Re: Recent Laptop experiences sought

[Joshua Judson Rosen]

Usually I just buy from ZaReason, have them pre-install whatever distro I need,
with whatever options I want (they'll flip whatever switches are available via 
the installer--
want full-disk encryption? LVM? Software RAID? Some combination? Just ask them).

And these laptops are just *brilliant* when it comes to being able to 
self-service them:
remove a few phillips-head screws, pop open one big hatch, and everything is 
right there
if you want to add/swap components... or just clean your CPU fan sometime down 
the road
(and if you ask, they'll even include a nice little ZaReason-branded 
screwdriver in the box).


BUT...:

ThinkPenguin relocated to New Hampshire (Keene!) a few years ago.

And Showtime PC in Hudson also started doing custom-built laptops a while ago.

And Showtime and ThinkPenguin presently seem to be using the same ODM laptop 
kits
as ZaReason are using.

On the other hand, I hear that if you buy a Dell with the "corporate" support 
plan,
supposedly you can call Dell and have them send someone same-day to fix your 
laptop
if you break it (and I've heard that support plan is actually remarkably cheap,
though I don't remember the specifics or have a URL handy...).

ThinkPenguin is a lot more active upstream in free software and open hardware
(the ThinkPenguin USB Wi-Fi module is an atheros chip has a nice story behind 
it, for example
 
;
 and LibreCMC is run by the same people who run ThinkPenguin...).

Showtime on the other hand is a brilliant I-wish-there-were-still-more-of-these 
local computer shop.


Sorry, I don't know if this is even close to helpful to Mark ("short list" 
might have meant
"really, needs to be one of these") But I figured if the thread was already 
wandering...,
maybe someone would like to know that list of options existed.

ZaReason: https://zareason.com/
ThinkPenguin: https://www.thinkpenguin.com/
Showtime PC: https://www.showtimepc.com/

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Re: Recent Laptop experiences sought

[Mark Ellison]

Thanks!  I appreciate all of the feedback provided- I have been running
Fedora on Thinkpad laptops since IBM days- first, a T43 and then a W500.
The W500 still works, but is now too slow to do much more than be a
terminal server for web browsing or jumping onto a cloud VM.

I had not looked at either the HP or the Dell laptops prior to this
discussion- and there looks to be some good offerings from both companies.
And, checking for refurbished and open box systems looks like a good idea
as well.

Peter noted 16GB as a minimum for carrying a reasonable (software
development) workload, and, I suspect 24 or 32GB would be a better
future-proofing option.  A faster, newer gen CPU with more cores is usually
desirable, as is a bright high resolution screen, but these items need be
considered against how much quicker the battery will drain.  Six hours of
*real* use out of a battery/system advertised to run for 10 or 12 hours on
a single charge, I think would be a realistic expectation.  There were some
quora/reddit discussions about BIOS tweaks necessary to reduce idling power
consumption for linux, some having to do with thunderbolt support.

This research, while still a work-in-progress, has benefited from your
contributions.  Many thanks!

Regards,

Mark Ellison




On Sat, Sep 14, 2019 at 7:02 PM Peter Petrakis 
wrote:

