There's no guaranteed answer to your issue(s). Based on what I understand you are asking for a machine that:
A. Will be capable to support web surfing and document editing.
B. You will not need to be replaced a few years.

Issue A has a very simple answer. Any. Pretty much any laptop or netbook out there has sufficient power. That will last for as many years as you keep using the same software. Experience tells me that users whom are not comfortable switching from Windows with Mac are quite happy with the same software until they are forced to upgrade so this should not be an issue.
Issue B has a more tricky answer. Picking a brand does not mean a whole lot nowadays. I work in an IT department and most employees use laptops. I have seen all the major brands, including Lenovo, Dell, HP, Toshiba, Sony, Apple, etc., having hardware failures at fairly random times and with fairly random components. Yes, that's right, I have seen MacBooks that failed in their second year. At the same time, with each of these brands, I've had very good experiences too. I can think of a few examples in each that have lasted for more than 5 years. I actually still have a few laptops running Windows XP and still being used. I won't suggest any brand because it seems to be a bit of a lottery with any of them.

In conclusion, as many have already suggested here, if installing Windows on that MacBook is not an option or you're not interested in that saving, pick a brand and model based on what you need. If you like the capabilities of the MacBook Pro, try finding something with similar hardware specs. You won't find many that have a reasonable multi-gesture touch-pad or illuminated keyboard but you can find roughly the same hardware in terms of graphics, cpu, memory and hard drive. Good luck.

Disclaimer: For all intended purposes, the name "Apple" in the text below can be substituted for "Microsoft", "Oracle", or the name of any other company that sells closed-source, commercial software.

Excerpt from the GPL FAQ web page:
Does the GPL allow me to sell copies of the program for money?
Yes, the GPL allows everyone to do this. The right to sell copies is part of the definition of free software. Except in one special situation, there is no limit on what price you can charge. (The one exception is the required written offer to provide source code that must accompany binary-only release.)

Does the GPL allow me to charge a fee for downloading the program from my site?
Yes. You can charge any fee you wish for distributing a copy of the program. If you distribute binaries by download, you must provide “equivalent access” to download the source—therefore, the fee to download source may not be greater than the fee to download the binary.

If I distribute GPL'd software for a fee, am I required to also make it available to the public without a charge?
No. However, if someone pays your fee and gets a copy, the GPL gives them the freedom to release it to the public, with or without a fee. For example, someone could pay your fee, and then put her copy on a web site for the general public.

Does the GPL allow me to distribute copies under a nondisclosure agreement?
No. The GPL says that anyone who receives a copy from you has the right to redistribute copies, modified or not. You are not allowed to distribute the work on any more restrictive basis.

So my guess here is no, GPL does not prevent commercial use as many have already said. Also just a guess, it's the third and fourth answer here that bothers Apple. They do seem to be keen on preventing anyone on customizing their platform or replicating it in any way. As an example, the Mac OS X license prevents a user from installing it on any other hardware and they have gone legally after companies that did as little as enabling hardware for that purpose.

While not an Apple fan I do like (and use) some of their products. Still I cannot defend them when it comes to openness simply because they are not. Is that "evil"? Not necessarily. The ultimate purpose of any business is to make money. They do that as they find fit. Ultimately, as any other business they choose how much of their product should be free and how much is a revenue generator.
There seems to be a tendency in the software industry to expect companies giving out product for free. Yet we don't expect the same from other industries. I don't expect Nissan to give me a free car, I don't expect the grocery store to give out free bread. Software is a product. It's developed with investment and effort. Yes, in some cases, it's a good business strategy to give it out for free but in some it might not be.

We must keep in mind that GPL in any of its versions is not a political or social statement. It's rather a means of distributing software, of getting to the market and therefore enabler of a specific business model. It's a bit harsh to say someone is evil because they have a different business model. Nor is Apple limiting anyone's freedom. You have the freedom not to use any of their products.

Yeah, sure. Install a virtual machine on your iPad and start developing on it. If you can also pull 64 bit out of it I will agree with anything you say. You are not getting it. Uses of a tablet are limited compared to a laptop. Yes, I agree, some tasks are more comfortable on a tablet. Reading or browsing pictures while standing are good examples.

Because you suggested there was something by adding "mostly". But since you agree it would be a fake argument I guess my question is moot. Not really sure why you would start with a fake argument.

Again, the story is "My $200 Laptop Can Beat Your $500 Tablet" and it does put laptops and tablets in comparison. I am not sure why you insist a laptop's qualities are irrelevant when comparing a laptop and a tablet. Is it really that hard to get what the post is about?

Congratulations on deciding to get one. I'm sure it will be a good tool (and I am not saying that with irony, condescendence or with sarcasm). While for me the joy of using the product is tightly connected to it's capabilities I can concede that it does not have to be that way for everyone. If simply the brand makes you happy it's a good enough reason to get it as far as I'm concerned. If Apple would add the features you mentioned with the addition of browsing and opening files over the network (smb, nfs, etc) I would reconsider my position. I am sure though they have a pretty large crowd to listen to in terms of requests for new features and the features I'd like in there are likely at the bottom of the list. These devices, as they are designed now, are definitely not targeting me as a customer. They would need to become either cheaper either more functional so I'll stick to my phone and my laptop with nothing in between.

Some are not going to be happy if this gets through. I know mine (Rogers, ON, CA) is keep saying they do not throttle any traffic despite very frequent user complaints. Yes they happen to be one of the biggest Cable TV providers in Ontario as well and also to have the full support of CRTC in whatever they do. It's not going to have any effect but at least they'll be forced to admit it.

