My laptop has the magic ability to turn into a mirror when I take it outside. While I certainly enjoy the view, it isn't very useful.

Do they make laptops that work outdoors? Is there any way to retrofit something to my screen? I'm going to be buying a new laptop anyway, so what sort of screen am I looking for?

You've basically got the choice between a matte screen or a glossy screen. I have a glossy screen, and it reflects a lot when it's bright out, but my old laptop's matte screen would just get washed out in sunlight. Essentially LCDs aren't going to be as easy to view outside regardless of what type you have.

I did a Google search about screens outside.
It linked to a notebook forum where they are discussing the topic. You might want to read through some of it.

I used to use my previous MacBook (glossy) outside with the brightness all the way down and it looked fine, albeit some reflections. Now that I have a MBP I chose matte, as I'm mostly indoors and I think the color looks better rather than just being more contrasty. Don't have to clean the many smudges of a glossy anymore either.

There are a few options. There are visors which work quite well but tend to look a bit strange due to the protrusion. My boss uses some sort of notebook shade that works quite well (it's just a paper-thin material that's actually designed for privacy).