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Ask HN: Developer laptop under $2000?

2 points by ashishb ↗ HN
Ask HN: Developer laptop under $2000?

Hardware Requirements: Intel 4th Gen core i7, 128/256 SSD, at least 8 gb of ram with an option to upgrade to 16, Min Resolution 1920 x 1080, Screen size 14-16 inch, Touchscreen preferably no, OS Linux(Ubuntu), laptop should be almost as sleek as Mac Book Pro.

The latest Ask HN post on developer laptops is dated now[0]. As of now the haswell processor coupled with Intel HD 5000+ looks like the way to go.

Options I have looked at

1. Samsung 9 series 15" (some model) - price is too high (and some models have <2 Ghz processor)

2. ASUS 15" Zenbook UX51z - everything awesome except looks shit expensive and ASUS is not that big a brand, so, I am uncertain about this [4]

3. Razor Blade - expensive and 14" [3]

4. System76 Gazelle Pro: Tried it but did not like the build quality and battery life (everything else including customer care was superb)[1]

5. Lenovo S531: Release date unknown (for months now)

[0] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6090406

[1] https://www.system76.com/laptops/model/gazp9

[2] http://shop.lenovo.com/gb/en/laptops/thinkpad/s-series/s531/#techspecs

[3] http://www.razerzone.com/store/razer-blade-pro

[4] http://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-zenbook-15-6-laptop-8gb-memory-256gb-solid-state-drive-256gb-solid-state-drive-aluminum-silver-gray/9559966.p

6 comments

[ 3.1 ms ] story [ 21.5 ms ] thread
bigiain
Aren't you basically describing a current 15" MacBookPro? You can't do a post-purchase ram upgrade on it - but it hits both your price-point and your list of hardware requirements otherwise, including the ability to run Ubuntu either dual boot or in a VM (and you _can_ up spec to 16G ram at purchase, for +$200).

(Which doesn't help if you're avoiding Apple products for moral, ideological, or fashion reasons…)

ashishb
I tried dual boot and that was not the best experience also, with 16G RAM, Mac book ends ups with way more than $2000.
bigiain
Fair enough.

I'm pretty happy with Ubuntu and ARCH VMs running in Vagrant/VirtualBox under MacOS X - but I'm mostly doing webdev, embedded Linux (ARM/RaspberryPi/Olimex), and Arduino/ATMEL microcontroller stuff – so I'm not exactly taxing my older Apple hardware...

elclanrs
I would definitely go with ASUS Zenbook. I have the 13.3 Zenbook (i5, 4gb, 1080p) and I can code very comfortably on it. The IPS screen is great and even better once calibrated. It's very sleek too, solid aluminum build. ASUS is a big brand, Zenbooks are popular for their nice quality/price ratio.