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Slashdot Asks: Which Windows Laptop Could Replace a MacBook Pro?
Last month, Apple unveiled new MacBook Pros, featuring an OLED Touch Bar, Touch ID, and all-new form factor that shaves off roughly 3mm in thickness. There are three base versions of the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Intel Core i5 processors and 8GB of memory (upgradable to 16GB RAM and dual-core Intel Core i7 processors) for $1,499, $1,799 and $1,999. The base model 15-inch MacBook Pro comes with Core i7 processors and 16GB of memory for $2,399 and $2,799. Of course, adapters and AppleCare support are sold separately. The new laptops are great for Apple users -- but what about Windows users? Is there a Windows laptop that matches the new MacBook Pro in terms of build quality, reliability, and performance? Jack Schofield via The Guardian attempts to help Patrick, who is looking for a PC that matches Apple's new offerings as closely as possible. "I use my Mac for all the usual surfing, watching videos, listening to music and so on," Patrick writes. "I also use Adobe Photoshop pretty heavily and video-editing software more lightly." Schofield writes: The Dell XPS 13 and 15 are the most obvious alternatives to MacBooks. Unfortunately, they are at the top of this price range. You can still get an old-model XPS 13 (9350) for $950, but that has a Core i5-6200U with only 4GB of memory. The latest 9360 version has a 2.5GHz Core i5-7200U, 8GB of memory and a 128GB SSD for $1,050. If you go for a 512GB SSD at $1,150, you're only saving $420 on a new 2.0GHz MacBook Pro. HP's Spectre x360 range offers similar features to Dell's XPS range, except that all the x360 laptops have touch screens that you can rotate to enable "tent" (eg for movie viewing) or tablet operation. The cheapest model is the HP Spectre x360 13-4126na. This has a 13in screen, a Core i5-6200U processor, 8GB of memory and a 256GB SSD for $1,050. You can upgrade to an HP Spectre x360 13-4129na with better screen resolution -- 2560 x 1440 instead of 1920 x 1080 -- plus a 2.5GHz Core i7-6500U and 512GB SSD for $1,270. Again, this is not much cheaper than a 2.0GHz MacBook Pro 13. You could also look at the Lenovo ThinkPad T560, which is a robust, professional 15.6in laptop that starts at $800. Do any Slashdotters have any comparable Windows laptops in mind that could replace a new MacBook Pro?
$1699 fully loaded w/ coupon - 6+ hours battery life out of the box on default Fedora 24 install! Everything "just worked". Windows seems fine, too.
Are you ever going to get blasted, you want to replace an Apple laptop with Windows instead of going for Linux? Just about the only thing people around here hate more than Apple is Microsoft.
That was what I got for my last laptop after researching for a while. I think they tend to have a better price/performance ratio than the more commonly known brands.
A recent Speak-N-Spell could probably come close.
Just cruising through this digital world at 33 1/3 rpm...
Any thin ultrabook should do.
Let's be honest, 99% of your time is in a browser. Your intense Photoshop requirements could be done on a pentium 4.
Agree, let's hijack the thread and ask what's the top-o-the-line Linux laptop? Top notch hardware, etc but Linux?
Why do you want to ruin your life by getting ANYTHING AT ALL that runs Windows? Or, are you an exhibitionist and WANT Microsoft to go rummaging through the underwear drawer of your life whenever they feel like it? Quit being an idiot. At least get some laptop that will run some flavor of Linux well and load Linux on it, and drop Windows into the bin where it belongs.
It comes with 16GB ram, up to 1TB disk, a detachable screen, touch screen, stylus and NVidia dedicated graphics.
Why not use the same hardware but just run Windows via Boot Camp, Parallels or VMWare?
and with money left over to buy a hooker or two.
None because they run Windows...unless you are running Linux...but then I'd still buy a MBP
Think different.
What I mean is this is the same kind of thing Apple fans seem to do every time a new Apple product launches and their pricing is somewhat sane (it gets worse as time goes on because they don't update prices as parts get cheaper). They try to run some silly comparison of trying to find a PC that matches specs and when you can't do it, or can't do it for less, declare some kind of victory.
Look, the new Macbook Pro is probably a good deal... so long as it is precisely what you want. It cannot be upgraded later and is very much a "one size fits all" design. So if that happens to be precisely what you want to have then cool, get it. However if that's not the case, then when looking at alternatives the question should be what can you get for less or more money that might more closely fit what you want. Maybe you are fine with less CPU, and a lower screen resolution so you find a computer with that and save some money. Maybe you don't care about size and weight so much but would like top of the like graphics, so you buy a big Sager or something.
The point is trying to do a "This must match this other thing precisely or it loses," is silly, and is generally only done by fanboys when they are trying to make the alternatives lose and trying to justify their product as the "right" choice.
Don't run computer analysis by starting with the specs and trying to match that, instead start with the need and then find the price/performance point that best matches it. I just bought a tiny little $500 server at work, because it matches the need the very best (small system to run a dedicated license server with hardware dongle). It will be running in the same datacenter as a $10,000 2U system that runs a bunch of VMs. Neither is remotely comparable to each other in any way, however both have a range of needs they can fill. I don't hate on the cheap unit for not matching the performance of the expensive one, or hate on the powerful one for not matching the size of the weak one.
That system has a slower processor and slower GPU than the MacBook Pro 15". Also slower RAM and storage.
I'm sure they are OK for lots of people but if you want or need an equivalent, it is not.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
You should only consider:
Razer blade
Surface pro
Or X1 carbon
I routinely run Windows on my Apple hardware. Bootcamp works reasonably well. The only penalty is the graphics/video drivers. You get whatever driver was available when that Mac came out, and you'll never get another until you buy an updated Mac. This usually isn't an issue unless you're doing hardcore gaming or video production.
I'm a fan of Dell laptops. I tend to like Latitudes better than XPS's but that's mostly preference for how we use them in an enterprise. Dell is a great choice if you want good warranty support. They'll do on site replacement of parts next day if you purchase a good enough warranty, which is nice if you want to ensure minimal downtime.
Sager can be worth looking at, they have a lot of flexibility in what they'll configure for you. Their tech support is pretty crap though, so make sure you get it through someone like XoticPC or RJ Tech who will do support if you need it, and be prepared to send it back if service is needed.
In general for long battery life you want to make sure to go with integrated graphics, rather than switchable, and go with a lower end CPU rather than a higher one. Stick with dual core rather than quad core. Make sure you use an SSD, not a magnetic disk. If you are willing to pay the premium Intel processors ending in U are lower voltage and as such get better life, but they cost more for a given performance level. And of course just look for larger batteries. The bigger the watt-hour rating, the longer the life.
The Lenovo T-series thinkpad laptops have always been good for me. The matte black non-slip exterior is a bit of a fashion statement all by itself and I guess some people won't like that, but the build quality is great.
Plus, you can field-strip it and replace literally any part of the laptop anytime anywhere using only one techie screwdriver. My thinkpads have lasted over 7 years each, and 2 of the 3 I owned were repaired in extremely austere environments (temporary plywood building in the middle of Iraq for one of them).
Lenovo spent a couple years building these with only super craptastic LCD panels, but now I think their entire lineup has an available IPS panel, and many offer optional touchscreen.
The ability to replace/upgrade/repair every part including increasing RAM and SSD size a few years after buying is a HUGE bonus that I think outweighs the stylistic differences.
Seriously.
We get that you want a comparable system to your macbook pro. We get that you don't want to pay 2000$+ for one. We get that you probably like macosx. We get that you probably want a bigger ssd, and other perks.
This is a site for nerds. It is expected that you will know certain things, like the existence of hackintoshes. These are PCs, with PC pricetags, that have damned near identical hardware to apple's offerings, as far as the OS and software is concerned, and which can be coaxed into running osx.
Since you should know that these exist, even if you do not want to run OSX, you can still see their known working hardware lists for very close analogs to macbooks, and make a good selection, without ever bothering to ask tediously redundant questions.
Example, here is a nice article breaking down last years best offerings.
http://blazinglist.com/top-10-...
So, since this info is readily available, you should already know about hackintoshes and their communities, why do you people keep asking Slashdot, instead of investing 10 seconds on google looking for a suitable hackintosh?
Really people. This is not hard.
Never spend more than $1000 on a laptop... unless someone else is paying.
