Travel laptop recomendations

[sports fan Matt]

So I have a T470 and love it and I see a Dell E7450 i7-5600u 16GB 256GB SSD Win 10 Pro WebCam HDMI 14" 1920x1080 Laptop

Specs: Dell E7450 i7-5600u 2.60GHz
16GB 256GB SSD Win 10 Pro
1920x1080
Intel Core i7 5th Gen.

[url]https://www.ebay.com/itm/156140421967?itmmeta=01J5TMP6RNGNJX8DQNN46WTQG6&ha sh=item245ab1c34f:g:toAAAOSwHstmAvjz[/url

I would use this for travel and leave the ThinkPad at home

[TheFu]

Uh .... dell 11-gen gen 14 inch laptops from Dell Refurbished are in the sub-$300 range these days.
I think 14 inch is too large for a travel laptop and bought a 13.3 inch 5320 about 10 days ago for $265. Here are the specs .... had to boot it:

$ inxi -bz
System:
  Kernel: 6.8.0-40-generic arch: x86_64 bits: 64
  Console: pty pts/3 Distro: Linux Mint 22 Wilma
Machine:
  Type: Laptop System: Dell product: Latitude 5320 v: N/A serial: <superuser required>
  Mobo: Dell model: 0Y7GXY v: A00 serial: <superuser required> UEFI: Dell v: 1.36.0
    date: 03/22/2024
Battery:
  ID-1: BAT0 charge: 53.3 Wh (100.0%) condition: 53.3/61.8 Wh (86.3%)
CPU:
  Info: quad core 11th Gen Intel Core i5-1145G7 [MT MCP] speed (MHz): avg: 503 min/max: 400/4400
Graphics:
  Device-1: Intel TigerLake-LP GT2 [Iris Xe Graphics] driver: i915 v: kernel
  Device-2: Realtek Integrated_Webcam_HD driver: uvcvideo type: USB
  Display: x11 server: X.org v: 1.21.1.11 with: Xwayland v: 23.2.6 driver: X:
    loaded: modesetting unloaded: fbdev,vesa dri: iris gpu: i915 tty: 115x37 resolution: 1920x1080
  API: OpenGL v: 4.6 compat-v: 4.5 vendor: mesa v: 24.0.9-0ubuntu0.1 note: console (EGL sourced)
    renderer: Mesa Intel Xe Graphics (TGL GT2), llvmpipe (LLVM 17.0.6 256 bits)
Network:
  Device-1: Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201 driver: iwlwifi
  Device-2: ASIX AX88179 Gigabit Ethernet driver: ax88179_178a type: USB
Drives:
  Local Storage: total: 476.94 GiB used: 8.74 GiB (1.8%)
Info:
  Memory: total: 16 GiB note: est. available: 15.35 GiB used: 850.8 MiB (5.4%)
  Processes: 254 Uptime: 9m Init: systemd target: graphical (5) Shell: Bash inxi: 3.3.34

Everything on it "just worked". I haven't tried the fingerprint reader, but everything else ... working as expected. I did have to disable intel RST in the BIOS (well, I did that without validating it was required).
Wifi just worked.
My usb3-to-GigE adapter "just worked".
I installed Mint 22 (an Ubuntu 24.04 variant) and added my preferred WM. Before I did that, the Cinnamon DE worked fine.

Here's the Dell sticker:

Order Summary
	Dell Latitude 5320 Touch
#dell-latitude-5320-touch-000013
1 x $499.00
	$499.00

Dell Latitude 5320 Notebook, 13.3-in FHD Touch (1920 x 1080), Webcam, 1x Intel Core i5 Quad (i5-1145G7) 2.60 GHz, 16 GB RAM, 512 GB SSD, No Optical, Intel Integrated Graphics, Backlit Keyboard, Windows 10 Professional
Order Subtotal 	$499.00
Shipping & Handling 	$14.99
Promo Code: (WOW5320DEAL) 	$264.49
Total Promo Discount 	$249.50
Shipping Discount 	$14.99
Tax 	$14.97
Grand Total 	$264.47

Seemed like a bargain to me.

If you want a 14inch, there's this

Dell Latitude 5420 14" Laptop (Refurbished): i7-1185G7, 32GB RAM, 512GB SSD
+ Free Shipping $307.45

For more info: https://slickdeals.net/f/17676324-de...-free-shipping It was live again a few hours ago and the old discount codes were reported to be working.

i7-5600u passmarks are   3038.  ebay. There are clean chromebooks that are faster than this.
i7-1185G7 passmarks are 10390.  slickdeal link
i5-1145G7 passmarks are  9801.   my purchase

Of course, we don't know your budget, but when you can get 3x more performance for 2x the price and get a much newer CPU, those things need to go into the overall "value" consideration. FWIW, I wouldn't buy anything older than a 10th-gen CPU anymore. You'll need to weigh.

