Best Laptops for Linux?

[Leo Tindall]

Hi all,

I'm looking to buy a laptop for a new job. I currently have a Thinkpad
T430s which I absolutely adore, but it's getting a bit long in the
tooth; the 1600x900 resolution isn't great, and the 2nd gen i5 isn't
doing it any favors. Plus, the occasional failures to boot are getting
me worried (good old Thinkpad FAN ERRORs).

So, what are your recommendations? I'd prefer something below $1k, but
it's not essential. 1080p or higher would be nice, and the more
connectivity the better. Portability is important but not critical (I'm
a college student, but I spend a good deal of time at my desk).

I've looked into System76, specifically the Gazelle and the Galago Pro,
but I've heard bad things about the IPS panels they ship (bright spots
which aren't cause for an RMA, et cetera). Does anyone know if these
rumors are accurate?

The Dell XPS 13 Developer Edition appears to be unavailable at the
moment. The Librem 13 is about 600 dollars more than any other laptop
with similar specs.

So, in your opinions, what is the best laptop that either comes with
Linux or onto which Linux can be installed without too much wrestling
with drivers? I'm open to buying used.

Many thanks!

[Tracy Reed]

Post by Leo Tindall
I'm looking to buy a laptop for a new job. I currently have a Thinkpad
T430s which I absolutely adore, but it's getting a bit long in the
tooth; the 1600x900 resolution isn't great, and the 2nd gen i5 isn't
doing it any favors. Plus, the occasional failures to boot are getting
me worried (good old Thinkpad FAN ERRORs).

Thinkpads are still great Linux laptops.

Post by Leo Tindall
I've looked into System76, specifically the Gazelle and the Galago Pro,
but I've heard bad things about the IPS panels they ship (bright spots
which aren't cause for an RMA, et cetera). Does anyone know if these
rumors are accurate?

I'd call them and ask about the bright spots and the warranty. I've
heard plenty of good things about System76 and Linux.

Post by Leo Tindall
The Dell XPS 13 Developer Edition appears to be unavailable at the
moment. The Librem 13 is about 600 dollars more than any other laptop
with similar specs.

Dell servers have caused me many hours of pain so I won't recommend
their laptops or desktops either.

Post by Leo Tindall
So, in your opinions, what is the best laptop that either comes with
Linux or onto which Linux can be installed without too much wrestling
with drivers? I'm open to buying used.

Check out ZaReason too.

[Tony Su]

IMO practically any machine with an x64 processor should be supported
by Linux, with some additional attention paid to whether any exotic
I/O devices like NICs are in the machine.

Best to create your own list of desirable features, line up some good
prospects and then look at the Technical Specs (sometimes in the
Maintenance and not Owner's manual), then do a search on those items
in your chosen distro's help forums.

So,
For instance you should know that most Linux still have some issues
supporting Broadcom NICs. Older models should be fully supported but a
few of the higher end and latest models continue to be a problem until
someone reverse engineers and publishes freely distributed firmware...
Else, you'd have to know how to compile your own (instructions are
available, but it can be a bother for some people( who just want
things to work).

There are a few others besides Broadcom NICs, so be sure to verify
each and every I/O device (particularly NICs or you be doing stuff
without a network connection).

I just did a little investigation last week, and the latest on Intel
and Spectre and Meltdown is that OEM patches have been released for
all Intel 6th, 7th and 8th generation CPUs... But of course unless
you're buying a machine that left the factory within the last couple
months, the patches won't already be installed (You'll have to find
and install your firmware patch yourself or take it somewhere to be
done).

Someone I know bought a Lenovo from Costco this past week, I think it
was this one except that it has a 256GB SSD plus 1TB HDD instead of a
512GB, he paid a little over $1000.

https://www.costco.com/Lenovo-Flex-5-Series-2-in-1-Touchscreen-Laptop---Intel-Core-i7---2GB-Graphics---4K-Ultra-HD---Active-Stylus.product.100408249.html

Tony

Post by Tracy Reed

Post by Leo Tindall
I'm looking to buy a laptop for a new job. I currently have a Thinkpad
T430s which I absolutely adore, but it's getting a bit long in the
tooth; the 1600x900 resolution isn't great, and the 2nd gen i5 isn't
doing it any favors. Plus, the occasional failures to boot are getting
me worried (good old Thinkpad FAN ERRORs).

Thinkpads are still great Linux laptops.

Post by Leo Tindall
I've looked into System76, specifically the Gazelle and the Galago Pro,
but I've heard bad things about the IPS panels they ship (bright spots
which aren't cause for an RMA, et cetera). Does anyone know if these
rumors are accurate?

I'd call them and ask about the bright spots and the warranty. I've
heard plenty of good things about System76 and Linux.

Post by Leo Tindall
The Dell XPS 13 Developer Edition appears to be unavailable at the
moment. The Librem 13 is about 600 dollars more than any other laptop
with similar specs.

Dell servers have caused me many hours of pain so I won't recommend
their laptops or desktops either.

Post by Leo Tindall
So, in your opinions, what is the best laptop that either comes with
Linux or onto which Linux can be installed without too much wrestling
with drivers? I'm open to buying used.

