Hello and recommendations please

[MelBee]

Hello all, Happy New Year! Complete technophobe here but need to learn! I have just had a nightmare of an experience with Apple Online Store/MacBook Pro, resulting in a full refund (after much wrangling back and forth), so I am now looking for a replacement laptop. I decided to take the opportunity to switch to Linux OS for privacy purposes (I'll never have another Apple device; ever!). I don't know where I need to post the following questions, so do please point me in the right direction if this is the wrong location.

I purchased the MacBook after all research pointed to that being the best option for creative work (I'm a fledgling artist and my husband a very keen amateur photographer, and I have a Canon Image Prograf PRO-300 for producing quality prints). I also need my laptop to be a general workhorse with email, word processor, web surfing and video playback. So, with all this in mind, can anyone offer any recommendations as to which laptop would be best please? I don't want to make any expensive mistakes! Also, I'm hoping to purchase the laptop with Linux installed. Many thanks in advance

[Artim]

Hi!

I'm delighted to no longer be the only self-admitted technophobe around here! Are you from my home planet by any chance? We Ba'aku are a whole race of technophobes, My story is in my signature ("About Artim") and my blog is "Confessions of a Technophobe."

To answer your kinda vague questions, Linux Mint is far and away the best general-purpose OS you can find anywhere including all the computer stores that have locked themselves and their customers into basically just two vendors, Microsoft and Apple, both of which are just plain ᏋᏉᎥᏝ !

Look in the Software Center for cool photo-editing stuff!

Want a laptop with Linux already on it? Find some HERE! Called "MintBox," they already have the bestest, most wonderfulest and awesomeful Linux in the history of ever preinstalled. And they're built to run Linux Mint!

Enjoy!
- "Artim"

[kc1di]

Hello MelBee,
Welcome to Linux Mint Forums, enjoy the journey!

Any of these laptops will work with Mint well.
https://system76.com/laptops

https://laptopwithlinux.com/linux-laptops/
those are a couple suggestions. Dell offers a series of Laptops that come preloaded with ubuntu, and should run Mint without much problems.
I'm sure you will get other suggestions also.
Some things to look for and avoid.
Machines with reltek wifi cards can be a pain to get going. intel wifi card mostly work out of the box. Intel or AMD CPUs are usually well supported in Linux.
Nvidia graphics cards can be hit or miss some work some don't. Again Intel and AMD are well supported.

Most of all have fun and enjoy!

[Lou77]

Your first link is malformed and fails with a FW error.

Is the the link you intended to send MelBee to:

https://system76.com/laptops/

[kc1di]

Your first link is malformed and fails with a FW error.

Is the the link you intended to send MelBee to:

https://system76.com/laptops/

thanks fixed it.

[Lou77]

Hello all, Happy New Year! Complete technophobe here but need to learn! I have just had a nightmare of an experience with Apple Online Store/MacBook Pro, resulting in a full refund (after much wrangling back and forth), so I am now looking for a replacement laptop. I decided to take the opportunity to switch to Linux OS for privacy purposes (I'll never have another Apple device; ever!). I don't know where I need to post the following questions, so do please point me in the right direction if this is the wrong location.

I purchased the MacBook after all research pointed to that being the best option for creative work (I'm a fledgling artist and my husband a very keen amateur photographer, and I have a Canon Image Prograf PRO-300 for producing quality prints). I also need my laptop to be a general workhorse with email, word processor, web surfing and video playback. So, with all this in mind, can anyone offer any recommendations as to which laptop would be best please? I don't want to make any expensive mistakes! Also, I'm hoping to purchase the laptop with Linux installed. Many thanks in advance

I don't use a laptop but friends of mine that do, and do so with art/photography all say to get the largest screen you can afford. As for graphics card, any onboard Intel graphics is virtually guaranteed to work. Same with AMD. Nvidia a little more effort sometimes. The Intel graphics may not be a powerful as the AMD or Nvidia but if your graphic needs do not required the fastest frame rate possible on games or videos then Intel graphics will do.

For data USB ports look for USB-C, largest SSD drive (avoid the old spinning platter drive), highest screen resolution possible, DVD drive if that is important to you. Look at the edge of the unit where your hands go and be sure you can live with that area and any touchpad there.

Good luck and welcome to Linux.


edit: spelling

[MelBee]

Hi!

