BUT!
I can make do with ARM and 8Gb. I've done it.
The new $120 (with power supply, etc. -- the machine alone is $90) Raspberry Pi 500 is a "computer in a keyboard" rig.
It runs a 2.4GHz quad-core ARM CPU on 8Gb of RAM. Storage is just a microSD card (a 32Gb card is included in the kit). It's got three USB ports, Ethernet, and two micro-HDMI ports.
Between the machine, two tiny HDMI projectors (to use hotel room walls as monitors), and cables to connect the projectors to the machine, I'm guesstimating somewhat less than $250.
Pros: More compact than carrying a laptop and external keyboard, and powerful enough to do my regular work on, albeit a little more slowly. With projectors, my "monitor" size is adjustable instead of being stuck with a small laptop screen.
Cons: No way to use it in airports or planes (but I don't do much of that anyway and am getting better about doing most of that on my phone). Also, the problem with "keyboard in a computer" is that if the keyboard goes the computer does too, absent significant improvisational rigging.
The pros and cons are both significant, so I won't be making any hasty decisions, especially with no big near-term travel planned anyway.