[iron_ball]

Completely agreed. I've been able to work quite effectively on a T520i -- but I've also experienced occasional frustration with the hardware integration. Every time I upgrade Ubuntu, I worry that I'm about to knock my system's stability off its precarious perch, and sometimes it happens. Things just aren't bulletproof.

For my next computer, I'm willing to spend the extra $1000 for a Mac, where I can believe that things really will Just Work™.

[zanny]

You can buy a system76, thinkpenguin, Dell XPS 13, or Zareason computer and expect Ubuntu to just work™. Stop buying Windows computers and saying its the Linux distros fault the hardware isn't fully supported or stable, it is the same thing as trying to install OSX on a Windows computer and complaining nothing works. You gotta get supported products, and they do exist now, they are just a small and growing market. But it will only grow if people actually buy barebones / Ubuntu machines to send the message people are willing to buy them and not just add to the sales figures of Windows laptop nine million.

[ebiester]

http://www.reddit.com/r/linux/comments/1pwwr0/system76_is_sc...

When I last checked the reviews of the system76 laptops, there were more problems than the T420. The Zareason systems have those awful keyboards from the looks of it, and even the "UltraLap" looks bulky. And it includes a terrible resolution screen. (Why is anything shipping with 1366x768 anymore?)

They either aren't thinking of programmers, or they don't have the money to compete.

I'm considering the XPS 13, but the screen is too small. I want a thin 14 or 15 inch laptop. (The T420 doesn't quite make it in that regard, but it's old technology at this point.) And, of course, the XPS 15 doesn't have a ubuntu edition.

I'm willing to make a sacrifice for weight if the keyboard and monitor are top notch (like the T420) but nobody is taking keyboards seriously anymore. And as far as I can tell, the best keyboard and screen today is Apple.

I've spent the last 3 years with my personal laptop running Linux. I'll probably stick with this until I can't anymore. But I'm not willing to sacrifice my productivity "to make a point."

[zanny]

I have the Clevo 740SU from Xotic, due to the negative press around System76 from early last year. You can get it without an OS and the only requirement is replacing the wifi card if you want a good wireless nic.

Its 14", thin, powerful, etc - only downside is battery life, which only gets 3 - 6 hours depending on workload.

[LaSombra]

Why not try another distro? I have been using Fedora since version 17 on my T530 and using fedup to upgrade without issues. Now I'm on Fedora 21 and it works perfectly fine.