gazelle professional review

[metalanguage]

I'm also confused about the exact problem you're having. When people recommended updating your kernel in Debian...did you try that? If not, why not? Was there some other part of the distribution that wouldn't work with a newer kernel? Or do you have some other reason to not want to update your kernel? I promise that the requirement for a modern kernel isn't some kind of arbitrarily imposed evil, but a simple cause-and-effect scenario: kernel developers have no way of implementing support for hardware until that hardware exists.

I've tried upgrading a kernel on a VM in the past and I feel that it is a pain in the ass. I could be wrong and it could be very easy and maybe I had a bad experience, but I just picked the solution which would most likely lead to the best outcome. Again: I'm not interested in fixing operating system or package issues.

So fine: you're not forced into ubuntu, but you may experience problems if you run a kernel below a certain version. That was the intended message. I don't know why I wrote what I wrote before.

[ElMaxito]

Since we are on the topics of gazelles and whatnot.
I plan on starting masters program in CS in fall. Is this a good build for it? Any changes? If so, why? Thanks.
Base System Price $875.00 (Gazelle Professional)
Ubuntu 12.10 64 bit
5 Free GB of Ubuntu One Online Storage and Sync
15.6" 1080p Full High Definition LED Backlit Display featuring 95% NTSC Color Gamut in Matte Finished Surface ( 1920 x 1080 ) +$79.00
Intel HD Graphics 4000
3rd Generation Intel Core i7-3740QM Processor ( 2.70GHz 6MB L3 Cache - 4 Cores plus Hyperthreading ) +$175.00
8 GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1600MHz - 2 X 4GB +$45.00
120 GB Intel 520 Series SATA III 6 Gb/s Solid State Disk Drive +$109.00
United States Keyboard Layout
8X DVD±R/RW/4X +DL Super-Multi Drive
Intel Centrino 1030 - 802.11 b/g/n Wireless LAN + Bluetooth Combo Module

[nerdcommander]

Does anyone have comments on the most recent version of this laptop? Especially battery life and keyboard/trackpad performance? Thanks.

[rorschachwalter]

Keyboard is absolute rubbish. I posted videos for System76 and was told it was defective. Then Ian insisted it was just personal preference -- same thing they've been telling all the unhappy Galago users. The keyboard is simply horrid.

The touchpad is better, although admittedly I didn't use it for multigesture except for two-finger scrolling. The finish on the touchpad makes your fingers stick to it -- it's the same plastic the rest of the body is made of. The buttons sound hollow when you click. You can't use edge scrolling, since the touchpad doesn't actually register touching all the edge, which means you'd have to slide your finger up and down an invisible line slightly away from the edge to get it to scroll, and any deviation means it stops scrolling and moves the cursor. Highly irritating.

Battery life didn't seem to be affected terribly much by usage. It was I think 3-3.5 hours.

There were other issues -- wireless wasn't reliable, the volume buttons and others would "stick", resulting sometimes in making you go deaf with headphones on or waking the entire house up if speakers were plugged in, and it would render the keyboard unresponsive until you found out which key was sticking (it's a software issue, not a hardware issue).

The display actually doesn't seem to display colors accurately. Not sure whether that's just because of poor quality, or because the color profile they give you is off. But the entire display has a hue to it, and some of the colors are objectively wrong (you can see this using an online display test).

Speakers were garbage. Literally only as loud as my HTC EVO's speakers, and literally about the same poor, tinny quality.

The webcam and microphone are also rubbish.

The case scratches incredibly easily.

The machine runs hot, and presently it can't even handle a basic game like Team Fortress 2 (this might be fixed with the next Ubuntu release).

The microphone doesn't work until you plug in and unplug a device from the microphone port.

The BIOS on mine (which they assured me had been tested) didn't respect the low battery alarm setting, which meant I always got very loud, very annoying beeps when I passed the threshold.

[nerdcommander]

thanks very much for the detailed review.
if not the Gazelle, then what would you recommend? or, maybe better put, what is your reference machine that has the user experience and performance that you could recommend? I prefer a linux preload situation, but am not opposed to self install.
thanks.

[rorschachwalter]

It really depends what you're looking for. But something similar to the Gazelle (minus the IPS display, which is extremely rare on anything other than an ultrabook), the Dell Inspiron line works well with Linux (better than the Gazelle, from my experience). They've released an updated 17-inch version just recently with Haswell, and I imagine their 15-inch version will be updated shortly as well. Dells in general work well with Linux. You can wait for a "sale" on whatever machine you want or just call a representative and tell them you want the machine but it's too much and they'll help you get money off.

[ddraper2]

I have had my Gazelle about 2 or 3 weeks. The configuration is as follows:

Base System
Ubuntu 13.04 64 bit
15.6" 1080p Full High Definition ColorPro IPS Display with Matte Surface ( 1920 x 1080 )
Intel® HD Graphics 4600
4th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-4800MQ Processor ( 2.7 GHz 6MB L3 Cache - 4 Cores plus Hyperthreading )
16 GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1600MHz - 2 X 8 GB
United States Keyboard Layout
750 GB 7200 RPM SATA II
No Secondary Hard Drive
8X DVD±R/RW/4X +DL Super-Multi Drive
Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6235 - 802.11A/B/G/N Wireless LAN + Bluetooth Combo Module

It has taken me a little bit of time to go through the machine however I believe I have touched on all the hardware etc. I have verified that all of the hardware is indeed functioning.

The biggest complaint is with the keyboard. It just seems to miss random keystrokes unless I pound on the keys. My a and w keys seems to be the most problematic however the problems are not limited to those keys.

I don't have much to say about the trackpad. I am not a big trackpad guy and use a mouse almost all of time except when I using my laptop on the subway. That said the trackpad is functional and certainly way better than the 4 year old HP laptop this one replaced.

I am going to open a support ticket on the keyboard. I really feel when you pay more than $1200 for a laptop you should not have problems with the keyboard. The only issue that prevents me from recommending the machine is the keyboard.

[rorschachwalter]

I am going to open a support ticket on the keyboard. I really feel when you pay more than $1200 for a laptop you should not have problems with the keyboard. The only issue that prevents me from recommending the machine is the keyboard.

They will not fix the keyboard or acknowledge that it's a problem. Ian admitted from the videos I posted that the keyboards wasn't functioning well, but then decided to blame it on personal preference. And then the replacement they sent me was not only as dysfunctional as the original, but they it had a Windows key instead of an Ubuntu key. Small thing, but the point is, it's probably better for you not to try to get the keyboard "fixed".

[nerdcommander]

I'd like to support Linux/Ubuntu Laptop "manufacturers" and a friend has a Lemur that he likes, but the issues scare me. I've considered trying one and returning if it doesn't work for me, but at this point I'm holding out for the recently hinted at Dell XPS 13 with Haswell processor hoping they produce an Ubuntu loaded version. Supposed to be November for the machine, no official Ubuntu version yet... Thanks for the feedback.

[4CP8X4x]

Well, for what its worth, I just recieved my Galago a couple days ago and its the best computer Ive ever had. Keyboard isnt great but it registers keys just fine. HDMI audio doesnt work but I suspect that its because Im using the 13.10 beta. No other problems and the screen is the most beautiful display Ive ever had the chance to see in person.