Looking for new computer recommendations!

[Dragonbite]

Ok, I am beginning to look for a new laptop that is reasonably priced (~$1k+, prefer < $2k if possible)), but won't be obsolete for a few years. This is primarily for my wife to use, but don't think I won't be getting my grubby hands on it too ;)

+ It will be running Windows 7 primarily (for her) but needs to be compatible with Linux (for me, and doesn't matter which; Ubuntu, Fedora or openSUSE)
+ Prefer a 15" screen but will accept a 17" screen if I have to
+ Here's the tough one.. I want a 5 hour or more battery life, even if that entails getting an extended battery. Will take replacing an optical drive with an 2nd battery if that is the only way.
+ Needs to be pretty good for graphic use (mild DTP, some photo editing, etc).

Of course needs WiFi (it's a laptop for heaven's sake!). All of the other features, if these primary ones are met, are nice but optional; webcam, bluetooth, Firewire, etc.

Anybody have any recommendations? Or am I asking for too much?

(yes, I posted this in Google+ (https://plus.google.com/111253993917642918996/posts/FTodtudWDGc) but think it may get more exposure here)

[undecim]

I recommend Asus. They are by far the best-built laptops I've ever had.

I think some of their new models have very long battery life. Their Uxx and ULxx series claim battery life of 8 hours (or more, depending on the model)

EDIT: Here are two of their models that meet your specifications:

http://www.asus.com/Notebooks/Superior_Mobility/UL50At/ (~$500, from what I could find on Google)
http://www.asus.com/Notebooks/Superior_Mobility/U53Jc/ (~$1000, from what I could find on Google)

[collisionystm]

Have a look at the Dell Vostro series laptops. They seem to be Ubuntu's flagship notebook. I have a 3750 with a 17" screen and everything worked flawlessly. It has an Intel Centrino 1300-n card that works great. The funny part is the wifi card had a problem under windows and it was because there is a bug with the power saving module. I just disabled the power saving in win 7 and it works great. No problems in linux though.

[Jesus_Valdez]

I was checking yesterday the Assus UL series on Amazon and they look really good. Aluminum on the outside, fake aluminum on the inside.

If I recall correctly they have dedicated graphic card and no optical disc drive, and they announce the battery life around the 8 hours.

[Linuxratty]

Have a look at the Dell Vostro series laptops. They seem to be Ubuntu's flagship notebook.

Yup,look here!

http://www.dell.com/us/business/p/vostro-3555/pd

[cap10Ibraim]

a Thinkpad or a Sony vaio Z series

[Dragonbite]

a Thinkpad or a Sony vaio Z series

I didn't think Sony was very Linux-friendly. At least the desktop I bought in 2000 wasn't.

[Dragonbite]

How are all of these on battery life?

[Blasphemist]

I don't think you are shooting low enough. I have some recycle credits to spend at Best Buy and looked the other day to see how the laptop prices are these days. I could find quite a few with a decent i3 or i5, 4 GB, 500 GB for under $500. Would easily last a few years.

[kurt18947]

a Thinkpad or a Sony vaio Z series

Most Thinkpads seem to be pretty Ubuntu/Linux friendly. There's a thread somewhere on this board about problem notebooks. I'd say if you can find a Thinkpad model that's been out for a year or so that would be a nice choice. Of course, I'm biased.....I much prefer the Thinkpad UltraNav to any other vendor's offering. I have two older Thinkpads, an R61i & X61 tablet which I just got off Ebay for $127 (stealth gloat:)) and they're both install and go. Do beware of machines with Nvidia Optimus(I think it's called), a dual Intel/Nvidia display setup which has no Linux support from Nvidia. There's a community effort to support the Intel/Nvidia offering but I don't know how well it works so far.

[rewyllys]

Most Thinkpads seem to be pretty Ubuntu/Linux friendly. . . . Do beware of machines with Nvidia Optimus(I think it's called), a dual Intel/Nvidia display setup which has no Linux support from Nvidia. There's a community effort to support the Intel/Nvidia offering but I don't know how well it works so far.
I've now had a new Lenovo ThinkPad T420 for over three weeks, and it's running with no problems. I'm very happy with its speed and features. I ordered the 1600x900 screen, and 6GB of RAM. Having read the warnings about the Nvidia Optimus problem, I ordered my T420 with an alternative graphic card.