Just a note: the reason I mentioned those three brands (or models) specifically, is that they come preinstalled with a Linux distro.
General Relativity: Space-time tells matter where to go; Matter tells space-time what shape to be.
Seems pretty straight forward to me. Take any current Macbook Pro, and look at a comparable Dell XPS, and it'll be $200-$400 cheaper, and have better specs. Wasn't hard. Next question?
People have the impression that Macs are overpriced because you can pick up a piece of shit laptop for $200 at Walmart. If you want a MacBook Pro with Windows on it, just do that. It's a bit like putting ketchup on a steak, but who am I to judge.
I've purchased 2 laptops, a desktop, and a small form factor machine from System 76. They've been solid, but nothing really to call home about. The first laptop (Gazelle) had a touchpad that was shifted a bit off to the left. I understand the design decision to put the touchpad centered below the keyboard letters, but it took a while to get used to. The second laptop (Lemur) was great. For desktop, I have a Ratel. When it arrived I noticed the case was bent a bit. I couldn't tell if it was from shipping or due to bad assembly with the power supply, but it functioned just fine, so I never contacted their support team. The one annoyance I had was that I upgrade it to include WiFi, but it never really got good reception, so I ended up moving the machine next to my router and connecting over ethernet. The small form factor (Meerkat) machine has been great. All of the machines were blazing fast, though I attribute that to running a clean Ubuntu install more than anything.
They did specifically ask which current windows notebook could replace a Macbook pro, to which the only honest answer is none. No current windows notebook can provide the privacy afforded using a Macbook pro, none. Not only do you drop the apple notebook but you also have to drop your pants and abandon your private life to M$'s scrutiny and the fuckers will make you pay for it. Disclosure in my whole life I have never owned an Apple product, not one (in that time I have only used three Apple products an Apple IIe, an apple shared external hard disk drive and trialled an Apple macintosh for a week) but I can see the day coming. I have quite simply owned by last version of windows.
Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
They don't know any better. Pesky kids.
If you want a Free Software compatible laptop and you're willing to pay, it's hard to do better than Purism.
https://puri.sm/
If that's too rich - and they are expensive - then get the best ThinkPad you can afford.
Liam P. ~ "Intelligence is a lethal mutation." (me)
Chromebook pixel.
https://www.amazon.com/Super-G...
It can completely ditch chromeos, and run pure Linux.
https://wiki.archlinux.org/ind...
http://marksolters.com/program...
Like other Chromebooks, battery life is obscenely long.
Dell XPS 13. Generally nice build quality. Sadly the "nice" 3200x1800 screen is rather reflective and very power hungry (about half the battery life). If you go with the 1080P option you have limited CPU/GPU/ram options. Also note the kaby lake version (2016) does NOT have the IRIS. So if you want faster graphics get the 2015 version with the IRIS graphics. Also the "nostril" cam is a common complaint.
Lenovo Ideapad 710S (13") is also quite nice. Aluminum unibody, chicklet keyboard, looks kinda apple like. They have an ugly hack for some weird RAID driver (despite there being a single storage device). They disable ACPI which breaks microsoft and linux install media. So you have to use their install media (unless hacking install media is your thing), so you can't do a fresh install to get rid of whatever rootkit/malware/crapware that lenovo includes. They did (finally) release a bios to reenable ACPI, but seem to REALLY not want windows folks to use it, it's explicitly unsupported for windows. Makes you wonder why lenovo REALLY doesn't want users reinstalling the OS. The good news is it does have the IRIS graphics (like the macbook pro 13" and the 2015 dell XPS), but can get gotten with a top spec (i7 and 16GB ram) and still get a nice matte 1080P screen. I'm all for more pixels, but don't really think that 3200x1800 is worth it on a 13" screen screen, especially if it significantly impacts battery life.
Only one really springs to mind right now: Dell Precision 17 7000 Series.
For the same money as a tricked-out MacBook 'Pro' you get a Xeon CPU with 64GB of ECC RAM, and plenty of useful configuration and IO options.
Also: next-day on-site service for 3 years, extendable to 5 for a bit more money.
Having used a laptop for paid work in the field I can tell you for sure that not having undiagnosable OS crashes or silent data corruption is, y'know, professional.
Having the ability to call out an engineer with parts to fix the damn thing if it breaks while you're on-site at a client location and thus get working again quickly? That's also professional.
Having a sleek Apple MacBook. Sure, that conveys the impression of professionalism, but right now, that's all it is.. superficial. It's finely crafted consumer-grade appliance tech undeserving of the 'Pro' moniker right now.
...an Englishman in London.
I like my Asus Zenbook, it often get confused for a Macbook. Stylish, powerful, dedicated GPU, and 13 inch ultrabook.
Upgrade to the iPad pro, you can get a blue tooth keyboard and the Linux app.
Since when is there a "Linux app" for the iPad Pro? I thought the strict W^X policy of iOS made a virtual machine impossible. Or are you referring to SSH, VNC, RDP, or another remote desktop means? That requires a continuous connection to the Internet while in use. But perhaps if price is truly no problem, you can buy the 4G iPad Pro on a carrier that offers an unmetered cellular Internet plan instead of the Wi-Fi-only iPad Pro.
Mac users seem to be confused concerning the difference between hardware and software. For example:
Is there a Windows laptop that matches the new MacBook Pro in terms of build quality, reliability, and performance?
Build quality - Most computers are assembled by FoxCon in China. Apple is no exception.
Reliability - OS 10, based on Unix is more reliable than Windows for most of the same reasons that Linux is also more reliable than Windows.
Performance - The same X86 based processors go into Macs, as well as similar video cards (ATI / NVidia)
It is possible to install Windows on a Mac using Bootcamp, or OsX on a non-Mac PC using Hackintosh.
"I use my Mac for all the usual surfing, watching videos, listening to music and so on," Patrick writes. "I also use Adobe Photoshop pretty heavily and video-editing software more lightly."
Oddly, one can do all of the above using Windows. Change Photoshop to Gimp and it can all be done using Linux. That was a pretty lame challenge.
On the other hand, the original post did make for good click-bait.
This MSI laptop matches or betters most of the MacBook Pro 15" specs. The case isn't as nice, though (IMHO), and only 2 Thunderbolt 3 ports, but you also get an SD card and a keyboard that isn't a low-travel piece of crap (IMHO). Oh, and it's upgradeable to 32GB.
I have a previous generation MacBook Pro as my primary laptop. I'm seriously tempted by the alternatives and have almost no interest in the new MacBook Pro. It's overpriced, missing too many of the ports I regularly use, I've always disliked glossy screens, and I don't want a bunch of dongles dangling off it or that I have to drag out to attach almost every device I currently own. I like OS X, but I'm almost as happy with Linux for most things. Apple's got a year or so to listen to the feedback from many people and market a real MacBook Pro rather than an overpriced MacBook Air Plus, or I'm jumping ship.
Dell's XPS laptops are not a direct replacement for the MacBook Pro - the "PRO" in the name should point you in the direction of the Precision mobile workstation series. They are great laptops and offer real professional graphics options, not the rebranded consumer chipsets in some Apples. If you are just trying to save money relative to Apple's products... well, you get what you pay for.
Vote for the Dell Latitude E7470 series here. They are sleek, not insanely slim like some, but definitely ultrabook thin. Upsides are high-res and touchscreen, 4G capability, upgradable RAM and SSD (a least on the 7450, haven't gotten a new 7470 in yet. The best part is the docking support. I know that you can plug in USB 3 "docks" or some thunderbolt docks, but nothing beats dropping your laptop into a dedicated "real" dock/port replicator and everything just works at full speeds. Multi-monitor and dual-displayport capability. Battery life is great. Downsides are that they are not unibody aluminum and the price ($1500+). They are not cheap. You pay for it. But it's a damn good machine for the money.
That system has a slower processor and slower GPU than the MacBook Pro 15". Also slower RAM and storage.
Both have 16GB RAM, the nVidia 965m is rated as approximately the same as the Radeon Pro 455 (which is the fastest one available for the MacBook) and with the performance base is claimed to have a 16 hour battery life. I can't find the CPU specs for the surface book but the chips are the same generation. While the MacBook has a touch bar the Surface has a touch screen plus a pen and can function as a tablet as well but only a 13.5 inch screen. In Canada it also costs ~$500 less than the 15" MacBook Pro with maxed out GPU. It also has a USB-A port.