Heck, here's a Toshiba CB35 (2 for the price) for $57 - https://www.ebay.com/itm/315624768023 That's the Celeron version. I'm extremely tempted for the price. Heck, if I didn't buy that Dell 10 days ago, I'd probably buy this listing, never for home use. Only for travel use.

And the exact CB35 I owned with a Core i3-5015U CPU: https://www.ebay.com/itm/135184932168 for $90 (I paid $340 new).
Loved that machine, until the battery expanded and the lower-right keys all stopped working (I beat on keys).
Core i3-5015U passmarks: 1869 It worked great with Ubuntu-Mate 16.04. The SSD was easy to swap. I replaced the 16G version for a 120GB version. Just a few screws. It only has 4GB of RAM, which was a limiting problem for my needs at home, but when traveling, it wasn't any issue at all. Additionally, these weigh less than 2 lbs. THAT is an important consideration when traveling for 35+ hrs to the other side of the world and carrying a laptop in your carry-on luggage.

Anyway, hopefully, this provides some options for consideration. Don't forget that newer laptops will support USBc charging and DP displays. The Dell laptops on slickdeals all have a dell thunderbolt/USB3 connector that will drive external displays. Mine also has an HDMI port - good for hotel TV hookups with a long, thin, HDMI cable or for connecting to a projector for sales presentations.

Check the external connections carefully to ensure what you need is provided or can be easily added through a USB3 dock of some sort.

Please report on what you decide. What you decide matters and helps us make better recommendations.

For example, I 100% know that 14inch is too large for my needs. I had one and had 15inch laptops for decades. Also had an 11inch laptop and 10inch Asus ... which were too small. For my desires - 13.3inch with 1080p is "just right". But we are all different. Perhaps 14inch is your "just right?" Don't compromise on the size because it will drive you nuts - that and the resolution. Also, too little RAM or a mushy keyboard can suck too. I know that Dell tests their keyboard designs for over 1M uses per key. I've been disappointed with laptop keys from HP, Toshiba, Acer, Asus, and a few others. I believe today Lenovo and Dell are the only solid keyboard laptop makers. In the late 1990s, I had to carry a Lenovo/IBM laptop to Japan every 2 weeks for over a year. It must have weighed 9 lbs. Ok, I exaggerate, but it was heavy. Never again.

[sports fan Matt]

Budget is not much these days ~ slowly getting hours after school started and folks back off of going to the other store. I'd say MAX right now is $150. But then again, if I get more work that can increase.

[TheFu]

Budget is not much these days ~ slowly getting hours after school started and folks back off of going to the other store. I'd say MAX right now is $150. But then again, if I get more work that can increase.

There can be some great deals at local "used computer" stores. I was at a conference in June that was near a local computer-centric GoodWill store. A group of guys from the Linux conference visited it and found some laptops for $125 that they believed should have been over $200. They bought all 9 that were there.

If you need it today, then https://www.dellrefurbished.com/laptops?store_price[]=0-250 has some with a 45% off code. There are some 15in and 12.5in models with 8th-gen CPUs.

45% off Dell Latitude 5420 Laptops (excl. Hot Deals), as low as $225, plus free ground shipping Use coupon code: DELL5420DEAL

So, a $219 list price would be $121 with the coupon. I think the coupon code provides free shipping too.

Option 1:

Dell Latitude 7290
Product ID: dell-latitude-7290-000007
Best Value
Intel Core i5-8350U (4-Core, 1.…
8 GB (1x 8GB)
256 GB (1x 256 GB SSD)
grade B
$219.00

Option 2:

Dell Latitude 7290
Product ID: dell-latitude-7290-000007
Best Performance

Intel Core i7-8650U (4-Core, 1.…
16 GB (1x 16GB)
256 GB (1x 256 GB SSD)
grade B
$249.00

The 14in versions on offer are more expensive.

[Tadaen_Sylvermane]

I would offer you look at Chromebooks as well. The developer option enables a debian environment that runs with native performance. And since chromebook is on the nix kernel you know hardware will not remotely be an issue. Supposedly one can bare metal linux on them. Never needed more than vscode myself so never bothered.

[TheFu]

I would offer you look at Chromebooks as well. The developer option enables a debian environment that runs with native performance. And since chromebook is on the nix kernel you know hardware will not remotely be an issue. Supposedly one can bare metal linux on them. Never needed more than vscode myself so never bothered.

We all have "rose colored glasses" when thinking about the past. It was a different time and AT THAT TIME, a Chromebook was the best way to get a new, cheap, light, laptop that wasn't 10+ yrs old. There definitely were issues. At the time, chromebooks only ran ChromeOS. No linux. No extra apps. If it wasn't a google-chrome extension, then it didn't work. They also came with 4GB of RAM and 16GB SSD/eMMC for storage that had to hold the OS. While swapping the SSD for larger wasn't hard on some chromebooks, it was important to be certain that was possible with your exact version. Some Chromebooks had the same model numbers, but the sub-sub-model numbers needed to be checked to ensure what you wanted to do was possible.

