open graphics project
    • Perhaps this can be the south-bridge chip.

Notes

Wireless

• Atheros wireless chipset using openhal(Atheros has no firmware, only very small bytecode, so it could be completely free. There are some chipsets that work with openhal and are completely free)[Atheros has the most powerful/best running wireless chipset from a technical perspective, not a free/libre perspective, but some of their chipsets function with free/libre madwifi-openhal]

• [http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Image:Drawing75c1.jpg Bunny Ears] like the XO, for 2x the wi-fi radius

Graphics Intel graphics only work when integrated into the northbridge on Intel motherboard/CPU combos. AMD CPUs connect directly to RAM and they have a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HyperTransport Hypertransport] bus for talking with the rest of the hardware in the system. (PCI buses etc.) Intel CPUs don't connect directly to RAM yet - but they have a chip in between. This is called the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northbridge_(computing) northbridge]. Intel graphics if present is always present inside the northbridge chip. There's no solution with AMD CPU and Intel Graphics.

Radeon with free drivers, but R200 cards are a bit outdated and newer cards not fully supported when coming to 3D support (correct me, if I'm wrong), Intel is no choice as written in specifications (which is sad, cause X3100 would be perfect), but maybe AMD will open their drivers? so newer AMD/ATI cards would get interesting

Open Graphics project maybe?

Screen XOPC dual-mode screens? ..and maybe even the XO display technology, so this laptop can be used in direct sunlight.

Keyboard Sealed rubber keys(more expensive), in case you spill beer(s) in the laptop!

Storage hybrid 2.5 inch eide drive with flash based storage, for minimal read/write times, and better battery life.

Two BIOS memories If it uses FreeBIOS/LinuxBIOS, could it be updated per apt-get? updates could then be written to unused memory, if there were no problems it is set as active afterwars, otherwise (power-disruption etc...) there is still the working BIOS in the other memory

Future!

Some things are not feasible right now, because as far as we know there is no work under way to achieve them. But they would be useful to have on the roadmap for future versions of this page.

• free software firmware - full code, with rights to modify and redistribute
  • (["AmirEAharoni"]) I don't know about other kinds of hardware, but wireless cards from Ralink should be free enough. I am not an expert, but according to FSF they are already better than Intel in this regard. Currently Ralink comes mostly in PCMCIA cards, though.
• hardware codec support with patent licenses included - if we can find hardware that does the codec magic then we can have the laptop play media anywhere in the world using only free software to enable the hardware

  • (BerniePallek) This is a very promising idea. I can imagine some kind of hybrid DSP+FPGA/PLD+flash ASIC that allows simultaneous/independent feeding of up to n streams of encoded data in one end, to get n decoded data out the other, unburdening the CPU. Modern PCs are ready for a standard "multimedia helper chip", with a simple, but solid API. (In case you hadn't already connected the dots, this is the "miracle" part).

• CheeseSandwich: This is a bit out there, but I've read of those nifty new micro-turbine power generators, which are in the prototype stage IIRC, and can generate power in the 10W-20W range. Imagine the day when we can insert lighter fluid into our laptop & get 24+ hrs of use out of it.

• alternative power source options, eg solar panels, cranks or whatever it is that the OLPC project intends to use! and other alternatives.
• As hardware codec support goes, there are tons of cheap hardware codec solutions for MPEG-4, mp3, etc...a custom internal USB-based interface or some such including some $3-50 codec chips could have a driver written for it relatively trivially. These codec chips are all about simplicity.
• did I hear someone say Linux Phone (Lphone)?
• a version of this laptop (and linux phone) that is targetted at the needs, restrictions and circumstances of NGO/nonprofits and those who work in remote third world localities would be good
• a laptop running on openSPARC and openGraphics

Undefined

* This page would be easier to keep track of if it followed some better defined structure!?!

• Some sort of 3G network access
• Memory stick / SD card support?