Would be nice if you could state your budget as well
Well, whether a laptop lasts or not depends very much on how well its taken care of
However, just in case of unforeseen circumstances, it'll be nice to have extended warranty support, in which Dell and Lenovo would be nice picks~
Since you're looking for a light 14 incher, can consider these:
Lenovo
ThinkPad Edge E420s, i5-2410M + Intel HD3000@RM3299[1.88kg], W7P; 18 months on-site warranty
ThinkPad Edge E420s, i5-2410M + AMD HD6630@RM3699[1.88kg], W7P; 18 months on-site warranty

Recommend extending  the warranty to 3 years on-site warranty 

For the ThinkPad Edge, do check out the real thing
And I have to disagree, it all depends on luck and how you take care of your laptop (not only physically, of course haha)... Even those who bought near RM10k laptops have problems upon arrival... again it depends on luck...

Oh ya, the reliability survey by SquareTrade is very outdated already

Anyway, for Asus, the 14" to look at is:
Asus U46Sv-WX023v, i5-2410M + Nvidia GT540M@RM2999[2.14kg]; USB3.0, Asus optical mouse
But its not light, haha~

Apart from this one, there's the:
Acer Travelmate 8481, i5-2467M + Intel HD3000@RM2699[1.5kg], W7P
..which runs on ULV processor that's not that powerful... So the ThinkPad Edge will still be better...

I think your dad can either choose heavier 14 inchers, or go for 13 inchers 

MacBook Air..

If your dad is familiar with Windows, then better not ask him to get a Mac

Lenovo U260
ASUS U series is okay too

OS is diff...
people  says mac osis moar user frenly...
at least tat'z waht my frens say.. XD.. but i myself kinda stick to windows.. 
Mac notebooks are also quite awesome in design too... MacBook Air.. 

oh no! OldTiam removed by moderator! guess they dun like the idea. 

Mac using OSX, which mean, almost no games! But you can install Boot Camp that will allow you to dual boot into Windows.

oh no! OldTiam removed by moderator! guess they dun like the idea. 

Mac using OSX, which mean, almost no games! But you can install Boot Camp that will allow you to dual boot into Windows.

you probably mean spill-proof... wont be waterproof:

http://www.engadget.com/2011/05/18/thinkpa...od-proof-video/

A yes for spill resistant keyboard though. Well might as well give the Lenovo U260 a look, if it's for your father (I assumed he doesn't want to learn everything as he'll ask you questions all day long and you'll be frustrated)
Other cheaper ones if you don't game then maybe even an AMD A-series processor would do.

Wow!!! RM8999.00

Yes, it is available in M'sia.

1.165kg!!! The lightest laptop I have seen!

Btw, is this comparable with MacBook? Which is better?

Comparable with Xeon processor? Which is better? This z series or XEON one?

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Added on August 22, 2011, 10:21 pm
It is still in budget. However, what makes them to be so expensive?  the windows 7 professional? I think home premium will be enough for my dad.

What is optical drive? Sorry, boob here. 

Considered these yet?
13"
Toshiba
Portégé R830-2016U, i3-2310M + Intel HD3000@RM3599[1.4kg], W7P, 2nd & 3rd year international warranty; metallic black
Portégé R830-1004/1005UB/1006UR, i5-2410M + Intel HD3000@RM3999[1.4kg], W7P, 2nd & 3rd year international warranty, Microsoft Office Home & Student 2010, Transformer flash drive; colors: metallic Black/Blue/Red
Portégé R830-2007U, i5-2520M + Intel HD3000@RM4799[1.4kg], W7P, 2nd & 3rd year international warranty, Microsoft Office Home & Student 2010; metallic black
Portégé R830-2014U, i7-2620M + Intel HD3000@RM5999[1.4kg], W7P, 2nd & 3rd year international warranty, Microsoft Office Home & Student 2010; colors: metallic black

14"
Toshiba
Tecra R840-2002U, i5-2410M + Intel HD3000@RM3499, W7P, 2nd and 3rd year warranty (1st year on-site)
Tecra R840-2003X, i5-2410M + AMD HD6450@RM3999, W7P, 2nd and 3rd year warranty (1st year on-site)
Tecra R840-2009X, i7-2620M + AMD HD6450@RM5299, W7P, 2nd and 3rd year warranty (1st year on-site)

Light and powerful, with optical drive 

gg la them... lidat means they can close any thread they like adi. @@

din off topic also!!

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Added on August 22, 2011, 9:36 pm
haha... statistics can ''help''.. but it is not ultimate decision.. lolx.. compare apples wif apples.. nt apple tree with apple tree... ^^

but anyways... if u are worried..

acer higher end models are okay.

if budget unlimited.. @@..

sony Z series.... iirc.. comes with dock..the laptop itself is low spec.. but light and thin for mobility.. bek home.. connect wit the dock. haha.. walla... quite high end gaming rig.. XD..

but im nt sure can find in mahresia or not.. i haven seen one.. @@ (kampung ipoh)

erm.... optical drive the drive for ur dvd ... XD

erm... yea.. i saw the video for it on youtube and tv.. i was  ... but the price tag killed me... 

if i hav money i take this rather than MBA.. haha

They're expensive because of the innovative designs and technologies that made them one of the lightest and most powerful 13" laptops with optical drives (DVD-ROM)
Only weighs 1.4kg 

No la, its not heavy because of the optical drive alone
There are swappable optical drives which are very light one o (mostly in Fujitsu) haha
The Portege uses a cooling system said to be derived from the cooling design of airplane's engine.. and the materials uses honeycomb-liked patterns which are said to offer better robustness etc.  These are some of the "technologies" incorporated into the laptop.. can't remember the rest

@@.. no lar... mechatronics engineering.. @@ degree only..    starting 3rd year soon... 

haha.. i aim that one too. in future lar.. lolx..

btw.. after u shorlist some of the recommendations here.. go out and have a look and touch at them.. rili important.. if rili dun hav that particular model. at lest touch their cousins.. 
+1 

u pay for quality.... this still holds true everywhere... 

lolx... nvr rili und those ''technologie' they claim.. most important. it works.. lolx..

and since it's frm toshiba... (nt to say generalizing lar).. should have no worries. ^^

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Added on August 22, 2011, 11:23 pm
@@.. again.. have to say

dun compare apple tree with apple tree..

compare apples with apples.. XD

lolx... nvr rili und those ''technologie' they claim.. most important. it works.. lolx..

and since it's frm toshiba... (nt to say generalizing lar).. should have no worries. ^^

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Added on August 22, 2011, 11:23 pm
@@.. again.. have to say

dun compare apple tree with apple tree..

compare apples with apples.. XD

toshiba lappy generally offers less enticing specs... but so far their build quality is fine.. not much complains(at least in here la... but it could be probably toshiba owners less active... XD)
lolx..
waht i mean is

sony tree with toshiba tree or acer tree

try not to compare as a whole... cz in eac company bound to hav good and bad...

but it's understandable . even i sumtimes couldn't resist compare brands with brands.... 

good question.. i duno how to answer 

GG.. lolx...

but yea... ur statement is correct... only got best laptop for oneself.. ^^

u thinking of which model ?shortlist adi and after touching can create new thread to ask about that specific lappy l;iau..