> 16GB ram is my minimum for a Linux desktop. 8GB was fine before sandbox
> tabbed browsing came
> along but today that's where the bulk of the memory is allocated. It works
> but it feels cramped sometimes.
> KDE is leaner than gnome these days believe it or not. I also don't need a
> registry editor or "tweak tool"
> to set stuff that matters.
>
> I still have a T510 with an SSD that won't die. I had to replace the cpu
> fan recently though, bearings were going.
>
> It might be worth investigating if you can get LineageOS onto the
> chromebook. I recently recycled a Samsung
> Galaxy S4 from Android 4.4 to Android 9 using LOS (r16?). Thing screams
> now.
>
> On Sat, Sep 14, 2019 at 4:07 PM Tom Buskey  wrote:
>
>> I tend to use my laptop in one place so I don't really use the battery.
>> I want chrome, xterminals and ssh to my servers.
>>
>> I had T61p laptops with 8GB and SSD for a long time until the power
>> supplies got flakey.
>> I upgraded to a T420s from ebay ($100ish) plugged the SSD from the T61p
>> and just kept running.
>> I like the durability (the T61p was 12 years old!).
>> All the newer laptops seem to have chiclet type keyboards.  I prefer more
>> of a real keyboard.
>>
>> I have a chromebook that can run Linux.  It's a bit slower, has only 4GB
>> RAM (upper limit for cheap chromebooks), lower resolution and that horrible
>> keyboard.  The battery life is fantastic though.
>>
>> On Sat, Sep 14, 2019 at 2:13 PM Peter Petrakis 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> You can pickup Thinkpad x220 cheap on ebay with 2/4 core i7
>>> processor and max 16G DRAM + SSD for under $250.
>>> Just picked one up for the wife for $179.
>>>
>>> After that I wouldn't bother with anything less than a P50. They can be
>>> had for under $1K and are absolute
>>> beasts. Tons of ram capacity, multiple harddrives, nvme, dual gpus,
>>> suitable for CUDA dev.
>>>
>>> https://tinyurl.com/y3keh99t  , Intel i7-6700HQ 2.60GHz 32GB 480GB SSD
>>> 15.6", buy it now for $760
>>>
>>> http://www.notebookreview.com/notebookreview/lenovo-thinkpad-p50-review-workstation-all/
>>>
>>> I've been halfway around the world with *business class* Thinkpads and
>>> they have never failed me.
>>>
>>> Peter
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On Sat, Sep 14, 2019 at 1:17 PM Mark Ellison  wrote:
>>>
 Hi-

 As appropriate, please respond with your recent laptop experience...

 I have been using the Lenovo Thinkpad line of laptops with Fedora
 Linux.

 Currently, have a short list of laptops- the Lenovo Thinkpad T490 and
 the HP ProBook, Zbook or Elite with the i7 4-core 8M cache. Screen should
 be no larger than 14".

 Some online research turned up 'short battery life' problems with the
 T490 that seem resolvable with some BIOS tweaks.

 Any issues, any preferences?  Things to consider pre-sale?

 Thanks in advance for all your help!

 Mark Ellison


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Re: Recent Laptop experiences sought

[Peter Petrakis]

16GB ram is my minimum for a Linux desktop. 8GB was fine before sandbox
tabbed browsing came
along but today that's where the bulk of the memory is allocated. It works
but it feels cramped sometimes.
KDE is leaner than gnome these days believe it or not. I also don't need a
registry editor or "tweak tool"
to set stuff that matters.

I still have a T510 with an SSD that won't die. I had to replace the cpu
fan recently though, bearings were going.

It might be worth investigating if you can get LineageOS onto the
chromebook. I recently recycled a Samsung
Galaxy S4 from Android 4.4 to Android 9 using LOS (r16?). Thing screams now.

On Sat, Sep 14, 2019 at 4:07 PM Tom Buskey  wrote:

