[janvidar]

I've used several ThinkPad x-series laptops in the past.

My current machine is a Dell XPS 13 Developer Edition, which ships with Ubuntu pre-installed.

Good battery life, excellent performance and nice size/weight - comparable to a 13" Macbook Air.

You'll ned a mini-DP to HDMI/DVI converter cable though.

[davb]

I'm using a Dell XPS 13 too and really like it. My biggest gripe is how hot it gets. So much so that it's uncomfortable to use on your lap (with the air vents all along the bottom). I've cleaned the inside, verified the fan operation and speed. It's just a machine that tends to run quite hot.

[sandGorgon]

have you re-applied the thermal compound or a copper shim ? XPS are famous for needing a better thermal compound ( I recommend Arctic MX-4) between the processor/heatsink or video-card/heatsink.

FYI - all of this will cost you less than 10 bucks.

[davb]

I actually think I've got some spare MX-4 from my recent PC build. I think I'll take your advice over the weekend. Thanks for your help!

[janvidar]

Really?

I have the 2014 edition, mine never gets uncomfortably hot, and I rarely hear the fan running. I routinely compile lots of code on it (C/C++ and some Java).

[davb]

Yeah, pretty bad. It's quite bad. I try to do any compilation on my desktop machine or one a remote machine.

Mine is a 2013 edition (MLK / 2nd edt) w/ Core i5 3rd gen (I think).

[kelseyfrancis]

There's no official Linux version of the larger Dell XPS 15, but it's also a great choice if you need a little more power: quad-core i7, 16gb ram, 512gb ssd.

I recently installed Fedora 20 on it with no problems. I except Ubuntu 14.04 works well too.

All the hardware works out of the box. As usually, the proprietary NVIDIA drivers gave me fits, so I've just uninstalled them for now. Battery life is still good, as usually the Intel chip is used, even with an external monitor connected (unlike a MacBook Pro).