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[stanwyck]

I did some searching, and I've found some threads on lightweight laptops (very helpful, thanks everyone), but I'm trying to find the best laptop for incredibly hot conditions.  While doing field work in the desert over the last two summers, I watched more than one laptop melt down--one colleague even tried putting his in the refrigerator every 20 minutes when he was using it (no go, still fried).  I've got the money in my research button for a lightweight laptop, but my next research stop is going to be just as hot as last summer, and probably more dusty.  Anyone else take a computer into these conditions?

[zharkov]

You may want to take a look at the Panasonic Toughbook line.

[deleteplease]

In general, the smaller the computer, the worse the heating problems. A desktop has far better cooling than a laptop.

Computer chips and batteries generate heat. The more stuff you have in your computer and the harder you make it work, the more heat it generates. Try to get as *little* memory/graphics capability/CPU speed as possible. Avoid using your internal hard drive as much as possible. Don't keep
anything in card slots. Disable bluetooth, WiFi, etc.

And -- the larger the *case* the better (more room for air to circulate and heat to dissipate -- one of the science people might explain the technical details better than I can). Ultra-light is not necessarily a good idea. You want a low-power consumption chip set. Also ask about heat output from different batteries.

The Panasonic toughbook is, I think, one of the few (if not the only) mil-spec systems available to consumers -- but check with HP as well. Try to get your university tech people to put you in touch with the HP or Panasonic corporate sales division (not consumer sales) and ask about "ruggedized laptops intended for desert conditions".

I suspect several companies have systems designed for desert conditions which are basically regular laptops u[graded to handle sand and heat, ordinarily sold to the military and to civilian contractors. It's just a matter of contacting the right sales unit.

[stanwyck]

It looks like I'm going to have to make some choices--is that extra ruggedness a good trade off for the extra weight and visibility?  Maybe I should just plan my budget so I have enough money to replace the ultralight if and when it burns out.  It definitely needs to be small enough that I can keep it hidden while traveling.  I also need a lot of memory and graphics capability because I'm going to be doing a lot of drafting and photography work.  Both of those factors seem to be working against ruggedness.  But it looks like Panasonic makes some smaller "semirugged" Toughbooks, maybe I'll give one of those a test drive.

[magimax]

You could also check out those fan thingies that go underneath laptops - laptop coolers they are called.  TigerDirect has them running from $20 - $40.  They plug into the laptop and run off that battery. 

But that won't really help with the sand issue. 

[hollow_man]

One idea: The new SSD (solid state drives) take the place of hard disks, and are supposedly much harder to break. They also cost a lot and are smaller than a standard HD.

Check the Lenovo ThinkPad X300 -- totally hawt!