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Cake day: January 21st, 2025

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  • paequ2@lemmy.todaytoLinux@lemmy.mlAdvice for a Linux Laptop in 2025
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    16 hours ago

    My top pick for a Linux laptop would be the Dell XPS 13 9310. It’s old I guess, from 2020. But the build quality and Linux support is excellent. You could get a used one from eBay for around 400USD.

    Alternatively, maybe you could look for a used Thinkpad X1 Carbon. I’ve purchased several of those in the past and have had really good experiences with them. The hardware is great and the software support is excellent.

    I would avoid Framework. I actually just switched back to the Dell XPS 13 9310 after a year of using the Framework. Linux support on the Framework is just not as good as some other laptops. The biggest con of Framework is the HiDPI display. You will never get the display to look good. You’ll have to do a ton of tweaking and debugging—and you’ll still have some apps that are blurry or have weirdly sized icons or text. See: https://lemmy.today/post/22761155/13770242










  • paequ2@lemmy.todaytoLinux@lemmy.mlframework 13 AMD... yay or nay?
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    27 days ago

    I don’t have problems with high DPI … only problems I’ve come across is … I DID have scaling problems with Wayland

    This is exactly my point. You did have problems with high DPI. You had to fix some random config and avoid Wayland.

    I don’t want to deal with this. I want to be able to use whatever software I want and have it work with minimal or no extra “fixing”. I value this over slightly neater pixels.


  • paequ2@lemmy.todaytoLinux@lemmy.mlframework 13 AMD... yay or nay?
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    27 days ago

    Here’s a screenshot I just took from my Framework 13. Notice how some of the text is clear, but the entire menu to the right is blurry.

    Common “fixes” are “move to Fedora” or “just enable some experimental flag in some random config”. This all misses the point though: I don’t want to have to do any of that. I just want a system that works with the most amount of apps.

    Of course, it depends on what you specifically value. For me, I value broader software compatibility over slightly neater pixels. Some people might like it the other way around. That’s fine, but it’s something important to know.



  • paequ2@lemmy.todaytoLinux@lemmy.mlframework 13 AMD... yay or nay?
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    27 days ago

    I currently own a Framework 13… and… after daily driving it for a year, I decided I don’t like it.

    The deal beaker for me is the high dpi display. Linux just isn’t 100% compatible with hpi displays. I’m tired of my apps either having blurry fonts or tiny text. Ironic because hi dpi displays are supposed to look better.

    With Framework, you’ll be pushed into using Fedora (it doesn’t solve all the scaling issues) or pushed to stop using apps you like because they’re using older GTK (some times there are no alternatives). You’ll also have to dive into debugging scaling issues.

    I just switched back to my Dell XPS 13 9310 FHD and it was a breath of fresh air having everything just work. Any distro, any apps, no scaling debugging, text is readable and crisp, app UI elements look properly sized.

    I only ever switched out the modular ports once, but honestly it would have been better to buy a dongle instead because that would work on any computer.

    Oh, and I tried the higher resolution screen. It didn’t fix the scaling issues.

    Oh, and, I actually had a display fail on me! After like 8 months, half the display went black. Thankfully, they were nice enough to send me a free replacement, but it definitely left me feeling like the Framework isn’t that sturdy or durable.

    The shell also dents easily. I dropped a small music player from desk height onto the top lid and it left a small dent. (I have like 3 dents on the lid.)

    Repairability is the one feature that the Framework beats everyone else on, but to me the cons outweigh the pros.