Actually, the models I am looking at run anywhere from 1.83 to 2.13 which should be quick enough.  Since I work for IBM they are fairly cheap.

Yeah, the thinkpads are built like tanks.  The old ones had some problems but the newer ones do run great.  Figured I would get one of the T60's since they have the core duo in them which will make linux really fast.  Will also make sure I order one with the atheros card in it for the linux support.  I was watching and checking on notebookreviews.com and they all seem to really like to recommend dells and compaqs.  They aren't necessarily bad but I can get a thinkpad for the same price or cheaper.  Which is a bonus.

Thanks for the replies. I will probably go ahead and get a Thinkpad T60.  My boss is going to send me to the IBM ethical hacker class next year which requires a Thinkpad T series with both xp or 2000 loaded and gentoo.  I was just looking to see if I could do it all without getting a laptop.  Not much of a big deal since the wife has already said ok to me buying a laptop.

Is it really necessary to have a laptop to learn the materials for the CEH exam or will a desktop work?

It is pretty good that my work pays for it.  But then again I work for IBM.  They did give me the opting to go to the boot camp.  But I figured I would do the self study and then either go to either the CHFI or IBM EH course next year.

If you start a study group I may be interested in joining it.  I will be ordering the courseware from ec-council in the next week or two.  Kinda nice that my work is paying for it.

Another decent one to use is Knoppix STD (security tools distribution)
http://www.knoppix-std.org/