> I tend to use my laptop in one place so I don't really use the battery.  I
> want chrome, xterminals and ssh to my servers.
>
> I had T61p laptops with 8GB and SSD for a long time until the power
> supplies got flakey.
> I upgraded to a T420s from ebay ($100ish) plugged the SSD from the T61p
> and just kept running.
> I like the durability (the T61p was 12 years old!).
> All the newer laptops seem to have chiclet type keyboards.  I prefer more
> of a real keyboard.
>
> I have a chromebook that can run Linux.  It's a bit slower, has only 4GB
> RAM (upper limit for cheap chromebooks), lower resolution and that horrible
> keyboard.  The battery life is fantastic though.
>
> On Sat, Sep 14, 2019 at 2:13 PM Peter Petrakis 
> wrote:
>
>> You can pickup Thinkpad x220 cheap on ebay with 2/4 core i7 processor and
>> max 16G DRAM + SSD for under $250.
>> Just picked one up for the wife for $179.
>>
>> After that I wouldn't bother with anything less than a P50. They can be
>> had for under $1K and are absolute
>> beasts. Tons of ram capacity, multiple harddrives, nvme, dual gpus,
>> suitable for CUDA dev.
>>
>> https://tinyurl.com/y3keh99t  , Intel i7-6700HQ 2.60GHz 32GB 480GB SSD
>> 15.6", buy it now for $760
>>
>> http://www.notebookreview.com/notebookreview/lenovo-thinkpad-p50-review-workstation-all/
>>
>> I've been halfway around the world with *business class* Thinkpads and
>> they have never failed me.
>>
>> Peter
>>
>>
>>
>> On Sat, Sep 14, 2019 at 1:17 PM Mark Ellison  wrote:
>>
>>> Hi-
>>>
>>> As appropriate, please respond with your recent laptop experience...
>>>
>>> I have been using the Lenovo Thinkpad line of laptops with Fedora Linux.
>>>
>>> Currently, have a short list of laptops- the Lenovo Thinkpad T490 and
>>> the HP ProBook, Zbook or Elite with the i7 4-core 8M cache. Screen should
>>> be no larger than 14".
>>>
>>> Some online research turned up 'short battery life' problems with the
>>> T490 that seem resolvable with some BIOS tweaks.
>>>
>>> Any issues, any preferences?  Things to consider pre-sale?
>>>
>>> Thanks in advance for all your help!
>>>
>>> Mark Ellison
>>>
>>>
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Re: Recent Laptop experiences sought

[Tom Buskey]

I tend to use my laptop in one place so I don't really use the battery.  I
want chrome, xterminals and ssh to my servers.

I had T61p laptops with 8GB and SSD for a long time until the power
supplies got flakey.
I upgraded to a T420s from ebay ($100ish) plugged the SSD from the T61p and
just kept running.
I like the durability (the T61p was 12 years old!).
All the newer laptops seem to have chiclet type keyboards.  I prefer more
of a real keyboard.

I have a chromebook that can run Linux.  It's a bit slower, has only 4GB
RAM (upper limit for cheap chromebooks), lower resolution and that horrible
keyboard.  The battery life is fantastic though.

On Sat, Sep 14, 2019 at 2:13 PM Peter Petrakis 
wrote:

> You can pickup Thinkpad x220 cheap on ebay with 2/4 core i7 processor and
> max 16G DRAM + SSD for under $250.
> Just picked one up for the wife for $179.
>
> After that I wouldn't bother with anything less than a P50. They can be
> had for under $1K and are absolute
> beasts. Tons of ram capacity, multiple harddrives, nvme, dual gpus,
> suitable for CUDA dev.
>
> https://tinyurl.com/y3keh99t  , Intel i7-6700HQ 2.60GHz 32GB 480GB SSD
> 15.6", buy it now for $760
>
> http://www.notebookreview.com/notebookreview/lenovo-thinkpad-p50-review-workstation-all/
>
> I've been halfway around the world with *business class* Thinkpads and
> they have never failed me.
>
> Peter
>
>
>
> On Sat, Sep 14, 2019 at 1:17 PM Mark Ellison  wrote:
>
>> Hi-
>>
>> As appropriate, please respond with your recent laptop experience...
>>
>> I have been using the Lenovo Thinkpad line of laptops with Fedora Linux.
>>
>> Currently, have a short list of laptops- the Lenovo Thinkpad T490 and the
>> HP ProBook, Zbook or Elite with the i7 4-core 8M cache. Screen should be no
>> larger than 14".
>>
>> Some online research turned up 'short battery life' problems with the
>> T490 that seem resolvable with some BIOS tweaks.
>>
>> Any issues, any preferences?  Things to consider pre-sale?
>>
>> Thanks in advance for all your help!
>>
>> Mark Ellison
>>
>>
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Re: Recent Laptop experiences sought

[Peter Petrakis]

You can pickup Thinkpad x220 cheap on ebay with 2/4 core i7 processor and
max 16G DRAM + SSD for under $250.
Just picked one up for the wife for $179.

