My limping laptop broke definitively and was donated to the computer recyclers yesterday. My cheap one is limping and is now my designated media computer (I have no television or stereo system, so I can justify a designated media computer). I am typing now on the netbook. I have a desktop at work. On the theory of living within my means I should be satisfied. I should just go to the office and work, and use the netbook the rest of the time.
I think this is unrealistic. I also don’t want to buy proprietary software for this netbook. Now, if at work they would just issue me one of their standard laptops that would be fine, and perhaps I should try to trade my desktop in for one such. In the meantime I have a dilemma about the laptop which, realistically, I should acquire.
I know I need my laptop to be of a quality that matches the university laptops, that is to say, to be a professional quality laptop. While I would accept a good Windows or even a Macintosh machine as a work issued item, I am not sure I would like them even as gifts. Certainly if I am going to spend serious money of my own, I want a Linux box.
So I have to find one. I want at least a 15.6″ screen if not 17″. I also want at least:
- Intel Core i5-2520M (2.50GHz, 3M cache)
- 4GB RAM Memory
- 320GB Encrypted Disk Drive
- Webcam and Microphone
- 8X DVD+/-RW Drive
- 802.11a/g/n Wireless Network Interface
I want a lot of ports and I would ideally have a 3 year warranty that did not cost extra. I want a thin and light machine with long battery life. So what do you suggest?
So far I have found these:
System 76 Bonobo Professional ($1400 and perhaps more)
Toucan and Rhino from EmperorLinux ($1400 and on up – expensive and perhaps excessive)
LC2430Sb Linux notebook (starting at $1200 until 7/24 and looks good)
Viper: Ubuntu Linux on a Dell Inspiron 17 ($1100 at Amazon, small upgrade from standard version)
Viper: almost as loaded, standard version ($900 from the company that makes it)
Do you know of any others? Summing up, I am looking for certified Linux pre-installed, 15.6″ or 17″ screen, sturdy hardware, and future proofing / expandability / more power than you would think I need.
Axé.
coldhearted scientist وداد 
http://dealzon.com/computers/laptops?f=screen-size_15
Look at some of the options there. You’re getting a 8GB laptop with an i-5 processor for $675. It’s a pretty decent deal.
Don’t pay extra for a ‘linux laptop’. Get a laptop, partition the hard drive, install linux in one of the partitions so that every time you start your computer you have the option to start it in linux or Windows. It’s easy.
Some of your requirements compete with others. You can not have a 17inch laptop that isn’t heavy. A laptop that size is pretty much like a desktop and it should be used like one. Your netbook should be good enough for the times you want to browse the internet at a coffeeshop or give a conference presentation.
Gracias for this feedback!
1 – I’ve done the partition thing before. The thing is, I didn’t know the hardware itself had to be Linux ready. The Linux portion never worked.
1b – I didn’t like the dual boot situation – if I want 2 0S’s I’d rather just have 2 machines and do filesharing.
2 – That’s why I have the 23 inch monitor. I never had the right furniture or something to set this up right at home, and I had infinite screen resolution and software problems, and ended up deciding I’d rather have a huge laptop and then the netbook for walking around. Maybe I should rethink but I’d have to buy a good desk first, I think, and accustom myself to working in the one room where it would be located. So right now, it’s my DVD movie screen. But, I’ll consider this possibility.
Now I’ll click on the link above (in your comment)!
If I could offer one more suggestion.
I don’t think the way you’re going about it is the most efficient. Instead of getting a behemoth 17 inch laptop that you won’t be able to take anywhere, you might be better off – for the same price – buying a smaller, sleeker laptop and then getting a big, 23inch monitor. You have absolutely no idea how much your productivity will increase by using two screens. With just the laptop screen, no matter how big it is, there’s always the pain of having to minimize and maximize different applications. It’s such a hassle! Say, you’re writing a document and you’re referring to a paper (pdf) in your writing. With one screen, you read a portion of the pdf, then you minimize it, maximize your MS Word screen, type something, forget some fact, bring up the pdf screen in front, then the Word screen, and type again. See how frustrating it can be? With two screens you can refer to the pdf in one screen while you’re writing your document in another. After a week of this, I bet my life you’ll never go back to one screen ever.
This arrangement gives you all the benefits of a desktop (bigger screen) at home and all the benefits of a laptop (portability) outside your home.
