I'm thinking of getting a new laptop for general use. Does anyone have any opinions on what to get or stay away from?
What am I thinking - opinions? This group?
Oh, I know, I know, details.
Um, ~15" screen, SSD, 16 GB RAM, quad-core? Those would be my main requirements. 1080p screen, preferably, and IPS or equiv.
On Wed, Apr 12, 2017 at 9:01 PM, Kevin McGregor kevin.a.mcgregor@gmail.com wrote:
I'm thinking of getting a new laptop for general use. Does anyone have any opinions on what to get or stay away from?
What am I thinking - opinions? This group?
I'm rocking a fruit these days ... I think a lot of people are actually.
I've always been partial to the Thinkpad series. They have some nice models that have those kind of specs.
Only thing I can say is that I've seen some pretty horrible ASUS and ACER laptops out there.
On 2017-04-12 9:05 PM, Kevin McGregor wrote:
Oh, I know, I know, details.
Um, ~15" screen, SSD, 16 GB RAM, quad-core? Those would be my main requirements. 1080p screen, preferably, and IPS or equiv.
On Wed, Apr 12, 2017 at 9:01 PM, Kevin McGregor <kevin.a.mcgregor@gmail.com mailto:kevin.a.mcgregor@gmail.com> wrote:
I'm thinking of getting a new laptop for general use. Does anyone have any opinions on what to get or stay away from? What am I thinking - opinions? This group?
Roundtable mailing list Roundtable@muug.ca https://muug.ca/mailman/listinfo/roundtable
I've been thoroughly soured on HP laptops, too.
I'd say stick with one of: * Dell Precision * Dell Latitude * Lenovo X-series * Lenovo T-series * Lenovo W-series * Apple MacBook Pro
Based on laptop prices right now, I would also strongly consider either leasing it (match the warranty and lease durations!) or buying refurbished.
YMMV.
-Adam
On April 12, 2017 9:20:43 PM CDT, Robert Keizer robert@keizer.ca wrote:
I'm rocking a fruit these days ... I think a lot of people are actually.
I've always been partial to the Thinkpad series. They have some nice models that have those kind of specs.
Only thing I can say is that I've seen some pretty horrible ASUS and ACER laptops out there.
On 2017-04-12 9:05 PM, Kevin McGregor wrote:
Oh, I know, I know, details.
Um, ~15" screen, SSD, 16 GB RAM, quad-core? Those would be my main requirements. 1080p screen, preferably, and IPS or equiv.
On Wed, Apr 12, 2017 at 9:01 PM, Kevin McGregor <kevin.a.mcgregor@gmail.com mailto:kevin.a.mcgregor@gmail.com>
wrote:
I'm thinking of getting a new laptop for general use. Does anyone have any opinions on what to get or stay away from? What am I thinking - opinions? This group?
Roundtable mailing list Roundtable@muug.ca https://muug.ca/mailman/listinfo/roundtable
On Wed, 2017-04-12 at 21:34 -0500, Adam Thompson wrote:
I've been thoroughly soured on HP laptops, too.
I'd say stick with one of:
- Dell Precision
- Dell Latitude
- Lenovo X-series
- Lenovo T-series
- Lenovo W-series
- Apple MacBook Pro
Based on laptop prices right now, I would also strongly consider either leasing it (match the warranty and lease durations!) or buying refurbished.
YMMV.
-Adam
I have no experience with HP laptops but I agree with Adam's suggestion.
I currently use an Lenovo X230 which was a subtle yet important refresh for a Lenovo X220 (USB3 express card kept falling out) though my comparatively ancient MacBook Pro 4,1 (2008) is still my 'main' machine due to some software for which there are no suitable ports. I went down the Lenovo route after not hating the T430 I've been issued at work (well I hate the spinning rust but the rest of the machine is very solid).
Briefly looked at the Dell XPS 13 Ubuntu edition but the quote was almost 10x what I paid for the X230 (don't be afraid of refurbished) and some reports of sound board chirping. I picked up a 4K monitor (one of the few with proper DVI-D) and haven't looked back.
When the urge hits me it will be hard decision between the Dell XPS 13 and a new Mac. Neither are suitably upgradable so they won't have the service life my trust old Mac has had.
On 2017-04-12 Kevin McGregor wrote:
Oh, I know, I know, details.
Um, ~15" screen, SSD, 16 GB RAM, quad-core? Those would be my main requirements. 1080p screen, preferably, and IPS or equiv.
ThinkPad and Toshiba are quite good for Linux (and in general). Fujitsu and Panasonic also good but very pricey and esoteric. Personally, I'd try to buy models that are showcased on EmperorLinux (or similar/newer models in the same series) since they are then pretty much guaranteed to be fully linux-able. Of course you could buy from Emperor (I only hear great things about them) but they aren't cheap, or easy (us being in Canada).
I will add one thing, it's often cheaper to buy one without an SSD and without big RAM, and add in aftermarket yourself (dd and an external SATA/USB adapter work wonders). Plus then you have a backup hard drive containing the original install images (or an extra part you can sell).
Careful with maxing out the RAM, even in good laptops, Adam can tell you some stories. That could be one reason to buy one with the vendor RAM as you want it; at least then you can make it their problem, not yours (but not always fixable).
Whatever models you're leaning towards, make sure you'll be happy with the keyboard. Try a few out in store before deciding. I personally can't stand keyboards that cram the "" between the left Shift and the Z, but some people are used to that and can live with it just fine. Check the feel, action and spacing of keys for comfort. It's easy to replace a desktop keyboard you're not happy with. A laptop, not so much. Try out the trackpad too, even if you'll be using a mouse most of the time. A good trackpad makes it much easier to function without the mouse when you have to.
