I'm planning to wipe my dad's old work laptop clean and install Linux Mint Cinnamon on it. I'm really curious about a couple of things: will the fingerprint reader still work after I switch to Linux, and can I still use the laptop as a tablet? The screen can rotate 180 degrees in either direction and can lie flat, so it's actually usable as a chunky tablet. Any advice?
3 Answers
Your Fujitsu Lifebook T with Windows 7 has an Intel i5 core and is pen-enabled with Wacom, which is great! The fingerprint reader is an AuthenTec AES 2660. Good luck with the installation! Just remember to check the manufacturer's website for how to boot from your USB drive when you're ready.
It's hard to say for sure without knowing the exact hardware specs, but you really have nothing to lose by giving it a shot. Since it's a free laptop, why not try it out? Just dive in and see what happens!
Fingerprint scanners on Linux can be hit or miss. You might find support for your scanner through the fprint project. As for using the laptop as a tablet, I suggest running a live session first to test both the fingerprint reader and the screen rotation. You’ll need a USB drive to boot Linux Mint without installing. That way, you can check everything works without making any changes to your system.
I posted the laptop specs in another thread!
I shared the laptop specs in another comment!