Of the two I would go for the Surface and I say that as someone who has used Macs for around a decade now - it's far more like a Mac used to be than the new MacBook Pro. However I'm waiting for the refresh of the Dell XS 15 which, if it comes with a Kaby Lake CPU and a 10-series nVidia GPU will be what I'll probably get.
Having already upgraded my desktop to Windows 10 (after getting fed up of waiting for the Mac Pro to be updated) I've found it is nowhere near as bad as Windows XP (which was the last time I seriously used Windows) and frankly it is faster and more responsive than OS X - that maybe the old hardware I am running it on but since Apple has not updated the Mac Pro for 3 years that's hardly my fault. With modern machines it is easy to spin up a Linux VM for programming and data analysis - although the Linux subsystem for windows might even avoid the need for that too soon.
I've been very happy with the Dell Precision line since the MacBooks stopped being Pro machines (thus a Precision M4500 (first gen i7, 16GB RAM, Dual 250GB SSD, Quadro FX 880m replaced my original 2006 MacBook Pro, even though I would later buy a refurbed 2012 (non-retina) MBP as a lightweight machine). Plus they have docking stations. I've run Linux on the M4500, M4700, and M4800 without issues - the Quadro and FirePro cards seem to work just fine, especially if you use the closed source drivers.
I'm starting to think GNU is the problem with "GNU/Linux" these days.
I needed a Windows laptop for work and am surprised by how much I've enjoyed the Asus Q534UX. It was $1499 from Best Buy (who I never purchase from). Features an i7-6500U, 16gb DDR4, a 2TB hard drive, 512GB SSD and a GTX950M. The screen is a 4K touch screen. The damn thing even came with an external woofer. It's been very fast, has never crashed, handles photoshop and the few games I've played with ease.
Currently using a "Late 2011 17" MacBookPro8,3" with 2.5 GHz core i7, 16 gigs or RAM, 1TB SSD + secondary hard drive in DVD bay. Running under 10.10.5 Yosemite, or Bootcamp Windows 7. The machine is fantastic, except that (of course) video performance is a bit subpar when compared to what's out there now, with 4k screens and all the rest.
Would love to know what's comparable to that today with roughly 32 Gigs of RAM, 6th -gen core i7 processor, numeric keypad, 4 gigs of graphics RAM in a dedicated graphics card, slot or caddy for secondary disk storage, but I am looking for one that will explicitly be capable of being turned it into a reasonably good Hackintosh that can also dual-boot into Windows. (even if external Wi-Fi dongle is required for OS-X).
I need a large screen, not something puny because eyesight is not getting better and the apps I run require lots of screen real-estate. (the more the better). I cannot use an external monitor because it would mostly be used in situations requiring mobility. Size, price and weight not as much of a factor, just features! I looked at the Acer Predator 17 , and that was pretty appetizing... possibly a bit overkill on the graphics side but I could live with it otherwise. Not seen any reports of someone trying Hackintosh on that model.
Any help, advice or suggestions appreciated, I am already aware of tonymacx86 and been reading their epic multibeast and clover install tales for weeks, as well as going through all of the 'best laptop for hackintosh' lists from a year or two ago, but haven't done a build of my own yet.
Thanks in advance.
(Of course none of this would be necessary if Apple agreed to license their OS to someone out there willing to make a proper OS-X compatible 17" 'desktop repacement' machine for professional users on the go. Since they're not doing it themselves, sounds like a no-brainer, but I digress)
I'm looking for a good Linux machine. I haven't bought anything other than a MBP in over a decade. I don't mind the price, I just want a fast, reliable laptop.
If price is no problem: Upgrade to the iPad pro, you can get a blue tooth keyboard and the Linux app.
Does the Linux app come with SystemD as an in-app purchase?
lucm, indeed.
Another vote for Dells - I've been very happy with the majority of the Latitude and Precisions that I've worked with the last four years, and own an M4500 as my personal workhorse that I've upgraded almost as much as it can be done (16GB RAM, dual 250GB SSD (one full size, one mSATA), USB 3.0 via ExpressCard), and also had a flawless Linux experience on the M4700 and M4800, and the Latitude E6420/E6430 as well. Dell support is fantastic (unlike some other companies...) as well if you ever need anything, plus the laptops are easy to repair or upgrade.
I'm starting to think GNU is the problem with "GNU/Linux" these days.
This is a terrible idea. The iPad Pro is not a computer. It's severely limited to what it's "allowed" to do. It's a consumption device. And Linux as an app? Are you serious? Given Apple's restrictions, I doubt they'd allow an OS in an App. They don't even allow emulators and even if they did, they severely limit access to the file system. Are you referring to this App:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/ap...
Buy the iPad Pro if you want an nice tablet for entertainment, but for Linux, absolutely not. And jailbreaking a device this expensive is just stupid, it really defeats the purpose of why people like Apple's ecosystem -- and of course you're now fighting Apple's updates. You can buy a real computer(notebook, desktop, etc.) that's better speced with none of the limitations for less if you want to run linux. You can buy a gaming level PC for less than an iPad Pro.
Dell has several models that support Linux from them (I haven't checked the Latitudes, but I know it is an option in the Precision and XPS lines).
I'm starting to think GNU is the problem with "GNU/Linux" these days.
Battery life is more important to me than ultra-high performance.
Suggestions?
Thinkpad X260. Battery lasts for 17 hours.
lucm, indeed.
If you go for a 512GB SSD at $1,150, you're only saving $420 on a new 2.0GHz MacBook Pro.
I wouldn't call 26% cheaper for better specs "only". How much is enough?
There is no equivalent to a MacBook Pro sold as a Windows laptop.
-jcr
The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
Ignore him. He's speaking in moronic pentameter.
i have one these with i7 6700HQ in it paid 700$ cause coupon sale i bought it on but it starts at 900$ with a gtx960m atm though probably get updated soon which i think would stomp a mac pro. biggest Minus is only Hybrid HDD + 8G Cache. When only paying 900$ vs 2grand+ can just buy an m.2 drive and still save a ton of money.
Dell, Lenovo and Compaq/HP do whitelisting/rebranding of hardware to do vendor lock-in and avoiding you to customize your hardware, so they are ENTIRELY out of question for a new Linux machine.
Go to Walmart and buy some $100 POS off the shelf with Windows. It won't matter because you'll just get pissed off with it and either go back to Mac or get smart and install Linux.
And resell it two years later for 75% what you paid. Next jack ass comment from some one who doesn't understand the value of QUALITY. Check eBay for 2 year old macs. And I don't care why. Fact
I bought a Dell XPS 15 last year to replace my 2012 15" MacBook Pro. Worst. Decision. Ever.
The XPS 15 fails to live up to many of Dell's promises.
Offhand:
5 hour battery life during "light" usage, not 12 as Dell had indicated.
Multiple buggy firmware / BIOS updates resulting in broken screen brightness controls (dropped from 20 levels of brightness to 5), overactive CPU fans/noise and buggy Thunderbolt 3/USB-C issues. Dell had removed the previous firmware/BIOS from their support page, so in order to get my laptop working properly I had to download the old firmware from a sketchy 3rd party site.
Poor SSD speeds that aren't anywhere close to those I got on my 2012 MacBook Pro, never mind today's Macs.
Crappy palm rejection in the trackpad when typing on the keyboard
Many users over on the Dell subreddit are complaining of coil whine and other build quality issues.
The XPS 13 is a good machine - its big brother however, has a lot of problems. Avoid.
I went *back* to my 2012 MacBook Pro.
The Yoga 900 comes with a Kaby Lake Core i7-7500U. From what I understand if you are doing image or video editing the Kaby Lake outperforms the Skylake (in the new MBP) at the same clock speed. It comes with 16GB RAM and 1TB SSD. That configuration runs $1,700. It's also a stunning design. Should do anything the MBP can do except empty your bank account.
"A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky dangerous animals and you know it." - K
with no apparent upgrade path in the future, I'm more interested in the hardware. I can run Linux easily enough, though I'll miss some key applications that I use for work rather badly. But what I'll miss more are the ergonomics.
