[TriLUG] Where does one go for the best in Linux hardware?

Joseph S. Tate dragonstrider at gmail.com
Sat Dec 10 02:49:22 EST 2011


Think pad X series typically comes with intel video and wireless chips;
both have OSS drivers (typically merged into the mainline kernel).  Some
ThinkPads come with a OE branded "ThinkPad Wireless" which could be an
older generation Intel chip or even an Atmel, but they haven't used
broadcom in the past.  You should check ThinkWiki.org for quirks for the
specific model before you buy.  I think Lenovo has an ATI addon you can
purchase as an upgrade, but unless the drivers have improved by leaps and
bounds in the last year or so, the ATI GPU runs at full speed at all times
when it's on, (instead of CPU scaling), so it's terrible on your battery
life and lap temperature.  Intel graphics are decently powered (as long as
you don't do a ton of HD video (I don't know if hardware MPEG decoding is
available in the current chips or drivers) or 3D gaming) and are efficient.

After the Mac, you'll probably love the keyboard and the touchpoint on the
ThinkPad.  I despise touchpads, and the Mac laptop keyboards are missing
too many keys for efficiently moving the cursor around without contorting
your fingers with function keymaps.

The X series has several docking options, so you may want to look into
those as well.  Too bad you didn't shop a couple weekends ago, Lenovo had
their annual warehouse sale in Morrisville... But I've got a 10% off coupon
code you can use if you'd like it (just arrived in the mail yesterday).
There may be coupon deals listed on slickdeals.  If you place your order
over the phone you can get your ThinkPad without the windows tax.

Joseph

On Sat, Dec 10, 2011 at 12:15 AM, Tarus Balog <tarus at opennms.org> wrote:

> After years of being an Apple fanboy I am moving away from Apple gear and
> I'd like to get a nice, small Linux laptop (a la a Macbook Air) and a
> decent desktop system. The only problem is that it has been so long since
> I've bought non-Apple, non-server hardware I'm at a loss. It seems that a
> lot of gear includes either NVIDIA video or Broadcom wireless cards, and
> I'd like something Debian friendly.
>
> Suggestions?
>
> -T
>

-- 
Joseph Tate
Personal e-mail: jtate AT dragonstrider DOT com
Web: http://www.dragonstrider.com



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