Check out ZaReason too.
--
Tracy Reed
http://tracyreed.org
Digital signature attached for your safety.
--
http://www.kernel-panic.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/kplug-list

[David Brown]

Post by Tony Su
IMO practically any machine with an x64 processor should be supported
by Linux, with some additional attention paid to whether any exotic
I/O devices like NICs are in the machine.

I have found this to mostly be true. I even used to find it mainly
true with the Apple Mac Book Pro laptops. My latest machine has some
weird problems running Linux:

- The BroadCom NIC was "fun". It was very helpful to have a USB
ethernet device that I could wire the computer in to find missing
firmware.

- The latest laptops don't have a USB keyboard. It is an SPI
device. Similarly, I had to plug in a USB keyboard, and then be
able to find a custom kernel module that had a driver for both
this keyboard, and for the touchbar.

But, otherwise I've had pretty good results. I have several coworkers
that are quite happy with the Dell XPS 13 laptop.

I've gotten completely spoiled by the much higher resolution displays
(> 250ppi). Sometimes on Linux, it takes a little tweaking when some
app comes up microscopic, but it sure makes everything more readable.

David

[David Brown]

Post by David Brown
But, otherwise I've had pretty good results. I have several coworkers
that are quite happy with the Dell XPS 13 laptop.

Ok, looking into the specs a little further, I may rescind my
recommendation here. The machine seems to come with the "Killer 1535"
WiFi adaptor. Although they do seem to now have Linux support, these
are "accelerated" wireless adaptors and I have read and heard numerous
accounts of people having problems with packets being dropped, and
even things that just seemed like throttling.

David

[Nandor Szots]

I no longer purchase laptops based on anything other than service score of
the manufacturer.

All the laptops I've owned over the years have either lasted or they
haven't but the one thing that mattered was how well the company supported
their product. To that end I have been very happy with Dell and the ~ 10
Inspiron + Alienware Laptops I've owned over the years.

I currently use a RazerBlade 14" for my laptop mainly for gaming. I
haven't had to use their service yet so the jury is out on that front.

MSI (via XoticPC) on the other hand sold me a laptop I RMAed with-in 14
days of purchase - 12 months later it still was not fixed even though I had
sent it back to them about 3 times and in the 12 months I owned it I only
had possession of it for about 2 months total. When I asked for a refund
or replacement they said I was out of my 30 day window and that I should
have insisted on a return the first time I RMA'ed it and I could go pound
sand. 6 months later Visa refunded me the full purchase price through
their dispute resolution center. I will never buy MSI or XoticPC again.

Post by Tracy Reed

Post by Leo Tindall
I'm looking to buy a laptop for a new job. I currently have a Thinkpad
T430s which I absolutely adore, but it's getting a bit long in the
tooth; the 1600x900 resolution isn't great, and the 2nd gen i5 isn't
doing it any favors. Plus, the occasional failures to boot are getting
me worried (good old Thinkpad FAN ERRORs).

Thinkpads are still great Linux laptops.

Post by Leo Tindall
I've looked into System76, specifically the Gazelle and the Galago Pro,
but I've heard bad things about the IPS panels they ship (bright spots
which aren't cause for an RMA, et cetera). Does anyone know if these
rumors are accurate?

I'd call them and ask about the bright spots and the warranty. I've
heard plenty of good things about System76 and Linux.

Post by Leo Tindall
The Dell XPS 13 Developer Edition appears to be unavailable at the
moment. The Librem 13 is about 600 dollars more than any other laptop
with similar specs.

Dell servers have caused me many hours of pain so I won't recommend
their laptops or desktops either.

Post by Leo Tindall
So, in your opinions, what is the best laptop that either comes with
Linux or onto which Linux can be installed without too much wrestling
with drivers? I'm open to buying used.

Check out ZaReason too.
--
Tracy Reed
http://tracyreed.org
Digital signature attached for your safety.
--
http://www.kernel-panic.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/kplug-list

[Kevin Keane Subscription]

I second Tracy’s opinion on Dell. They used to be pretty good, but lately in my company we’ve had nothing but problems with them. Almost every order we have placed got messed up in some form or other, and we had to return one set of servers three times because they kept getting us the wrong specs.

 
Also, on the desktop and laptop side, I can’t recommend Dell because they use non-standard parts. The case in point was that at one point I needed a replacement power supply for a Dell laptop. Apparently Dell had designed a proprietary connector protected by patent laws. Targus had a plug that fit mechanically and would charge the battery while the computer was turned off, but only the original Dell power supply could charge the battery and power the laptop at the same time.

 
Sent from Mail for Windows 10

 
From: Tracy Reed <mailto:***@ultraviolet.org>
Sent: Friday, May 4, 2018 6:28 AM
To: Main Discussion List for KPLUG <mailto:kplug-***@kernel-panic.org>
Subject: Re: Best Laptops for Linux?

 

Post by Leo Tindall
The Dell XPS 13 Developer Edition appears to be unavailable at the
moment. The Librem 13 is about 600 dollars more than any other laptop
with similar specs.

Dell servers have caused me many hours of pain so I won't recommend
their laptops or desktops either.