In particular, the entirely clean and corner-free outer casing (this is underrated—it means less potential for cracks due to corner impact and much less potential for snags on, say, soft bags and carriers that end up breaking plastic widgets of some kind off); the all-metal construction (worse for small impacts, yes, but holds up much better to wear and tear over time); the clean, distraction-free front (yes, unlike some other people, apparently, my mind does get cluttered up by clutter, and the Macbook Pro machines are so detail-free on the open side that the screen is the only thing to really look at); and most of all, the keyboard. Oh, how I'll miss the keyboards on the unibody Macs. As someone that types >100wpm, the low-key-travel, high-tactile-feedback Apple keyboard of recent years is the best I've ever used, bar none. PC keyboards make me very, very sad when I have to use them—squishy, low-feedback, high-key travel, slows my typing by at least 10-20wpm and slows my accuracy as well.
I'm worried about replacing OS X when I have to upgrade, but I'm even more worried about finding comparable hardware and ergonomics.
STOP . AMERICA . NOW
I actually asked a similar one to this at one time in history and got roasted for it.
Back in the day you had to be really careful about what hardware you bought when you ran Linux - there were a lot of "Win-products" which didn't actually have their firmware on their chips permanently but had to load it from a Windows only driver. Those days are pretty much gone - Linux has improved to the point that it can load that stuff, the manufacturers have either pulled their heads far enough out of their asses to either stop doing that, or those shitty ones went out of business, and everyone in the industry wants into Apple's pants so they make their chips more Linux friendly by default because they're hoping they get to supply Apple.
Seriously - with the exception of maybe a weird model specific feature - of the kind that's a rarity these days - pretty much anything you buy with Windows on it is going to be a good Linux laptop. I'm sort of a fan of Lenovo hardware, and as long as you take their Chinese spyware injected version of Windows off you're probably fine. I'm also a big fan of Acer - they're cheap and they feel like they're built by Fischer Price, they take abuse and keep going. If you pick 100 random laptops from local retail stores 98 of them will probably be great with Linux, the other two are going to have oddities that just make it not worth it. I can't imagine what those issues would be, but it's probably from a bargain basement one I wouldn't want of a Sony anyways.
The preceding post was not a Slashvertisement.
I am a developer. No windows machine can replace a macbook. In fact, OSX barely makes the cut for me.
My requirements usually include:
* Can I open a terminal that runs bash ?
* Does it have top, ps, ls, tar, man, grep, ssh, rsync, sed, awk, sort, diff, cut, tail, head etc.
* Does it have vim?
* Does it have python?
* Cron?
An OSX system (runs a BSD variant) and is very close to the systems I work on and debug. Maintaining it is a breeze.
OSX is not perfect. The windows management is inferior to, say, KDE (which I prefer). I run KDE on my work machines, and in virtualbox on my mac.
I used to be a Linux only guy. But the reason I switched to OSX, is because all those other apps like email, calendaring, chat, etc that most companies use are only truly supported on mac or windows.
On a windows machine I wouldn't know how to list the files in a folder (actually, I do, its 'dir'. I remember this only because I'm unable to repress those memories completely).
None of them use enough dongles to be a true one-for-one replacement.
Do *any* of them have the palm rejection capability of macOS with a trackpad? Every time I use a Windows laptop, I am frustrated by the trackpad making my mouse pointer jump all over the place. You have to be so careful not to touch it when typing. The Mac trackpad seems impervious to palm touches, I've never had the mouse pointer/cursor jump about when using a Mac laptop.
Most of my users have simply disabled the trackpad and use an external mouse as they are all so horrible on Windows laptops.
Is this an advertisement?
I recently picked up the mid-tier 13" 2015 model for $1k. 2.9Ghz, 512GB SSD, 8GB memory.
This question was discussed on Hackaday about a month ago. The criteria for the solution being high-end laptop with Linux capabilty. The conclusion was Lenovo Thinkpad models X, T and P. Here's the link: http://hackaday.com/?s=thinkpa...
That was the turning point of my life--I went from negative zero to positive zero.
I honestly think the XPS 15 is a top choice too, although the reasoning for this is not directly for design/size/display, but mostly because it ticks all the right boxes specs-wise that make a great laptop. For an all around machine, meaning it can be used both as a work performer or an entertainment, i'd rarelly take away these features:
- Intel Skylake 40w+ TDP QUAD chip (usually ending in HQ), be it i5 or i7, later preferable if doing any heavy rendering (video, stills, photoshop, audio, 2 or 3d modelling/CAD)
- previous or current gen nvidia or radeon #60 line graphics or above, with 2GB dedicated DDR5, or quadro/firepro equivalents
- 16GB RAM at minimum. 8GB no longer cuts it, even on Linux machines with nvme ssds. I believe app and OS usage of swap/pagefile is still very flawed and one of the main detriments of user experience in modern times, probably one of the best tools to degrade products to force users to a new purchase
- 1tbs+ speed nvme solution, with at least 256GB capacity if the laptop is an on-the-go machine and you keep something better at a fixed location
- retro-illuminated keyboard is a must for anyone
- optional: if you only use a laptop, it becomes essential to have a dual secondary, 2.5 SATA memory option of at least 1TB. Speed not relevant
- Display is easy for most: FHD (aka 1080p), wide-angle screen (keyword: IPS/OLED). Preferably no glare, but that's a personal/professional choice.
- consider the max and min brightness settings if your use-cases can be affected by very bright or very low necessities
- display special cases: 2k wide-angle for those that have absolutely no myopia and consider the real estate comfy and the cost is no object; 4k, high color gamut for any professional that can use it and afford it. Touch functionality on a no-makeshift tablet laptop is useless (but some 4k options gotta have it...)
And the 2 most important things, unfortunately also the 2 hardest ones to get right:
- proven thermal solution that can keep up with heavy load for at least 5min without any throttling (both CPU and GPU). The XPS is decent only on this dept.
- very solid bios, bios options, support, and a brand/model/line reputation for performance oriented support. This is where the XPS fails hard, but the Precision variant has this covered.
These last 2 can usually only be found on business or ultra-premium gaming oriented products, such as Alienware, Voodoo, Dell Precision/Latitude (XPS, lacks the bios options), Toshiba Tecra, Lenovo Thinkpad (stay away from consumer Lenovo stuff), HP Elitebooks and the likes. Notable exceptions might apply if heavily supported by community bios'es. Thinkpads and Dell Latitudes are notable for getting hacked/wrd party bios for making fun things.
My personal recommendations are either a topped up Dell Precision 15 5000 (the business-line XPS) with Xeon and Quadro chips, or if performance is pinnacle and money no object, the heavier Precision 7000 which can have up to 64GB RAM, ECC support, and well, all the configurations you can dream of in a 15 incher. The 5000's have a much worse thermal solution, still great, but no match for a large form-factor work-centric machine such as the Precision 7000 machines. The 7000 can also be much cheaper, or much costlier than the 5000, depending on config. And it is a SOLID machine. Note both 5000 and 7000 support multi-m.2 nvme SSD on raid configs. I wonder when we'll get a dual nvme m.2 raid laptop - I'd love to see that secondary memory reliability OR performance feature in a top-tier machine.
Umm...you might want to check again on Dell. I've never had an issue replacing hardware in my Latitudes or Precisions, not even the WiFi cards. While I can't speak for Lenovo, I am very familiar with HP's issues where the machine will not boot if the wrong hardware is in it.
I'm starting to think GNU is the problem with "GNU/Linux" these days.
Macbook pro user for 10+ years now and have been disgusted with the direction Apple has gone. I ordered a replacement for my 4 year old Macbook Pro, and cancelled it a day later. I did some research and ordered a new model Razer Blade. Build quality is on par with a Macbook Pro, you give up a little in battery life and OS, but I've been running it and getting used to Windows 10, and I'm not looking back. I've covered the ugly logo with a dbrand.com matte black cover so I can carry it for work and not look strange. Windows 10 gets out of the way enough to where I dont mind it, and I've replaced every app that was Mac specific with alternatives that work well, sometimes better. The upside is that I can actually game on this guy now (GTX 1060 CPU). With Linux Bash support under windows 10, I really don't feel like I'm missing too much, honestly. I'd recommend this laptop to anyone looking to switch over.
You can have a more reliable laptop that costs less, and has a vastly superior pointing device as well. To top it off, you can repair / upgrade it yourself without voiding the warranty.
Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
System76 sells Ubuntu systems if that's an acceptable distribution. They have laptops that are absolute beasts compared the the MBP. It's probably where I will go when my current laptop gives up the ghost.