After that I wouldn't bother with anything less than a P50. They can be had
for under $1K and are absolute
beasts. Tons of ram capacity, multiple harddrives, nvme, dual gpus,
suitable for CUDA dev.

https://tinyurl.com/y3keh99t  , Intel i7-6700HQ 2.60GHz 32GB 480GB SSD
15.6", buy it now for $760
http://www.notebookreview.com/notebookreview/lenovo-thinkpad-p50-review-workstation-all/

I've been halfway around the world with *business class* Thinkpads and they
have never failed me.

Peter



On Sat, Sep 14, 2019 at 1:17 PM Mark Ellison  wrote:

> Hi-
>
> As appropriate, please respond with your recent laptop experience...
>
> I have been using the Lenovo Thinkpad line of laptops with Fedora Linux.
>
> Currently, have a short list of laptops- the Lenovo Thinkpad T490 and the
> HP ProBook, Zbook or Elite with the i7 4-core 8M cache. Screen should be no
> larger than 14".
>
> Some online research turned up 'short battery life' problems with the T490
> that seem resolvable with some BIOS tweaks.
>
> Any issues, any preferences?  Things to consider pre-sale?
>
> Thanks in advance for all your help!
>
> Mark Ellison
>
>
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Re: Recent Laptop experiences sought

[Jerry Feldman]

For many years I badmouthed Dells because they used to not run Linux very
well. But, in the past several years they have become much much better. I
had a great Lenovo when I worked at IBM, but it weighed a ton.

On Sat, Sep 14, 2019 at 1:25 PM Curt Howland  wrote:

> On 9/14/19, Mark Ellison  wrote:
> > Hi-
> >
> > As appropriate, please respond with your recent laptop experience...
>
> I use a Dell 6430 at work, and everything works with Debian. It's been
> a solid workhorse.
>
> My Mom is now using a 6430 since her machine flaked out and I knew
> this would work.
>
> For myself I got a 6530 15" with i7, and while it's excellent for some
> reason the screen brightness buttons don't work.
>
> Other than that, I've found the Dells run Linux flawlessly.
>
> Curt-
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Re: Recent Laptop experiences sought

[Jerry Feldman]

I have a Dell inspiron 13 5378. This is a 13" touchscreen with an SSD. and
dual core I7.

My wife has an Asus. She broke her screen the first day we bought it at
Microcenter, and it took a very long time for them to get the laptop
repaired. In contrast, I had a Lenovo when I worked for Red Hat, and I
broke the screen. Took less than a week for Lenovo to repair the screen.

I have had good luck with Lenovo and HP laptops.

On Sat, Sep 14, 2019 at 1:26 PM Curt Howland  wrote:

> On 9/14/19, Mark Ellison  wrote:
> > Hi-
> >
> > As appropriate, please respond with your recent laptop experience...
>
> I use a Dell 6430 at work, and everything works with Debian. It's been
> a solid workhorse.
>
> My Mom is now using a 6430 since her machine flaked out and I knew
> this would work.
>
> For myself I got a 6530 15" with i7, and while it's excellent for some
> reason the screen brightness buttons don't work.
>
> Other than that, I've found the Dells run Linux flawlessly.
>
> Curt-
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--
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Re: Recent Laptop experiences sought

[Curt Howland]

On 9/14/19, Mark Ellison  wrote:
> Hi-
>
> As appropriate, please respond with your recent laptop experience...

I use a Dell 6430 at work, and everything works with Debian. It's been
a solid workhorse.

My Mom is now using a 6430 since her machine flaked out and I knew
this would work.

For myself I got a 6530 15" with i7, and while it's excellent for some
reason the screen brightness buttons don't work.

Other than that, I've found the Dells run Linux flawlessly.

Curt-
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Recent Laptop experiences sought

[Mark Ellison]

Hi-

As appropriate, please respond with your recent laptop experience...

I have been using the Lenovo Thinkpad line of laptops with Fedora Linux.

Currently, have a short list of laptops- the Lenovo Thinkpad T490 and the
HP ProBook, Zbook or Elite with the i7 4-core 8M cache. Screen should be no
larger than 14".

Some online research turned up 'short battery life' problems with the T490
that seem resolvable with some BIOS tweaks.

Any issues, any preferences?  Things to consider pre-sale?

Thanks in advance for all your help!

Mark Ellison
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