If you're going for an inexpensive model, read up on it beforehand. There are some good value, cheap laptops out there, even Acer and ASUS brands, but there's a lot of crap at the lower price points. Come to think of it, there's some crap at the higher price points too, so read the reviews on your leading contenders in any case.
Dells and Lenovos are more typically the safer bets. HPs & Toshibas are a bit more inconsistent, or have been in the past. We have a couple Acers at home we've been happy with. The older of the two has a slightly flaky CD drive, but the newer one has none (as is typical of most newer models).
On 04/12/2017 09:05 PM, Kevin McGregor wrote:
Oh, I know, I know, details.
Um, ~15" screen, SSD, 16 GB RAM, quad-core? Those would be my main requirements. 1080p screen, preferably, and IPS or equiv.
On Wed, Apr 12, 2017 at 9:01 PM, Kevin McGregor <kevin.a.mcgregor@gmail.com mailto:kevin.a.mcgregor@gmail.com> wrote:
I'm thinking of getting a new laptop for general use. Does anyone have any opinions on what to get or stay away from? What am I thinking - opinions? This group?
System 76 makes some quality laptops with linux in mind during production/QA with ubuntu preinstalled
From: Gilles Detillieux grdetil@scrc.umanitoba.ca To: roundtable@muug.ca Sent: Thursday, April 13, 2017 9:56 AM Subject: Re: [RndTbl] Laptops
Whatever models you're leaning towards, make sure you'll be happy with the keyboard. Try a few out in store before deciding. I personally can't stand keyboards that cram the "" between the left Shift and the Z, but some people are used to that and can live with it just fine. Check the feel, action and spacing of keys for comfort. It's easy to replace a desktop keyboard you're not happy with. A laptop, not so much. Try out the trackpad too, even if you'll be using a mouse most of the time. A good trackpad makes it much easier to function without the mouse when you have to.
If you're going for an inexpensive model, read up on it beforehand. There are some good value, cheap laptops out there, even Acer and ASUS brands, but there's a lot of crap at the lower price points. Come to think of it, there's some crap at the higher price points too, so read the reviews on your leading contenders in any case.
Dells and Lenovos are more typically the safer bets. HPs & Toshibas are a bit more inconsistent, or have been in the past. We have a couple Acers at home we've been happy with. The older of the two has a slightly flaky CD drive, but the newer one has none (as is typical of most newer models).
On 04/12/2017 09:05 PM, Kevin McGregor wrote:
Oh, I know, I know, details. Um, ~15" screen, SSD, 16 GB RAM, quad-core? Those would be my main requirements. 1080p screen, preferably, and IPS or equiv. On Wed, Apr 12, 2017 at 9:01 PM, Kevin McGregor kevin.a.mcgregor@gmail.com wrote:
I'm thinking of getting a new laptop for general use. Does anyone have any opinions on what to get or stay away from? What am I thinking - opinions? This group?
-- Gilles R. Detillieux E-mail: grdetil@scrc.umanitoba.ca Spinal Cord Research Centre WWW: http://www.scrc.umanitoba.ca/ Dept. of Physiology and Pathophysiology, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, Univ. of Manitoba Winnipeg, MB R3E 0J9 (Canada) _______________________________________________ Roundtable mailing list Roundtable@muug.ca https://muug.ca/mailman/listinfo/roundtable
Thanks for all the input.
I'm sorta leaning towards Dell at the moment (though it could change in an instant).
Now I'm aiming at 15" FHD screen, 8 GB+ RAM, 256 GB+ SSD, Intel quad-core (e.g. i5 or i7)
but I also want an IPS-or-equiv display and discrete (not just Intel HD) graphics. Should I chat with Dell to see if they have such a beast? Their site doesn't make it easy to find something purely based on specs.
Kevin
On Thu, Apr 13, 2017 at 9:55 AM, Gilles Detillieux < grdetil@scrc.umanitoba.ca> wrote:
Whatever models you're leaning towards, make sure you'll be happy with the keyboard. Try a few out in store before deciding. I personally can't stand keyboards that cram the "" between the left Shift and the Z, but some people are used to that and can live with it just fine. Check the feel, action and spacing of keys for comfort. It's easy to replace a desktop keyboard you're not happy with. A laptop, not so much. Try out the trackpad too, even if you'll be using a mouse most of the time. A good trackpad makes it much easier to function without the mouse when you have to.
If you're going for an inexpensive model, read up on it beforehand. There are some good value, cheap laptops out there, even Acer and ASUS brands, but there's a lot of crap at the lower price points. Come to think of it, there's some crap at the higher price points too, so read the reviews on your leading contenders in any case.
Dells and Lenovos are more typically the safer bets. HPs & Toshibas are a bit more inconsistent, or have been in the past. We have a couple Acers at home we've been happy with. The older of the two has a slightly flaky CD drive, but the newer one has none (as is typical of most newer models).
On 04/12/2017 09:05 PM, Kevin McGregor wrote:
Oh, I know, I know, details.
Um, ~15" screen, SSD, 16 GB RAM, quad-core? Those would be my main requirements. 1080p screen, preferably, and IPS or equiv.
On Wed, Apr 12, 2017 at 9:01 PM, Kevin McGregor < kevin.a.mcgregor@gmail.com> wrote:
I'm thinking of getting a new laptop for general use. Does anyone have any opinions on what to get or stay away from?
What am I thinking - opinions? This group?
-- Gilles R. Detillieux E-mail: grdetil@scrc.umanitoba.ca grdetil@scrc.umanitoba.ca Spinal Cord Research Centre WWW: http://www.scrc.umanitoba.ca/ Dept. of Physiology and Pathophysiology, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, Univ. of Manitoba Winnipeg, MB R3E 0J9 (Canada)
Roundtable mailing list Roundtable@muug.ca https://muug.ca/mailman/listinfo/roundtable
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