Windoze just can't replace macOS. It's been almost 31 years now that MicroSloth has been pushing their horrifically bad copy of Apple's GUI, and it's still a miserable failure.
Just get the MacBook Pro. Yeah, it's not what we really wanted to see, but it's still a few billion times better than anything that runs that MicroSloth garbage.
If you think that saving "only $420" on a laptop compared to a MacBook Pro, there's something wrong with either your math or your sense of how much a different $420 makes in that kind of purchase.
Kriston
The Razer Blade series is generally considered to be the closest direct replacement for the Mac Pro, being unibody aluminum laptops with a similar form factor and build quality. There are three options: The Razer Blade Stealth, which is a 12.5" ultrabook that is kind of like a retina macbook air, the Razer Blade, which is sort of like a 14" retina Macbook pro, and the Razer Blade Pro, which is sort of like a 17" retina Macbook Pro.
At this point, all three have thunderbolt three and support an external GPU, although the latter two feature pretty damned beefy discrete GPUs (the GTX 1060 and GTX 1080 respectively), so external GPUs are probably mostly of interest to the "stealth" model.
Ahm wow, how stupid can you get worshipping Apple? When did Linux become just an app? This is the stupidest response I've seen so far.
I can't help but notice none of the recommended laptops are a replacement for Apple. You can replace the hard drives and memory in them for crying out loud, no one looking for an Apple replacement can handle that kind of freedom. The only answer is to buy the laptop and immediately fill the entire thing with epoxy resin. THEN you'll have an Apple replacement.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
If you go for a 512GB SSD at $1,150, you're only saving $420 on a new 2.0GHz MacBook Pro.
Who the hell thinks "only" a $420 discount on comparable hardware and build quality isn't a great deal?
This comment is fully compliant with RFC 527.
Considering all the issues Windows has, I'm shocked anyone would consider using it for anything but playing games, and even then, I'd question the judgement involved.
Windows updates tell people that any browser but Microsofts is insecure.
Windows phones home all the time.
Windows reports your web browsing habits.
Windows can be turned off remotely upon some whim of Microsoft.
Any you trust your computing needs to them .... Why?
I'm looking for a good Linux machine. I haven't bought anything other than a MBP in over a decade. I don't mind the price, I just want a fast, reliable laptop.
This past September I bought a Hewlett-Packard Spectre 13 Ultrabook and installed Xubuntu Linux 16.04 LTS with one caveat; plug the USB thumbdrive into the AC power port so it is recognised as a bootable device. This ultrabook features 8 GB RAM on-board soldered, 256 GB SSD M.2 which can be updated post-purchase. While I would have preferred the amount of RAM to be upgradable - why do manufacturers insist upon soldering the RAM modules - the computer performs well for moderate-sized data sets during data analysis processing. A full battery charge lasts over 8 hours though I generally keep the screen brightness very low so as not to cause eye strain. Including the AC power port which doubles as a USB-C port there are two additional USB-C / Thunderbolt ports and a 3.5 mm port for earbuds/earphones.
I switched from PC to Mac in 2005. I had G4s, G5s, and intel versions. Recently, my MBP 17" Turned itself on in a backpack and melted the GPU loose. So I went looking for a new one. Nothing about them excited me. It was the same old shit, except NOW I couldn't get a 17". In addition, my OSX experience has been getting fairly shitty. The MBP turning itself on while closed and unplugged from anything, for instance. Had happened quite a few times, before the fateful backpack incident. There have been other irritations... Occasional freezes that cause a hard reboot (on two different machines). Wifi shutting itself off and requiring a reboot to get it to connect.That bullshit animating behavior it has when you maximize a window and try and tab to another one Dozens of irritating little things that have made using the macs kind of a pain in the ass. It used to be really nice. Shit always worked, looked good, and was intuitive and convenient.
So I replaced the dead MBP with a $1000 gaming laptop PC. 16 gigs of ram, latest i7, 1tb hard drive(not ssd ), GeForce 960m. It's fucking awesome. I can play games again! The amount of software available to me is fucking incredible. I can run VR! AND I spent $1600 less on the thing, so I bought a projector to go with it. Windows 10.... well, it isn't that bad.It's ugly and a bit clunky, but it's solid. The updates are fucking infuriating, but on the balance, the windows laptop just provides so much more value than the MPB would. Slidey strip thingie and all.
I still have a trashcan Mac Pro, which is pretty much relegated to messaging and GarageBand at this point, and I think it's the last one I will buy... unless it commits suicide like the MBP and i need to get a mini for garageband.
So in answer to your question, any windows laptop from a reputable company, that you pay over a grand for, will provide much more value than the MBP.
Look into a Chromebook. You can get them with various levels of performance (from ARM machines to Intel processors). They all seem to have good battery life (10+ hours).
The best part is that since ChromeOS is Linux at the core, you can install a full Linux distribution using Crouton and switch between the two with just a hotkey.
I don't read your sig. Why are you reading mine?
They've got a whole range of laptops that are generally sane - for instance ctrl key is on the outside left not the f@#!$ing Fn key. Last time I looked, which was 8 months ago, I got one with a 17" 4k screen, 16 gigs RAM, 512 gb PCIe SSD, 3 usb3 ports for $1100 and I'm sure that's cheaper now. And it'll be much cheaper if you want a smaller screen - but I have to do real coding and design work on this on the road so went as large as possible.
Note - like Lenovo or Dell their autoupdate stuff is poop.
Maybe instead of pondering this question, it's time to dive in and buy yourself a Mac. Understanding it's a hefty price tag, I don't believe you can match the build quality and sleek design of the Macbook Pro.
I have an Asus UX303LN which I bought for $1300 2 years ago. It even looks like a MacBook from the outside. 13.3" 3200x1800 display, i7-4510U, 12GB RAM, sandisk 256GB SSD, nvidia GT840M. Good enough to use Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and Lightroom. 2-5 hour battery life. Although it gets very hot without power saving mode, 95C. Battery survives my whole university day (CS degree) and allows me to game at night. Absolutey love the display and the 12GB memory. Never looked back. Will never go back to 1920x1080 even on 13 inches. Happy two years with my best bud.
I have a great machine from ZaReason in Berkeley CA. Great company, maintains their drivers and THOROUGHLY tests their builds. I run Warcraft and Flash and tons of video and audio on mine and never have issues. Beautiful machine. Going to get another here after this MacBook dies. http://zareason.com/shop/Lapto...
This is my sig. There are many like it but this one is mine.
A windows laptop runs windows. So it not replacing a Mac Book Pro with OS X but is a lame alternative, if it is at all.
If you don't like Mac OS X anymore, go for Linux or if you must Open Solaris ... how a professional can work with windows is beyond me ... OTOH Mac OS X is going downhill and approaching windows ugliness and clumsiness quite quickly over the resent years.
Cost free eBook I read (by iBook/Kobo/Amazon/ObookO/Gutenberg etc.): "The Green Odyssey" by Philip Jose Farmer.
Can't do Chromebook. Need to run Win7 in a VM for work purposes.
General Relativity: Space-time tells matter where to go; Matter tells space-time what shape to be.
Tired of owning a laptop that is less powerful than a desktop and that becomes obsolete in 6 to 12 months.
The Dell Inspiron 2 in 1s offer similar specs and I/O on the updated 7th gen i7 models. A lot cheaper too.
No windows laptop can replace a MacBook because Windows laptops don't run macOS. What a stupid thing to ask.
I've had good luck with the HP Zbook Studio G3 Mobile Workstation.