Aha, I see I replied to this in the wrong box. The link above is good. Very good. Maybe I should buy one of those with no OS, etc. – I just remember being hours on the phone to Dell and hours in Linux forums the time I installed it – only to find that in fact the machine I had started with wasn’t Linux ready and would never run it easily.
I don’t know when you had those problems but linux has come a long way.
Check out http://www.linux-laptop.net/ to see how compatible different brands are with linux. You could buy these linux ready laptops but I just don’t like the idea of someone charging me $500-$900 to install a piece of software on a (less powerful) laptop. Plus the whole idea of getting into linux is to tweak around and hyper-personalize your computer so if something’s not working at first, you can always install the right drivers/software to solve the issue. I guess in the end, it comes down to how much do you want to spend on the convenience of having everything work right out of the box. Also check out Mint – I hear it’s a very PC-friendly flavor of linux.
Is your university IT support any good?
IT, some of them are but it would have to be a university machine. What you’re buying when you buy from a Linux installer is support for the life of the machine. I’m not interested in personalizing the computer, just escaping from Windows, Mac, and proprietary software … what I don’t like about some of these versions I’ve found is that they’re on weak machines. I’ve seen the link you just gave and it’s very interesting (I’d found it before and closed it because it was making my head spin). I’ll brave it, though, and you’ve pushed me to one decision: 15.6, not 17.
And here’s an informative site: Distrowatch: http://distrowatch.com/
Incompatibility with hardware is mostly the issue when the hardware is state-of-the-art and brand new. New hardware means the open source community needs time to develop, test, and release the appropriate drivers/tweaks. That’s why you hear of problems with video cards and wireless cards, etc. Given your price constraint, I think the technology in your laptop will be 1-2 years old, not cutting edge, so linux should be pretty stable in your machine.
I want a durable machine though in terms of case. All my university bought laptops have been business / higher ed editions and have had the professional not home version of software. The software has always been a lot better and the cases have lasted.
The home version laptops I’ve had have self destructed fast. This one, the limping one, is only a few months old and keys are falling off. The recycled one had the motherboard blow out finally, but its first problem was, the buckle that held the screen to it cracked. So, the idea of a Dell Latitude, for instance, excites me much more than of an Inspiron … these more expensive ones also have a lot more ports and things like that.
So I’m interested in paying hundreds for style and support because if not, I fear, I’ll just have to buy another machine soon, which will cost hundreds also and take time and effort. ?
I never got the hang of Linux even after hours of trying and so can’t advise, especially as a Mac convert, but it’s exciting to get a new computer.
Go for it, then.
My linux-expert friend has been bugging me to install ubuntu on my laptop, much in the same way I bug others to watch The Wire. Now I’m curious to see how it’ll work. I’ll let you know how it goes.
It seems you can install Ubuntu such that it works inside Windows, and you don’t have to reboot. You can also have Windows on one screen that way and Ubuntu on the external monitor (or vice versa).
I am trying to install it but failing. It seems one might need Virtual Box, one more download, ho hum.
Oh yes, I must watch the Wire and Treme. Blogging killed my video viewing time and I think I should switch back, kind of, I’m getting behind on other media experiences.
I had Suze. It was OK but it never worked with wireless. There also wasn’t a word processor I really liked. (I don’t like Open Office.) My real options I think are get a Windows machine and buy Word Perfect, or get Linux machine and just deal with whatever – now there is Office Libre. My priority feels like it’s having a machine I really like as an object, and an OS I like, and for people like me Ubuntu and Mint seem to be the most popular.
I’ll be curious about your Ubuntu test.
Update: the price on this http://www.linuxcertified.com/linux-laptop-lc2430sb.html is actually not bad compared to the same machine with Windows, from a cut rate place.
I phoned to ask about it and the guy on the other end of the line had such a heavy Chinese accent he was hard to understand.
“Are you local Bay Area?” asked he.
I felt such a wave of nostalgia.
I am still not over it.
Chinese and fog.
I’ve gone and done it! The man on e-mail was named Rajesh. Between that and the Mandarin accent on the phone, and them being in Sunnyvale, this company seems to be geek central and I am very satisfied. Well, more like, excited, because it feels like it’s a machine that will fit me, not just be a stopgap. 🙂