Slant community chat on Discord| 9 Recommended Products | Recommendations | Weight | RAM | Storage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 Dell XPS 15· · · | 9 | 0 | 2kg (4.44 lbs) | 8 / 16 / 32GB DDR4 at 2400MHz | 500GB HDD + 32GB Flash / 1TB HDD + 32GB Flash / 256/512GB/1TB PCIe SSD |
| #2 Surface Pro 4· · · | 9 | 0 | 1.69 - 1.73 lbs | 4GB / 8GB / 16GB | 128GB / 256GB / 512GB / 1TB SSD |
| #3 Dell XPS 13· · · | 9 | 0 | 3.03+ lbs | 8 GB | 128GB SSD |
| #4 Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro· · · | 3 | 0 | 3.06 lbs | 4GB / 8GB | 128GB / 256GB / 512GB SSD |
| #5 ThinkPad X1 Carbon· · · | 2 | 0 | 2.49 lbs / 1.13 kg | 8GB/16GB LPDDR3 1866Mhz | 256GB/512GB/1TB SSD |
| #6 Asus Zenbook UX501JW· · · | 1 | 0 | 4.5 - 5 lbs | 4GB / 8GB | 128GB / 256GB SATA III SSD / 1TB HDD |
Pro Solid keyboard and trackpad
The keyboard and trackpad are reliable and solid all-around. The keyboard is responsive but is not super “clicky”, rather a bit soft. It has a white backlight on black keys that illuminates them at night. The touchpad is rather large while having no buttons. Despite this, the XPS 15 can reliably di...
Pro Good battery life if you pick the 1080p display
Models with the 1080p screen last about 10 hours with general usage. Naturally, if more intensive tasks are involved, the battery will be drained faster.
Pro Operates well on a Linux system
All essential things, like network connectivity, ports and sound, work right “out-of-the-box” with a Linux operating system. There is a compatibility issue on the new 9560 model with its graphics card but the laptop is still very usable with its integrated Intel graphics card.
Con Battery doesn’t hold long with the Ultra HD screen
If you’re choosing the configuration with an Ultra HD screen, expect a very short battery life of around 6 hours for general usage. With more intensive tasks it's even less than that.
Con Palmrest collects sweat
The palm rest is made from carbon fiber which attracts fingerprints and sweat. After some time it gets kind of unpleasant to touch and needs to be cleaned.
Con 9560 model's GPU has compatibility issues on Linux
The new 9560 model has some trouble accepting its GTX 1050 Ti video card while running a Linux operating system. Fortunately, the integrated Intel graphics card is capable enough to substitute it. The manufacturers are probably aware of the issue and will, most likely, release an update for it.
Pro 3:2 aspect ratio makes the device easier to hold and use
With a 3:2 aspect ratio the device is not as top heavy when holding in portrait and is easier to reach parts of the screens with the users thumbs when in landscape.
Pro Works as a tablet or a laptop
Surface Pro 4 can be used both as a laptop and a tablet. Being that it can be used as either makes it extremely convenient to those that want power on the go.
Con Not a lot of ports
1 USB 3.0, microSD Card reader, Headset jack, Mini DisplayPort.
Con Keyboard doesn't come with the device
You have to pay an extra $130 for the type cover keyboard.
Pro Uses an SSD for faster operations on disk
Using an SSD greatly increases performance for every I/O operation, especially compared to laptops that use an HDD. The laptop will boot faster, programs that need to read and write to disk will run faster and scripts will compile much faster than on an HDD.
Pro One of the best Windows trackpads available
The Dell's trackpad is one of the best Windows trackpads available. It has smooth and precise tracking and even supports three-finger gestures similar to the Macbook's.
Con The battery does not last as long as advertised
The laptop never performs to the promised 11-15 hours, average usage is around 7-8 hours.
Con The touchscreen reflects light making it hard to see unless the lighting on the display is properly set
The screen for the touch-screen model is glossy instead of matte (non-touch screen). For what is a Linux notebook this does not make a lot of sense since most Linux users are the more tech savy who program. A glossy screen is more for multimedia, something Linux is not really known for excelling i...
Pro Great value for money
You can pick up the baseline specs for around $1,000 USD, which is considerably cheaper than a lot of the competing models while remaining competitive with specs and build quality.
Pro Great build quality
Sturdy lid and hinge with an excellent keyboard.
Con Poor battery life
Battery life is average at best. It drains in about 5 hours of typical use.
Con No Ethernet or 802.11ac
Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro lacks an Ethernet port.
Pro Excellent display
The X1 Carbon comes in two different versions. With a 1080p or a 1440p display, with the latter being $70 more. Both displays are excellent. The image is sharp and the colors are very noticeable. Although, understandably, the 1440p display has images that are a bit sharper than its 1080p counterpar...
Pro Great speakers
The X1 Carbon has bottom-mounted speakers which provide excellent audio output. The sound is loud enough to fill a large room and there's clear separation of sound coming from the speakers, making them great for any sorts of recreational activity involving audio be it listening to music, watchi...
Con Missing an Ethernet port
The X1 Carbon is missing an Ethernet port, so people who prefer having that option as well are forced to use Wifi only.
Con Extended dual battery adds weight
6-cell extended battery adds 0.4 pounds to take this ultrabook's weight far above that of the ultrabook standard (<3 pounds).
Pro Reasonable battery life
UX501 battery lasts 5 to 6 hours.
Pro Good backlit keyboard with a keypad
UX501 is one of the rare laptop keyboards with a keypad. The keypad is slightly squished, but usable without any hiccups. The chiclet keys are backlit and comfortable to use.
Pro Excellent, smooth performance
Great hardware combined with the streamlined Windows 10 S and Microsoft-vetted apps from the Windows Store provide excellent performance even on lowest available specs (starting at $999). With i5/i7 Intel® Core™ processor and up to 16 GB of RAM, this computer is perfectly suited for dealing with re...
Pro Unique, stylish design
The Surface Laptop has a distinct look thanks to the Alcantra microfibre material that covers the keyboard. It has a soft, pleasant texture and it's durable enough to stay intact for years to come. The computer comes in 4 uncommon colors that easily stand out among the usual black or silver dev...
Con Limited OS functionality
Out of the box the Surface Laptop is running Windows 10 S, which is a lighweight version of the OS that only allows to run apps that have been downloaded from the official Windows store. To upgrade to the more lenient and functional Windows 10 Pro is going to cost extra $50.
Pro Fantastic, flexible pen input
Because the touch surface replaces a traditional keyboard, it is very large and allows easy pen input. More interestingly, if you flip the screen over and lay a piece of paper over the touch surface, it will take your paper-and-ink notes and transcribe them on-screen as well. From start to finish,...
Con Poor value considering mediocre specs
Other laptops in the $500ish range will offer much more compelling specs, usually with at least Intel i3 processors. By comparison, the Intel Atom x5-Z8550 processor is very lucklaster, and the included 64GB of storage is paltry as well. This product is priced at a premium because it's the fir...
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