And don't get me started about the lack of a "delete" key. Chromebooks only have a backspace, no delete. That always bothered me. I mapped <ctl>-bksp to Delete, but it was still a hassle.

Chromebooks are examples of "how cheap can you make this". That means some of the hardware was very cheaply made. For me, it was the keyboards that I noticed. I also had to customize the touchpad.

Linux drivers for chromebooks were pretty good. I actually credit Google with convincing many HW makers to port their drivers to Linux just to gain access to the education market. I know Logitech ported their C920 webcam to Linux. It didn't work for about 2 yrs with any linux, then after chromebooks became popular, magically, the driver was included and "just worked". I use that webcam still, but the microphone on it failed about a year ago. The cam side "just works" still.

ChromeOS came with the kernel that Google wanted. No way to add kernel modules to it. Back then, I really needed an NFS client and that is a kernel module, so as long as I left ChromeOS on the system, no NFS.

Google patched whenever they wanted, without asking. This burned me a few times, but the last straw was when I was traveling in Asia and Google decided to update the OS. I couldn't stop it. Google sucks. I was stuck waiting for the download over a shared 1Mbps fibre connection - shared with 300 other people. It delay my plans over an hour. Did I mention that I was pissed? The good side is that when an OS update failed, there are 2 full copies of the OS on the system. A and B. If A doesn't boot, then B is used. ChromeOS includes a GPT partition table and I think by default it comes with 11 partitions used. The user partition is encrypted, somehow. It was automatic.

I never used a gmail account with any of my Chromebooks. I logged in using the "Guest" capability and ran a desktop Linux inside a chroot environment for a few months as I learned more and more. This method didn't support NFS, so I was still screwed.

If you travel, a Chromebook is probably the most secure OS available, but it sucks at privacy, since everything you do is sent to google. Remember, privacy and security aren't the same things.

Eventually, I got tired of the ChromeOS limitations, broke the BIOS write-protect hardware tab (which can never be replaced), and loaded a lite Linux. Did this on each of the chromebooks I owned. One of them was bricked when I let the battery run down completely by accident when attempting a keyboard replacement. Chromebooks often use the main battery, no CMOS battery. So be certain you don't leave the battery disconnected too long or let it run down. There is a way to de-brick the model I had, but it requires $50 for an eeprom writer. At the time, the chromebook was 3 yrs old and probably worth only $60, so it didn't make sense to throw more money at the issue.

Rose-colored-glasses.

When my last chromebook had keyboard issues, the price of laptops and used laptops had dropped, so my replacement was an nice $305 Asus with a Core i5-8250U and 8GB of RAM, 1080p screen, 500GB SSD, ..... lots of good stuff. I knew I wanted a 13inch, but wasn't paying attention and bought a 15inch. It was big and heavier than I liked, but the RAM and power were great. Battery life was more than acceptable. I wasn't traveling overseas as much so I lived with it. I started using an 8inch tablet and phone and once that was nailed down for almost everything I needed, I stopped using the big, heavy, Asus. The keyboard started failing and over about 6 months, more and more important keys died. Replacement of keyboards on all these thin laptops means taking everything out, including the motherboard just to access the keyboard for replacement. I've done it a few times, but much prefer to have an expert do it. I miss the Dell laptops from 2012 that had 4 screws to remove then pop the keyboard out for replacement. Less than 10 minutes total time and $30 for the part, if you are extremely cautious. Not on these thin laptops. Plan on 45 minutes if you know what you are doing. There are about 30-50 screws that need to be put back correctly.

Ah. Here's hoping my new-to-me Dell has an easy keyboard replacement or never needs it. I need to look that up. It is the full assembly guide, I fear.

So, I need to amend my suggestion to get a chromebook. I promised myself that I'd never buy one again, definitely never a new one. Used, quality laptops are available and with corporate leases on a 2-4 yr replacement cycle, that isn't likely to change. Also, Win11 doesn't like certain, older, CPUs (or systems without TPM), so corporations will be upgrading everything until that is addressed. Basically, the market will be flooded with 3-4 yr old corporate lease laptops for the next few years. The deals we find today will be around in a week or two or even better in in 2-6 months. No hurry, unless you know you need a new-to-you laptop to earn money.

[phatton1]

I've just bought a Dell latitude e7470 refurbished on eBay. 16gb ram and 256gb HDD. Ubuntu installed fine and so far everything I've tested works.
Cost me £130 UK.

[sports fan Matt]

Thats the ine I think i'm getting ~except it's 7450.

[sports fan Matt]

I certainly will. I'd need at least 14 inch ~ my vision even though i'm in my 40's is not great to begin with.

[sports fan Matt]

I bought the laptop. I decided it will sit at home and I'll travel with my think pad T470, but on the T470 i'll upgrade the RAM and storage.