Buy a Systems76 computer and then install Windows if you need to, or better yet, ReactOS. It's an open source version that actually works very well. That out of the way, Micro$oft joins the Linux Foundation and just a day later, popular Linux blogs start advertising their cloud services, including Outlook. Meanwhile, a VERY popular email client like Thunderbird barely makes funding. They are clouding us all out of true free and open source software and Linux Foundation got greedy now that Linux touched 2-3% market share. It's literally a play by play of "The Art of War" by Sun Tzu. http://m.wikihow.com/Understan... 1. "Realize that the victorious strategist is he who only seeks battle after the victory has been won." Micro$oft occupies about 80%+ or so of desktops. Victory has already been won. 2. "Understand that the control of a large force is no different than controlling of a few men, being merely the question of dividing the force." This was achieved via game consoles, mobile devices, cloud platforms, etc., including the addition of Linux bash and Unity interface for Windows 10, spyware in sheep's clothing. 3. "Know that to fight and conquer in all your battles is not supreme excellence." Micro$oft gets backlash all the time, including viruses, spying, backdoors wide open, etc. but has a fanboy, misinformed community that only want to play video games (hence Cortana) and mostly a culture of Millennials that could care less about privacy. There is no "fight" or "conquering" when the enemy doesn't even know they've already conceded defeat. You "cool geeks" have been assimilated. 3. "Know that it is an essential in war to know when to attack." They don't have to when they got fans to do it for them. Kinda like loving your crappy car and getting mad when people hate on it, even though you know it sucks and didn't listen or notice the signs to not buy it in the first place. Once you buy a W10 PC, the hole is too deep to get out of most of the time, usually due to hardware that prevents installation of Linux (easily), including "Chrimebooks." 4. "Know your enemy as you know yourself. In war, let your objective be victory and not lengthy campaign." This is a proprietary vs. FREE and open source issue. Micro$oft only recently started acknowledging Linux as a legitimate OS to make us all feel warm and gooey inside (guess what they goo really is). That's a parasite growing inside and it only feeds on freedom and privacy. However in the Linux world, free and open source is something sacred. All it has ever had was a "lengthy campaign." 5. "Understand that the clever combatant imposes his will on the enemy and does not allow his will to be imposed on him." "Throw in you're enemy's way that which he cannot comprehend. This will force him to come out even of the darkest of shadows and reveal himself." Linux used to be about providing an free and open source platform for everyone, but this requires founding. So, Micro$oft partners with Canonical (Ubuntu) to make it more lucrative. Linux people generally do not intend to make money with their developed software, or at least as a substantial part of income. The "revealing" here is trusted organizations selling out due to economic doubts that are just going to get worse thanks to Silly Con You Valley speeding nonsense. Hence: "Divide his forces and keep your forces concentrated." "Supreme strategy (Micro$oft) always aids the inferior side (Linux, but superior in my opinion). Do not repeat those tactics that have previously gained you victory. Let your methods be regulated by the infinite variety of circumstances." There's another quote in the book that deals with using your enemies recourses rather than your own. If Micro$oft "loves" open source, that's all this is, and selfishly so. They know they will never design a fast and secure system as well as a Linux machine for cloud computing, which gives them total control but still claim "open source." So, they build their own L
I was considering replacing my MacBook Pro 2013 with a new MBP. Unfortunately to get a machine of roughly the same specs as I had (formerly top-of-the line for 2013, 1 TB SSD, discrete SSD, etc) it now costs 33% more. To get the top of the range 2016 MBP it now costs 66% more. I wouldn't mind paying for this but I do a lot of OpenGL coding and the GPU on the MBPs is quite weak. So I've been looking for alternatives.
In addition to the Dell XPS i considered the Microsoft Surface Books, but their GPU is so-so.
Three manufacturers of great 15" laptops with decent GPUs are:
1) Origin PC, http://www.originpc.com/ - which has a thin laptop with moderate GPU power, and a heavier laptop with more power.
2) System76 has just released a laptop with a 4k display and a GTX 1070 GPU https://system76.com/laptops/o... - my friend has one with a 1080p display and it looks very good,
3) Razer also has an option of a small and light laptop with external GPU. The laptop is a bit small for me, but the external GPU is intriguing. http://www.razerzone.com/store...
I haven't made up my mind which to get. But I hope this may be of some interest to anyone else who'd like a bit more GPU power than the Apple MBP can give, without having to haul a brick.
If the laptop you are getting does not have Windows XP or 7, then don't bother.
Don't get a laptop with Windows 8. DEFINITELY DO NOT GET ONE WITH WINDOWS 10. YOU FOOL. D:
That's the way it must appear to some users of Windows 10!
You can run Windows under Linux using Virtual Box on the Chromebook.
No speed penalty because Linux is native on the Chromebook.
I don't read your sig. Why are you reading mine?
What's the point really? I think the market has more than proven that software trumps over and over hardware everytime new models for x or y brand comes out.
Here's the summary of what I heard coming from Macbook Pro users with this new release:
1. Some declare it's prefect, all Apple decisions were great, they had orgasms fingering the new OLED strip, blah blah;
2. Some hated some of Apple's decisions in different degrees or specs, but they've waited up to 4 years for a new model, they'll upgrade anyways, and make do with whatever bullshit Apple is forcing them to, since there's basically no other option for MacOS;
3. Some hated everything about the new model. So they'll just keep the old model 'till a new Macbook Pro with everything they want comes out.
See what's common there? In the end, no one got out of the ecossystem. For the vast majority of Macbook users, a comparison with PC laptops of similar specs is kinda useless... just some weird reason to create attrition. This is specially true to professional usages... if you are dependant or used to anything that is only available on macs, you are out of luck.
Yes, there are exceptions, but they just seem to be the minority. And then, for this minority a general outlook on specs won't be enough. They'll all have different needs for a new machine, so they'll have to look closely into options.
But you know, it's not by pure chance that Apple is risking to do the stuff they are... it's just this. They've reached a critical mass of people locked into the ecossystem that they feel it's good enough to take unpopular measures just to lock people further in, to save on manufacturing, to save on redesign, to force proprietary standards and whatnot. Any other business would do the same.
And apparently,the new Macbook Pro will have record sales despite all the whinning. It is what it is.
Big props to the xps line.
Side note:
If you go for a 512GB SSD at $1,150, you're only saving $420 on a new 2.0GHz MacBook Pro.
Who the hell thinks "only" a $420 discount on comparable hardware and build quality isn't a great deal?
I came here to ask the same thing. I guess the people who somehow think that a 37% markup isn't a big deal.
If you are going to buy a laptop that is as good as or better than Apple, look at Sager. You can BYO right on the site. You can upgrade the video cards using MXM modules at a later date. If you don't want to build a gaming laptop, then you probably shouldn't be wasting money on a laptop and just go get a rubbish Chromebook.
Don't deal with Dell/Alienware, you may get some ugly style Alienware. Don't buy MSI, those are ultra-cheaply built and will last at most 2 years.
These are pretty underrated IMO. They're pretty good specs at a decent price if you want to run Linux with no configuration hassles.
BeauHD. Worst editor since kdawson.
No, it comes with it as standard. You can pay to have it removed.
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
Which Windows laptops can run macOS?
Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from Macintosh...
Each and every Apple fan. It's expensive so it must be the best, right?
these are quite powerful beasts, cost less, and have good linux compatibility
plus, these are upgradable !
http://xmg.gg/
or
http://tuxedocomputers.com
I also have an el cheapo HP with that nefarious problem. As for Dell, have read on sites about whitelisting, never owned own. They were reported in the past to do it to cheaper models.
Are you intending to do actual work, or are you just going to use it for dicking around?
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
hackintosh laptops are not worth the effort. Unless you enjoy pain. :)
Also, they're fucking ugly, and fucking heavy!
But aside from that, they're completely underrated!
The Apple logo is worth at least $500 in street cred. There's a net loss seeing XPS logo though this could be offset by $1 Apple sticker. The trick is making it look legit.
http://tuxedocomputers.com/ ...) and have extensible options, and are upgradable, and gnu-linux friendly
http://xmg.gg
these are performing quite well (nvidia 1060/1070, 4k screen, i7 6700H, >8Gb ram,
what else do you need ?
Why do I have to read about other people's pedestrian shopping problems on a "news for nerds" site?
When was the last time a Mac of any flavor was infected by some wandering code put out there to cause mayhem? Just saying
Actually, the sticker is $700, but does come with a free iPhone.
The force that blew the Big Bang continues to accelerate.
Dell Precision 17 7000 is half-baked for Ubuntu given that it supports neither the ~4K res screen nor RAID. What a joke.
So ZaReason is Yet Another Clevo Resller, it appears. You say they thoroughly test builds, but c'mon. Clevo hardware is pretty much fucking reference parts to begin with. Oh, and battery life ranges from "Acceptable in a budget machine." to "You're only gonna unplug to move it across the room, right?"
All that said, I have a Sager branded model from 2011 that was an absolute beast for performance at the time I bought it, and still runs well today if you don't care about battery life.