Installation of Ubuntu 11.04 (Classic) went smoothly. I did make a couple of tweaks after the installation was complete. One of them was to modify /etc/default/grub as explained by Donniezazen in comment #120 in the thread entitled "Re: Ubuntu 11.04 on a Thinkpad T420" (see http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1748475&highlight=T420&page=12).

The other tweak was to install ThinkPad Fan Control as explained by Mejo in comment #9 in the thread entitled "Re: Thinkpad T420, Ubuntu 11.04 Fan running all the Time" (see http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1749186).

The "Re: Ubuntu 11.04 on a Thinkpad T420" thread is long and has many suggestions, but I decided that the ones most important to me were the two I've discussed above. YMMV, of course.

[sammiev]

We use Toshiba at work and since then I have bought 3 for at home. All work great with Win7 and Linux. All are intel based units. :)

[3Miro]

This is a though one, especially the battery. I am not sure if Intel video would be enough for your needs, but it is very well supported. Nvidia would solve any graphics issues, however, you will not be able to get 5 hours out of an Nvidia card. Now switching between the two (Optimus) would be great, but it cannot be done at the moment (not under Linux anyway). ATI cards may also work, but laptops with ATI are rare.

You can go for either Windows laptop that runs Linux, or Linux laptop that runs Windows. The second option would be more expensive (if you care for copyright), but it should be less of a gamble (most laptops can run windows easily, Linux is harder to guarantee).

5h battery life is a lot. Have you considered just getting an extra battery. I just got a System76 Pangolin and with the heavy i7, 8GB of RAM and 7200 HDD, I can get more than two hours on battery (this means Unity and mostly surfing forums, very little flash). I have an extra battery, so I can hibernate, switch the battery, resume, and thus getting 5 hours or more would be easy (especially with an i5 and 4GB of RAM).

I would imagine that most i5 + Intel HD would be close to your battery requirements. I am not sure if those would be enough for video editing (I thing they would be, but I can't be sure). On the other hand, if you want stable Linux performance, don't get Optimus and standalone Nvidia would eat your battery in minutes (and it doesn't help that stand-alone Nvidia cards are available for GTX560 and up, 550 and less are all Optimus).

[mmsmc]

check out the dels xps series, the xps 15 is around $800, 8 gigs of ram, 750 gb harddrive, and an intel i7. only downfall is its graphics cards are not as of yet 100% compatible with linux

[drawkcab]

I think that, today, laptop design is being driven by marketing. That is to say that the quality of the machine isn't as important as 1) that it looks flashy in the showroom or 2) that it offers as much spec as possible for the $$$ on the internet. The result is that really important thing like build quality and ergonomics are sacrificed in order to build a unit that moves off the shelf.

Lenovo's thinkpads are legendary because they don't skimp on these things. They are perhaps unfashionable, a bit heavy and expensive given the spec, but who cares? They last forever and they are fantastic to work on. You have the budget to spec out a nice workhorse thinkpad with some extra goodies that will serve your family for years. It's a no-brainer.

At any rate, have a look at these brand rankings:

http://www.laptopmag.com/mobile-life/scores-by-brand-best-brands.aspx

[Dragonbite]

I think that, today, laptop design is being driven by marketing. That is to say that the quality of the machine isn't as important as 1) that it looks flashy in the showroom or 2) that it offers as much spec as possible for the $$$ on the internet. The result is that really important thing like build quality and ergonomics are sacrificed in order to build a unit that moves off the shelf.

Lenovo's thinkpads are legendary because they don't skimp on these things. They are perhaps unfashionable, a bit heavy and expensive given the spec, but who cares? They last forever and they are fantastic to work on. You have the budget to spec out a nice workhorse thinkpad with some extra goodies that will serve your family for years. It's a no-brainer.

At any rate, have a look at these brand rankings:

http://www.laptopmag.com/mobile-life/scores-by-brand-best-brands.aspx

Thanks for the link.

At work I have a lenovo and it works pretty well. Wish the screen could be a little brighter, but the only issue I've had with the build quality is the hinge for the lid has some play in it (I can wiggle it back and forth before it actually starts moving along the axis).

Overall, I find the Lenovos to be slimmer and lighter than other, similar era laptops. Right now I am thinking the Lenovo is fitting into my top list, now to find some others...

