Why do people still recommend Thinkpads for Linux when there are Linux-oriented manufacturers now?
Why do people still recommend Thinkpads for Linux when there are Linux-oriented manufacturers now?
I've noticed in the Linux community whenever someone asks for a recommendation on a laptop that runs Linux the answer is always "Get a Thinkpad" yet Lenovo doesn't seem to be a big Linux contributor or ally. There's also at least six Linux/FOSS-oriented computer manufacturers now:
So what gives? Why the love for a primarily Windows-oriented laptop when there are better alternatives?
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Refurbished ThinkPads are awesome!
- Availability - ThinkPads are very popular in corporate environments and are generally replaced every 2-3 years. Although mostly Intel CPUs, there is a wide variety CPU+GPU available from lightweight to high performance.
- Tough + well built + last forever
- Easy to upgrade/repair. They're very user-accessible and its simple to upgrade RAM or SSD/M.2 drives. Plus, because they are so popular in the corporate environment, replacement parts (from batteries to WiFi+Bluetooth chipsets to trckpads) are very available and cheap.
- Well supported in most (if not all) linux distros. Graphics just work, trackpads just work, WiFi just works.
- Cheap.
Sent from my ThinkPad T580 (with both an internal and removable battery, I get 10+ hours of battery life)
I've heard of potential security issues when buying them. How can I mitigate that - buying from a safe source, wiping them etc.?
Thanks it sounds like simply wiping the system is enough to get around security flaws.
Always wipe and do a fresh install. If you're installing Linux, its unlikely that the refurbisher will have installed your flavour of Linux anyway. If you want to dual-boot with Windows, most business ThinkPads come with a Windows Pro licence - just download the ISO and install it fresh, then install Linux.
We're talking about Linux here. You'll probably wipe it anyways. Chances are slim the company that used it before put Arch on it.