Laptop distributor

bolinux · 10-16-2003, 03:58 PM

What laptop distributor makes the best laptops that can be fully compatible with linux. I do not want a linux licence included unless the manufacturer is really good.

XavierP · 10-19-2003, 05:38 AM

Compaq, HP, Toshiba.

Have a look at Linux on Laptops to see where others have had successes and failures.

sNicker · 10-19-2003, 08:21 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by XavierP
Compaq, HP, Toshiba.

Have a look at Linux on Laptops to see where others have had successes and failures.

I wouldn't say neither Compaq nor HP... at least until last year. I struggled with my presario for a little bit before having a full linux station (with sound functioning, and the Radeon full supported by the software..).
Maybe because i'm a linux noob... but i think Toshiba is better supported.

unholy · 10-20-2003, 08:41 AM

Don't forget IBM. I'd stay away from Dell if possible (more because of the quality of the laptop as opposed to getting linux running on it).

In the June 2003 edition of Linux Format, The ACER (www.acer.co.uk)Travelmate 535LC got 10/10. Other laptops that got good reveiws were:

MESH Explorer GX Pro www.meshpic.co.uk
Fujitsu Siemens Lifebook E7010 www.fujitsu-siemens.co.uk
Evesham Voyager www.evesham.com
Sony VAIO PCG-GRS615SP www.vaio.sony-europe.com

lupin_the_3rd · 10-20-2003, 10:12 AM

"I'd stay away from Dell if possible"

I have an Inspiron 8500 that runs linux great after some tweaking... as for quality... seems just as good as others I have owned.

unholy · 10-20-2003, 10:27 AM

The hinges that held my display on became brittle and eventually broke. I had to lean the display up against a wall when using the laptop. I was doing projects in college and couldnt return it at the time. A few weeks later the DVD rom stopped reading any media. They fixed it allright.

Then the life of the battery dropped to 20 minutes. They gave me a new one, which is now just as bad. The power button only works if you push it down and wiggle it left and right. The functions printed on the keys of the keyboard (in purple) have faded, and I cant see some at all now.

It also gets hot very quickly and you cant put it on your lap. Seriously, it would burn you severly. The manual gave a warning about this, but I'd prefer to have known before purchasing.

I have an inspiron 4000. It was near the top of its class at the time over 2 years ago when I bought it, so I'd expect more. The support they offer is terrible too. You get connected from one operator to another until you're left at a phone that doesnt answer or something. Not that a linux user will get any support from them. If you remove the original OS they wont help you.

I'm glad yours works, but I won't be buying dell again.

lupin_the_3rd · 10-20-2003, 03:19 PM

I have had no prolems, yet... but honestly, in the future I will support a company that provides more Linux support in hardware... though this seems hard to do when it comes to laptops.

unholy · 10-23-2003, 05:10 PM

Yeah, I know IBM are putting SuSE on all their servers from now on. I don't know what their laptop hardware support for linux is like, but I do know that the quality is excellent. I've seen laptops as slim as a refill pad running smoothly. Again, this wasn't linux. My future purchases will be 100% driven by linux compatabiliy.