[ihnorton]

The previous XPS 13 can be had in this price range on eBay, at least refurb, and there is very little difference between the current and previous CPU:

http://ark.intel.com/compare/81015,72054

I have the early '13 model with the i7-3537U processor and run Ubuntu 14.04 on it without a problem (the wireless was somewhat flaky on 13.04, but it seems better since the upgrade - unscientifically).

I had a very bad experience with a Thinkpad W series laptop (and the Lenovo RMA process). That said, I still pine for an X1 Carbon every time I see one, and the new Yoga looks reasonably well-built (the previous one was flimsy garbage).