I've Tested Hundreds of Laptops. Here's Why I Bought a ThinkPad X1 Carbon

[zodiacfml]

There is nothing else like it because of the carbon fiber, great for weight reduction

 

[chrisbryant]

After reading your recent Windependence article, I'm guessing companies with open hardware like System76 haven't been part of your review list. However, I'd love to hear your thoughts if any GNU/Linux-centric laptops ever did cross your desk. I chose a lower-end System76 model for my needs and found it to be exactly what I was looking from from a hardware-perspective. I work mostly with Python-based projects and remote in for most of my professional work, so the specs below met my needs nicely. Additionally, since I do use Windows from time-to-time, I found dual-booting on System76 a snap against Ubuntu or Pop!_OS (System76's custom OS). I do everything from spinning custom Debian ISOs to virtualization of small networked OS groups for... testing purposes. Never had an issue to date with memory, CPU or space when it comes to my day-to-day work.

System76 Gazelle Model:

Operating System - Pop!_OS 18.04 LTS (64-bit)
Processor - i5-8300H: 2.3 up to 4 GHz – 8 MB cache – 4 cores - 8 threads
Display - 15.6? 1920 × 1080 LED Backlit, Matte
Graphics - Intel® HD Graphics 630
Memory - 32 GB Dual Channel DDR4 @ 2400 MHz
Storage - M.2 SSD, 2.5? 7mm drive. Up to 6TB total.
Expansion - 2× USB 3.0 Type-A, 1× USB 3.0 Type-C, 1× USB 2.0 Type-A, SD Card Reader
Input - Multitouch Touchpad, Chiclet Keyboard, 10-key Number Pad
Networking - Gigabit Ethernet, Intel® WiFi up to Wireless-AC, Bluetooth
Video Ports - 1× HDMI, 1× VGA
Audio - Stereo Speakers, Mic, Headphone Jack, Mic Jack
Camera - 1080p HD Webcam
Security - Disabled ME, Kensington® Lock
Battery - Removable 6 Cell Smart Li-Ion – 62.16 Wh
Charger - 90 Watts, AC-in 100–240V, 50–60Hz
Dimensions - 14.88" × 10.51" × 1.06" (37.79 × 26.69 × 2.69 cm)
Weight - 5.5 lbs (2.49 kg)

To quote The Masked Avocado, "Important factors in purchasing a laptop or notebook computer are price, weight, screen readability, keyboard, memory, disk storage, and battery life". That was 1992 and I still follow the same rubric when shopping for a laptop today. While I'm not sure the mighty green hacker would approve of my System76 purchase, I can say that among the laptops I tested before settling on my System76 rig was the ThinkPad Carbon and by far I got more hardware for my money from System76 than I would have from ThinkPad. In fact, all told, the ThinkPad configuration my System76 beat out was almost $1,000 more in price.

Fair warning, though, that System76 hardware is mostly Clevo in origin. Lovely thread here on that topic: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17037845