[Dragonbite]

Oh, I nearly forgot... by the twinkle in her eye, I see a 17" laptop is more preferred over the 15" model. Which is fine since she isn't going to be doing too much traveling with it other than to the bedroom (to close the door with the kids on the other side) or the studio (also known as the garage).

I think if/when I look at MY replacement laptop I'll be looking at a 15" since I am more mobile with my system than she is. But that's only if I get a good enough deal :lolflag:

[koleoptero]

Either go for a small one (smaller than 13'') or for a large 17'' or 18'' in screen size. The sizes in between are neither comfortable working nor carrying around.

Make sure it has a decent graphics card with dedicated video ram, and not the intel HD ones.

Make sure it either has an i5 or i7, but not the QM or UM ones.

Get an 8-cell or larger battery to make sure it has enough power on the go.

With more than $1k you can easily find something that fits these criteria.

[undecim]

I am not sure if Intel video would be enough for your needs

I can run 3D games (Nexuiz, Regnum) on an Intel Mobile 4. (though I also use Fluxbox, which helps; Unity takes up a lot of GPU power. I'm not sure if this applies for fullscreen games though.)

If all you need is photo editing, Intel cards are fine.

EDIT:

Oh, I nearly forgot... by the twinkle in her eye, I see a 17" laptop is more preferred over the 15" model. Which is fine since she isn't going to be doing too much traveling with it other than to the bedroom (to close the door with the kids on the other side) or the studio (also known as the garage).

I think if/when I look at MY replacement laptop I'll be looking at a 15" since I am more mobile with my system than she is. But that's only if I get a good enough deal :lolflag:

When you go above 16", you're generally looking at Multimedia laptops, and less battery life. (so you may have to go with the extended battery; I don't know of any modern laptops that let your replace the optical drive with a battery)

Rather than searching for a specific screen size, you could look for laptops with 1080p resolution. Those will generally be 17" or 18" (and be more emphasized that screen size)

[Erik1984]

I don't think you are shooting low enough. I have some recycle credits to spend at Best Buy and looked the other day to see how the laptop prices are these days. I could find quite a few with a decent i3 or i5, 4 GB, 500 GB for under $500. Would easily last a few years.

But do they meet the battery life requirement of TS?

[cap10Ibraim]

if you want more battery life you should wait for the ultrabooks (intel) as mentioned before

[drawkcab]

Either go for a small one (smaller than 13'') or for a large 17'' or 18'' in screen size. The sizes in between are neither comfortable working nor carrying around.

After having owned 3 15" laptops, I think this is right on. One of the problems is that many of the 15" include the numpad which offsets a smaller keyboard anyway, making a 12"-14" notebook with a standard keyboard more comfortable. Again, unless you are typing in a lot of numbers, why is this necessary? Again an extra feature that only makes the marketing department happy.


Make sure it has a decent graphics card with dedicated video ram, and not the intel HD ones.


My mother's thinkpad has the intel gpu and it chugs with 3d gaming. If that's not a problem for you, the basic intel gpu will be fine for dektop effects. If you anticipate serious multimedia use at all, look for a better gpu.

[Dragonbite]

I think the Intel graphics will work fine since we're not doing a lot of editing other than cropping/rotating and other minor changes to digital photographs. The bigger resource-hog will be working with a lot of large pictures in a desktop publisher, and sorting/managing a lot of images (which photo managers generally do a pretty good job).

As a point of reference, we are doing everything now on either a Pentium 4 @ 2.4 GHz w/2.5 GB Ram (desktop) or a Pentium M @ 1.6 GHz w/1 GB of Ram. So just about anything is an "upgrade". Since my current laptop is a 12", I know I want something 15-17+ inches.

One system that looks interesting is the Lenovo Essential G770 (http://www.lenovo.com/products/us/laptop/essential/g-series/g770/index.html). Spec'd out, the price came to just under $1k. While it is more than I would originally anticipate paying, it includes the MS Office, and is durable (a feature, now come to think about it, will be beneficial since my wife is,.. well..., um.., a klutz at times :lolflag: )

[drawkcab]

One system that looks interesting is the Lenovo Essential G770 (http://www.lenovo.com/products/us/laptop/essential/g-series/g770/index.html). Spec'd out, the price came to just under $1k. While it is more than I would originally anticipate paying, it includes the MS Office, and is durable (a feature, now come to think about it, will be beneficial since my wife is,.. well..., um.., a klutz at times :lolflag: )

One nice thing about that model ^^^ is that it has a standard keyboard. Also, Lenovo's chicklet style keyboards are nicer than most of the competition although I prefer old-school.

