Hey everyone! It's been nearly a decade since I last used Linux, and back then, hardware compatibility could be quite tricky. I'm ready to buy a workstation laptop and want to run a Linux distro on it. I'm pretty tired of Microsoft Windows and believe that the Linux options have improved significantly since my last try. I'm curious about how well different laptops work with beginner-friendly distros like Ubuntu, or any others you might recommend.
I need a machine that's solid for multitasking and can handle multiple displays without a hitch. I've heard good things about System76 laptops since they come with Linux preinstalled, but I've also found some comments mentioning ongoing feature requests and minor issues with certain models.
What do you think of AMD's Ryzen AI PRO 300 Series CPUs? How does the ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 fare? Will everything like the fingerprint scanner, WWAN card, and touchscreen have full Linux support? And what about encryption? Are there good tools available for that? I'd love to hear your thoughts on reliable hardware choices that are known to work well with Linux!
2 Answers
Dell and Lenovo are solid choices! They let you customize your laptop on their website, and some models come with Ubuntu preinstalled. Generally, these laptops work flawlessly with Ubuntu and you can easily switch to another Linux distro if you want later.
If you're after a Windows 10-like experience, check out Linux Mint with the Cinnamon desktop! For something resembling Windows 11, give Kubuntu a shot. Both distros have great hardware compatibility, so they should work on just about any laptop you pick.
I checked some models, but they either had Windows preinstalled or didn't come with any OS options.