My own pointless vanity vintage computing page
Panasonic RZ6 - 10 inch brand 1080p ips panel + i7 and real 10 hours battery life.
Panasonic SZ6 - 12 inch brand 1080p ips panel + i7 and real 16 hour battery life. (They claim 22 in ads)
You can easily spend several hundred less on a PC notebook and still have a more flexible and better performing notebook than the new MacBook Pro. I have a Dell Inspiron with a SSD that more than beat my MacBook Air for half the price. I went that direction specifically for better ports options, and my ability to replace the battery, SSD drive and RAM. Really the MacBook Pro is so not a "pro" notebook anymore, it's just a status notebook for people who want to say they own a Mac. Anyone who is actually buying a notebook for real work and flexibility is buying a PC these days.
The story featured here around the new Macbook Pros called "MacBook Pro (2016) Disappointment Pushes Some Apple Loyalists To Ubuntu Linux" claimed that Apple users were jumping ship to Linux during the same time frame that it was declared these were the fastest selling Macbooks ever. And if you look in the comments section everyone fell for it. Obviously there is not much left here but pandering clickbait and slashvertisements.
"And we are proud to tell you that so far our online store has had more orders for the new MacBook Pro than any other pro notebook before. So there certainly are a lot of people as excited as we are about it."
They are maybe a pound or two heavier. You need some gains, bro.
http://www.razerzone.com/gaming-systems/razer-blade
Had a few generations of their laptops. Always updated. Feels like a MacBook pro cept its black and cooler. They have a customer for life here.
Which Windows Laptop Could Replace a MacBook Pro?
Ooo Ooo.. let me try this one! Ok, let's see.. which Windows Laptops run MacOS?
Seriously though, people looking for a MacOS experience are generally looking to maintain that, so looking at Windows laptops don't even come close to fulfilling that requirement.
Agree, let's hijack the thread and ask what's the top-o-the-line Linux laptop? Top notch hardware, etc but Linux?
It might be an Apple product too.
Contrary to what many here believe, Apple computers run Linux quite well, Windows quite well, and OSX quite well.
The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
Who the hell thinks "only" a $420 discount on comparable hardware and build quality isn't a great deal?
People who hate all Apple products.
The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
I have had a T541 for some time.
There are some things I love about their pro line, especially the keyboard, which has real keys and real travel. However, that's offset by a space key that only works if you press it in precisely the right spot - and I don't - and the nipple which interferes with your hands as you move. The nipple can be removed just by popping it off, but then you are left using the utterly horrible trackpad which is so bad it makes me wonder how it was possible to make it that bad.
It lacks BT, the screen is sub--par, it goes to fan all the time, battery life is meh (likely as a result of the previous point), and it is filled with openings for ports that no one needs - a wired ethernet port in the age of USB and wifi?
Then there's the way the screens snap off the computer. You see, the hinges are so stiff that when you open the screen from the recommended location where the cut-out is on the lower shell, it places so much strain on the screen that the LCD is torqued off the upper shell. I first noticed this as a hairline that looked like a zipper, which turned out to be the glue pads on the LCD IIRC, and over time the cracks got larger and larger. They sent me a new one, and its doing the same thing.
I really would not recommend these products to anyone.
All of these corporations want those computers much worse than I do.
Not one of them is worth more than 400.00.
Most it buzz word is "the cloud" you can buy a chrome book or a 300 dollar HP laptop. To keep every data bits at work is to keep everything on the server. Hence, 150 dollar chrome book. With that said, a Linux laptop will also reduce the over all cost. Consider cost of virus, malware, licencing, operating system eol end of life( Linux laptop last 15 years with free upgrades) and free software. The I ternational community supports Linux and contracts can be made on the cheap to add in house features to apps. I myself support every operating system and hardware. This is only a factual analysis with no marketing hype from any sides, vendor, company.
Brilliant laptop.
Pros
Great screen with touch.
Discrete graphics as well
Ssd
16gb
Cons
Slightly over sensitive TouchPad
I still have a rebranded D900T. Even when it was new it wasn't like a battery so much as a built-in UPS.
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
Dell laptops will not charge unless you use the special Dell-manufactured power supply. On my last Dell laptop (an XPS 13 with the flippy screen), I had *three* of the fucking Dell power supplies stop working on me. Never again! It's too bad, because it was a good laptop otherwise.
Yeah, but Chromebook is ARM, not x86
General Relativity: Space-time tells matter where to go; Matter tells space-time what shape to be.
I replaced my Macbook Pro with a Lenovo Thinkpad Yoga... I primarily run Arch Linux, though. For that, anything but a Macbook has advantages ;-)
Look for System76 laptops.
It really comes down to what do you do? P50 can have 64 gig of ECC memory, an Intel Xeon processor. the GPU is the NVIDIA Quadro M2000M Very important if you need to do large file video edits on airplanes or on the road to remote locations.
It has room for 3 HD 2x SDDs PCIe NVMe -- not soldered into the board, and 1 standard 2.5 inch (put in a 4TB disk if needed)
This will run you $3000 all in all and it is not the lightest laptop. If you light is more important there is the P50s lighter but not as powerful.
I looked hard, but the sad reality is that there isn't one. That is due, IMHO, to the incompetency of Apple's competitors.
What I am looking for:
- professional grade 15" laptop with exceptional build quality (comparable to Apple's), up-to-date components: 32 GB of RAM or more, Pascal NVIDIA GPU, Xeon processors, ECC RAM--Core i7 maybe acceptable instead, FAST (>2500 MB/s) at least 1 TB SSD (Samsung 960), Thunderbolt 3 with support for 2 5k external monitors, "retina" screen (don't care for touchscreen)
- reasonable size enclosure (NOT a clunky old-fashioned, ugly-looking design 1.5" thick)
- can run at full CPU and GPU activity for extended period of times without sounding like a vacuum cleaner
- user upgradable RAM and storage options (uses non-proprietary components)
- don't care much about batter life, but 3 h minimum
- don't care about weight
- acceptable price ($3000). I can buy my own RAM and SSD, thank you very much.
This laptop does not exist. Why?
The Dell XPS15 come closest, but it has the webcam at the bottom of the screen... how could you, Dell???
Or there are workstation laptops, like the Lenovo P50, which are very expensive and don't have NVIDIA Pascal GPU.
Somebody please build one, I want to give you my money.
Please? What's the recommendation? I use my late 2013 Macbook pro for music production mostly. I was thinking the zenbook?
Got it with 8GB Ram + 256GB nvme SSD (slow Samsung) + 4K touch screen for $699 during one of the insane 40% off Dell sales. I recently upgraded the SSD to a 512GB nvme by Plextor. Everyone at work oooohs and aaaaahs over it.
I know the surface book can run two 4K external monitors, but only at 30hz each. I would be interested to know of any machines that can run more than two 4K external monitors (or run 2 5k monitors).
I'm not an actor, but I play one on TV...
The APPLE laptop is $420 cheaper.
Do you even lift bro?
The whole question of replacing a Mac with a windows machine is stupid. Two very different machines. Unfortunately Apple does not see a big enough market for a real pro level laptop anymore. Thinness over a really usable and powerful machine with a real keyboard and high powered graphics for gaming and working and dongles for everything is not a "pro device". I hope they decide to build true pro laptops again someday. With Microsoft and their privacy policy that basically means you have none is unacceptable to many users and should be unacceptable to all I will not move past windows 7 and not install any updates with telemetry enabled. Moved to macOS and Linux for my latest machines Apple is missing the boat on promoting their privacy policy vs Microsoft's
I have been involved and using Microsoft products since their inception in the early 80's sad that I no longer trust the company. Windows has always offered more options and software than Apple but no privacy, no options on updates, advertising and bloat ware packaged into windows 10 is unacceptable. The real question should be how can we get Apple to build us a machine we really want.
They seem to have bad keyboard layouts.
Agree to that. You can easily put nondell drives, memory, wifi cards. I did this for > 10 years. They only lick some things on servers. So one of my servers alays warns of nondell drives.
Chromebooks come in both ARM and x86 versions
I don't read your sig. Why are you reading mine?
Fujitsu makes excellent laptops, Apple cannot come even close in build quality. And they make them in Japan
If you like Mac, if you need Mac, if you're even considering Mac, there is no alternative. Windows is evil if you're in that situation, because things other than raw performance count more than price and specs. So this is a rhetorical question - doesn't matter whether any particular Windows laptop has better specs, lower price, or even (arguably, poorly) works better.