The essential series is neither as durable nor as ergonomical as the thinkpad series. You should check one out at Best Buy and see if it is actually any better than the alternatives from Asus, Toshiba, Sony, etc.

As an aside, Lenovo offers some thinkpads w/out windows that will save you a couple dollars:

http://shop.lenovo.com/us/thinkpad-laptops-with-dos.shtml

[undecim]

As an aside, Lenovo offers some thinkpads w/out windows that will save you a couple dollars

OP states that he needs Windows 7.

[Dragonbite]

OP states that he needs Windows 7.

For my wife, I need Windows 7. But depending on how much I spend on her, *I* may be looking at those for myself! :guitar:

[drawkcab]

OP states that he needs Windows 7.

Hence,


As an aside, Lenovo offers...[/url]

[cap10Ibraim]

Toshiba Portege series is good and advanced too
In my experience intel based toshiba is linux compatible

[Dragonbite]

This brings up a question...

With the Intel chips I know
Core 2 Duo < i3 < i5 < i7

But AMD uses words (Phenom, Athalon, and more). Where do they rank compared to each other, and what is the closest "equivalent" in the Intel list?

[Linuxratty]

Zareason looks good:

http://zareason.com/shop/home.php

[Dragonbite]

Zareason looks good:

http://zareason.com/shop/home.php

Yeah, they look pretty good except that I said I am looking at a 17" laptop (ZaReason doesn't have one) running Windows 7 (ZaReason only has Linux options) that I would like to know it is Linux compatible(at least THAT, ZaReason should be able to provide).

If anything, I would look first at System76 since
They have a 17" model (Bonobo Professional (http://www.system76.com/product_info.php?cPath=28&products_id=117))
The do provide Windows 7 drivers (but I have to get Windows 7 myself)
I know they'll be at least Ubuntu Linux compatible

[cap10Ibraim]

Why such Linux laptops are so expensive !:confused:

[WorBlux]

Why such Linux laptops are so expensive !:confused:

Smaller batch runs, which means that you have to spread the tooling and design costs out over fewer units.

[Dragonbite]

Hmm.. I thought the Lenovos were expensive, but pricing a comparable Dell and I find the Lenovos very competitive!

What's happening, they used to be the "Apple of Windows computers!" (in other words, expensive!)?

Anybody have any updates on the Lenovo Essential G770 (http://www.lenovo.com/products/us/laptop/essential/g-series/g770/index.html)?

My problem now is finding one in a store so I can see the actual product! Heck, I would take finding a 15" one for the "quality feel", and then look at a 17" (anything) for the sizing. We have BestBuy in this area, but are there any stores (in CT) anybody knows of which may carry Lenovo without it being listed on their site?

[foxy123]

I wonder if anyone actually owns Asus U53JC? It looks quite tempting. Both wife and daughter have Asus laptop and NetBook and they are good. So I'm tooting with an idea to replace my HP with Asus. I just do not want to have any hardware compatibility issues with it.

[ubunterooster]

I have seen a lot of people in my area get the Dell e5420. Inexpensive, durable, and customisable (psst, I like the backlit keyboard)
http://www.dell.com/us/business/p/latitude-e5420/fs

[kurt18947]

Hmm.. I thought the Lenovos were expensive, but pricing a comparable Dell and I find the Lenovos very competitive!

What's happening, they used to be the "Apple of Windows computers!" (in other words, expensive!)?

Anybody have any updates on the Lenovo Essential G770 (http://www.lenovo.com/products/us/laptop/essential/g-series/g770/index.html)?

My problem now is finding one in a store so I can see the actual product! Heck, I would take finding a 15" one for the "quality feel", and then look at a 17" (anything) for the sizing. We have BestBuy in this area, but are there any stores (in CT) anybody knows of which may carry Lenovo without it being listed on their site?

I think the build quality of ThinkPads>Lenovo. Lenovo is 'consumer grade', ThinkPad is 'business grade'.

[anna2112]

I am using Compaq..and for me its good !!!