I'm delighted to no longer be the only self-admitted technophobe around here! Are you from my home planet by any chance? We Ba'aku are a whole race of technophobes, My story is in my signature ("About Artim") and my blog is "Confessions of a Technophobe."

To answer your kinda vague questions, Linux Mint is far and away the best general-purpose OS you can find anywhere including all the computer stores that have locked themselves and their customers into basically just two vendors, Microsoft and Apple, both of which are just plain ᏋᏉᎥᏝ !

Look in the Software Center for cool photo-editing stuff!


Want a laptop with Linux already on it? Find some HERE! Called "MintBox," they already have the bestest, most wonderfulest and awesomeful Linux in the history of ever preinstalled. And they're built to run Linux Mint!

Enjoy!
- "Artim"

Thanks for yor reply, and I will certainly take a look at your story/blog. Good to know we technophobes are not alone! And yes, I agree, it is outrageous that we are generally forced by lack of choice, to purchase either Windows or Apple. I have read quite a bit about Linux Mint, watched several YouTube videos, and I knew as soon as I was offered the refund on the irreparable 18month old MacBook, that that was the route I wanted to take. I just need to know which laptops work best with that OS, as I have discovered some work better than others. I'll definitely have a look at the link you shared. Thanks again for your help.

[MelBee]

Hello MelBee,
Welcome to Linux Mint Forums, enjoy the journey!

Any of these laptops will work with Mint well.
https://system76.com/laptops

https://laptopwithlinux.com/linux-laptops/
those are a couple suggestions. Dell offers a series of Laptops that come preloaded with ubuntu, and should run Mint without much problems.
I'm sure you will get other suggestions also.
Some things to look for and avoid.
Machines with reltek wifi cards can be a pain to get going. intel wifi card mostly work out of the box. Intel or AMD CPUs are usually well supported in Linux.
Nvidia graphics cards can be hit or miss some work some don't. Again Intel and AMD are well supported.

Most of all have fun and enjoy!

Thank you for your lovely welcome, and all the advice, really helpful. I'll definitely be making a note of all the points you noted, regarding the wifi and grtaphics cards, and the processors. All really helpful, much appreciated. As are the links to look at some laptops. Great, thanks!

[MelBee]

Hello all, Happy New Year! Complete technophobe here but need to learn! I have just had a nightmare of an experience with Apple Online Store/MacBook Pro, resulting in a full refund (after much wrangling back and forth), so I am now looking for a replacement laptop. I decided to take the opportunity to switch to Linux OS for privacy purposes (I'll never have another Apple device; ever!). I don't know where I need to post the following questions, so do please point me in the right direction if this is the wrong location.

I purchased the MacBook after all research pointed to that being the best option for creative work (I'm a fledgling artist and my husband a very keen amateur photographer, and I have a Canon Image Prograf PRO-300 for producing quality prints). I also need my laptop to be a general workhorse with email, word processor, web surfing and video playback. So, with all this in mind, can anyone offer any recommendations as to which laptop would be best please? I don't want to make any expensive mistakes! Also, I'm hoping to purchase the laptop with Linux installed. Many thanks in advance

I don't use a laptop but friends of mine that do, and do so with art/photography all say to get the largest screen you can afford. As for graphics card, any onboard Intel graphics is virtually guaranteed to work. Same with AMD. Nvidia a little more effort sometimes. The Intel graphics may not be a powerful as the AMD or Nvidia but if your graphic needs do not required the fastest frame rate possible on games or videos then Intel graphics will do.

For data USB ports look for USB-C, largest SSD drive (avoid the old spinning platter drive), highest screen resolution possible, DVD drive if that is important to you. Look at the edge of the unit where your hands go and be sure you can live with that area and any touchpad there.

Good luck and welcome to Linux.


edit: spelling

Thank you for your really useful suggestions, much appreciated! and thank you for the welcome!

[deepakdeshp]

Hardware database
https://community.linuxmint.com/hardware

[NM64]

While I'm a bit late to this thread, another extremely Linux friendly laptop with at least a moderate focus on privacy and/or user independance is the Framework Laptop (obviously the Chromebook edition would not be applicable to your use-case; you'd want to focus on the standard version):

• http://frame.work/

The only thing is, it's not designed to be a "workhorse" style laptop so it only use mid-range CPUs with no discrete graphics (though today's modern integrated graphics are no slouch and can out-pace older discrete graphics the older and/or the lower-end you get, particularly if paired with Linux's superior graphics drivers and at least dual-channel RAM).