First: What is the one thing you can do on a tablet and not on a laptop? (You added mostly).

Second: A desktop is cheaper than a laptop if they have similar specs. On a desktop, I could install a RAID array and 6 SCSI drives configured in a RAID 5 which would make it a better storage system for my data just to give you an example. The discussion originated with the tablet being more expensive than a laptop. I think it's your point that lacks relevance to the discussion.

Third: Don't get upset. I did not qualify tablets as being useless. I am convinced there are a lot of people who could satisfy their computing needs with one (my parents as an example) because they only use a computer to check mail, online pictures and at most use some video chat program. All that is possible with a tablet. I was just saying that in my own humble opinion, they are too expensive for what they are.

--
"Everyone is entitled to my own opinion"

If you really believed the tablet is an evolution of a laptop in the sense of an improvement it would follow that you would trade your laptop for a tablet. You may have a small contradiction in there. :)

Not all laptops are 15". I own a 13" currently but there are some that can go down to 11" or 10". I can type with one hand while holding my laptop with the other, granted I avoid doing so. (Just tried it for the first time).

I like this sentence because it summarizes almost my entire opinion of a tablet. The missing part is: "If it would cost somewhere around 100$".

For Googling on a CLI-only server I recommend a text-based browser. I've been using lynx since the days I was a student (longer ago than I'd like to admit).

I would not be so strong as that. My observation is that for me in particular their cost do not justify the added portability. Most people who own one would not even know how to exit vi, they've never heard of vi or emacs and never seen a .conf file. The device is definitely not intended for that sort of work. Again, my observation is that while they add some portability compared to notebooks they are too expensive.

I read stuff on my phone on the bus. It's easier to take out, hold and manipulate especially when the bus is crowded. I think it's also less flashy granted that for some the flashiness of the iPad is an added bonus.
I have no comment related to restaurants since I usually go there to socialize with real, live people and using an iPad or even my phone during conversations to browse the web or write a blog would be not only anti-social but also very rude.
I maintain that the prices of these things are way too high for what they are.

Disclaimer: I consider Apple computers including the whole line of MacBook products to qualify as PCs.

Remember that most tablets require you to have a PC (laptop or desktop) for at least backup purposes. If you think it would be a good idea to keep your e-mail, photos, etc. solely on a tablet you may need to reconsider. You would still need to backup that device to a PC. The conditions for dropping the use of PCs completly are:

You never create content with the exception of a blog.

All your data is stored using some online service that the tablet can access

Your camera(s) or other content creating devices can transfer media directly to your tablet or online storage

Now you could argue that you were speaking about replacing a laptop not a PC. Well, most people opt for a laptop as their primary choice of PC since the price gap between a desktop and a laptop has closed significantly and the laptop offers the advantage of portability. No, I think replacing a laptop with a tablet is not what many people will do right now. I am not saying it's never going to happen. It's just not the case at this moment.

Not really. A video camera can only be used to create a movie and a television to display it. A laptop can be used for both creating and consuming content while a tablet only for consuming it. The difference here is that a video camera is not in the least appropriate to consume while a laptop remains very appropriate to consume content. I agree with the poster. Just make the darn tablets 100$ and I'll get one. That's how much I would spend for a redundant device in the house. Otherwise, I can use a laptop or desktop for everything I can do with a tablet and keep my 700$.

The iPad was introduced as a revolutionary device that covers the space between a phone and a laptop. In reality is a device that's not appropriate for either purpose, with non or little actual space to cover in between (at least for the moment). If you really think about it, there's nothing that you do with an iPad that you couldn't do on a laptop. By extension I think this applies to any kind of tablet.

My point remains valid. PhaseForward and DataLabs settled without even trying to go to court and payed the troll a big bucket of money. DataTrak (just like Canonical with Microsoft) refused to settle and won in court. These sort of claims are good for nothing but intimidation. I can understand PhaseForward though. They are a huge company and can easily dispose of the amount. They probably payed what they make in 3 clinical trials.

Can't remember it. Do a search for EDC Patent Troll. It might be DataSCI although I just read they did get money out of some settlements with at least PhaseForward and DataLabs. My prior statement might have been wrong. I apologize and promise to severely punish my sources.

Not sure if already suggested by someone else. I use XBMC which has a version for Linux, Windows, Mac. It also has a stand-alone (basic installation of Ubuntu with this APP over it) if you plan to use it as a Media Center computer.
It catalogs movies and TV shows by fetching information from IMDB, TVDB and a whole lot of other websites and not only allows you to browse by Genre, Year, Actor, etc. but also fetches cover images and synopsis for your movies.
As an added bonus it has a number of useful plugins which give you direct access to additional information (subtitles, YouTube access, movie trailers, song lyrics, etc.)
It's free. Give it a try.

The specific patent claims are not very well described in the article but of what I can tell they have some patent claims for widely used, basic GUI features. I feel this may affect more than Android if they're gonna win.

They seem to act just like a patent troll in this situation. In my industry (Pharmaceutical) there's a company that has a patent on validating user input in web applications by verifying it at the server. They've been going around and threatening all EDC (Electronic Data Capture) makers with that. Of what I know, they have never won a single court appearance with this and never got a nickel out of it. It's just way too easy to patent something in the US.

I hope Microsoft will not win anything here for the sake of the precedent it would set. It's bad enough some companies already settled with them over this. It's just what happened a while ago with their claims on Linux. Novell and RedHat cut a deal with them. Canonical never settled for their claims and nothing ever happened. It's a good example.