I'm looking for a good Linux machine. I haven't bought anything other than a MBP in over a decade. I don't mind the price, I just want a fast, reliable laptop.
It's all about the specs. They all (PCs) use, more or less, the same parts. And to configure a machine to be comparable to a Mac, you're gonna end up paying a comparable price. Just pick reliable manufacturers, and look for the specs you want.
I don't know why you want to switch to Linux, but the reason I like Macs, and the thing that really sets them apart, is the OS. You have the ease of use, and all the other benefits that come with its GUI on one side, and on the other, the unix terminal. In other words, the best of both worlds. And, of course, if you have an iPhone, iPod, Apple TV, or the like, you have much better compatibility there. No one likes Apple, (except the fanboys). I've been using Apple computers since the eighties, and I don't like Apple. But I just can't imagine switching to Windows or Linux.
I was just talking to a friend today who has a Linux desktop, but also kept his MBP. He was talking about how he just doesn't have the time to always be futzing with the command line, and ends up just going to the MBP to get things done. Another friend I have loves it, and uses Linux exclusively, (I don't think he's ever had a Mac, though). You should hang on to both machines till you see how well Linux will work for you.
-- sudon't
Air-ride Equipped
I don't think you will get used to computers built for usefulness over anything else.
https://www.youtube.com/c/BrendaEM
If you're looking to replace any Macbook in the Ultrabook 13-14" screen size category, I would seriously consider either the Dell XPS 13, Razer Blade Stealth, or the Thinkpad X1 Carbon - They all offer Core i7 processors up to 16GB RAM, SSDs in the 256-1TB range, Dell's and Razers offer full 4K displays. Razer's and Dell's laptops have really good build quality in comparison to the typically top notch Apple builds. In the bigger 15" size, the big options are Dell's XPS 15 and the Razer Blade (2016), these laptops have differing approaches: Both laptops offer higher speed GPUs - Dell's is a Nvidia 960 series and Razer's is a state of the art Nvidia 1060 series GPU. Both offer Quad Core 6700 i7 Processors, both offer up to 4K Displays. Dell's build is lighter and thinner than Razers, but Razer's is one piece black aluminum - almost like a Black MacBook Pro.
... and to Windows, I suggest getting a surface pro book ... or whatever they are called.
Seriously, nothing can replace a Mac when it comes to integration of hard and software, consistency and quality, but current gen MS hardware actually looks pretty impressive. Just don't expect MS to continue the line for decades, like Apple does. Or for their hradware to hold value for so long.
My 2 cents.
We suffer more in our imagination than in reality. - Seneca
It's bitztream, the autism-hating, custom EpiPen-hating Slashdot troll!
I think I have no alternative. Prove me wrong. I want a notebook that
- does not overheat when placed atop a bed / pillow (i.e., NO ventilation holes at the bottom, which instantly rules out 95%+ of the notebook market)
- runs inaudibly quiet with perfect low-speed fans, most of the time
- has 2 TB SSD
- 15" or larger IPS hi-res screen
- can be powered from airliner power socket; I see some high-ends that consume crazy 200-240 W and make turbine fan noise when running, while the fuse in airplanes trips at 80-90 W.
I think MacBook Pro 15" is the only one that nails all these requirement. Too bad Apple does not make 17" model; I would buy that no matter the price.
17779 eligible voters in a district, 17779 'vote' as one. This is Russia.
Hmmm....hadn't experienced it. I've worked with Dells from the Inspiron 7500 (P3 650MHz), 8000 (P3 800), 8100 (Tualatin P3), which even the video card could be upgraded, the Latitude C400 (1.3GHz P3 netbook), to the Pentium M era notebooks like the D520, and then the Vista era Core 2 notebooks that had the troublesome Wifi cards that didn't like Linux, and even recently the Inspiron 15 series with the changable backplate on the LCD and never saw a problem on the lower end - unless it's just certain models that I missed or the Vostro line, but that problem was the whole reason I steer[ed] people towards Dell and Toshiba instead of HP.
I'm starting to think GNU is the problem with "GNU/Linux" these days.
In person I'll remain polite to acquaintances buying Apple products, but privately I catalogue them in the "really not that bright" category. Heck, it even might be social grease as I adjust my behaviour and treat Apple-toters "different."
Hmm...I think the only server I replaced the drives in like that was a Poweredge 1750 (or 1950, it's been a long time) that we upgraded the hell out of - added an mSATA SSD that we used as the boot drive (after finding out the board had a SATA port), removed the SCSI backplane and added a SATA RAID controller and used that instead of the old PERC controller that it came with. That machine was so much faster when we were done everything (also maxed out the RAM when we did that upgrade), and was still in use when I left the company in September 2012.
I'm starting to think GNU is the problem with "GNU/Linux" these days.
Too heavy? You sound like a massive liberal pussy. Save the species, get your vag sewn shut.
Trump 2016!
You are plainly incorrect.
This comment is fully compliant with RFC 527.
I see a lot of recommendations for Thinkpads here, and that's certainly a good option if you have a price ceiling, but in my view Toughbooks are the best there is. Specifically their semi-rugged line (what used to be their business rugged line). They're expensive, even more expensive than Macbooks, but the build quality is the best I've seen of all laptops and the peace of mind that you get from the added durability (including water proofing) is hard to price.
Despite being resolutely business focused, they've finally gotten around to releasing a model with a discreet GPU. And it has one of those fast-disappearing user-replaceable batteries. (two, if you replace the optical drive with a second battery)
The only criticism I have is that Panasonic seems to be wedded to Windows. I've had a little trouble with some driver related things in Linux, and that discreet GPU that I mentioned above is an AMD GPU... Not a big deal, but a nuisance. Still totally worth it.
They look better in person, the camera adds 10 oz
One typically buys a Mac for the ecosystem. No Wintel laptop has or can replicated that so...
The other bit: many of the best parts and supply chains are monopsonized by Apple as well so most Wintel manufacturers can't make anything like Apple can, quite literally, even if they had the design discipline to do so.
On top that, despite what Apple-haters keep saying, the same of the new MBP have exceeded all sales projections and have even beat previous new MBP intros.
And then icing on the cake is that Wintel vendors have had their sales collapse in the last 3-5 years so is that really the horse you want to hitch your wagon to?
I will probably "trigger" a lot of people on SD but these are reality. I work with these supply chains and manufacturers almost daily. Most Wintel Fanboys know very little about the manufacturing of their favorite products nor much about the insides and their design or economics. Mostly it's about "feels" rather than any facts at all.
And for sheer functionality you can replace the average macbook with a ten year old EEE as both share the fact you can't run anything the manufacturer didn't pre install without having to hack the system.
NRRPT/RCT
I suggest the Lenovo YOGA 900-131SK2.
Don't know whether any laptop match mac .. Meh as far as concern about pricing no one can beat'em :D
After watching the video of this year's Apple Products announcement, I had some sense of excitement about the new models. Then a sense of financial dread overcame me. My last MacBook Pro purchase was so expensive I am still smarting about it. Four cores (8 threads) 16GB-ram and 750GB of SSD with a retina display. Despite a long list of upgrades and benefits, the wifi didn't have 802.11ac. Three hundred dollars for a contemporary high end consumer router, and my best and most recent Apple can't connect in the best mode. Then the lack of an Ethernet port causes me concern. I don't like using a thunderbolt port for Ethernet. This is yet another year I have to come to the disappointing decision that my existing MacBook Pro will have to satisfy my computing needs for several more years. Previously I have justified the expense because of plans to do significant development, but the development climate is slow. Shucks.
Wow, you would hate Silicon Valley and pretty much every top tier startup because pretty much all I've seen there are Apple laptops. I guess the vast majority of engineers at Google, Facebook, Palantir, Dropbox, Quora, Uber, AirBNB, Twitter, and Tesla are just "really not that bright" compared to you. Wait, do you think maybe it could be that you're not as bright as you think you are? Nah!
Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws-Plato
... the autism-hating, custom EpiPen-hating, Musk-hating Slashdot troll!
Just run Bootcamp and shrink MacOSX partition to almost nothing. No need to wonder if you like this specific hardware and can accept the price point. On the other hand Windows land has many more form factors and features to choose from, though I am not sure if there is an exact combination like Macbook Pro.