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Comment by marcus_holmes | Hacker News Reader

I have a MacBook that is malfunctioning under MacOS (it's running at 60-80% CPU usage when idle, known problem, no fix available). I tried installing Linux on it, couldn't get it working at all.

I have a Dell XPS15, specifically chosen because the XPS line is supposed to work well with Linux. Numerous problems, all related to drivers. But the main problem is that every time Windows updates it wipes out GRUB.

I figured that my problem is that every laptop I've bought has been designed for a non-Linux OS. So I've ordered a Purism laptop, which should arrive any day now. Hopefully actually buying a laptop designed and built to run Linux will provide a better experience.

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I'm using a dell XPS 13 (one of the new ones) and it works wonderfully. I don't run windows on it so I don't have any issues with my bootloader and I saw advice on the internet to get one with no nvidia gpu so I got one with intel graphics.

It really does feel like a OSX level premium feel. The only bit I am missing is fractional dpi scaling which is apparently on the way but turning on big text in accessibility mode works well enough for now.

Can you plug it into a 4K display or all the shitty projector type things?

At work most of our developers run Linux. The hardware mixture is Dell (XPS 13, XPS 15), some Thinkpads and two who use System76. Several of us use 4K displays, and I can't remember the last time anyone had trouble with a projector. Maybe the older XPS 15 might have, once upon a time. It has an Nvidia GPU and so I want to believe it has been flaky at least once, but I cannot recall a discrete incident. All the rest have the standard Intel graphics and everything's peachy.

Distros are all either Ubuntu LTS or Linux Mint with default DEs. I am pretty sure one fellow switches to a tiling WM some of the time, but I forget which.

My XPS13 is plugged into a 4K display (thunderbolt -> displayport adapter) right now. Works fine.

Can’t promise projectors will work, but I would expect a thunderbolt -> HDMI adapter will work just as well as the Displayport one does.

>But the main problem is that every time Windows updates it wipes out GRUB.

From my experience, this issue is from trying to use an MBR on Linux while Windows uses an EFI. I've never seen Windows mess with another EFI on the ESP. This issue is made worse by programs like unetbootin being terrible at using EFI.

ThinkPads usually just work with Linux. I bought a second hand T470s last year, and nearly everything works without any issues under Linux. Even my TB3 dock (some Chinese unbranded device) just worked when I plugged it in.

The only think that doesn't 100% is the fingerprint reader, apparently you need to setup your fingerprint on Windows first.

The XPS 15 doesn't have a linux "developer edition", but it still plays quite well with Linux (even if it's less "plug and play" than the 13 model). It comes with Nvidia Optimus and that is still not supported on Linux (thanks to Nvidia) so you may want to either turn off the dGPU or use bumblebee. The HDMI port is wired to the Intel GPU so it should just work. In the future, just to be sure, I advise you to check the Archwiki: the most popular laptops have a page there, reporting all the working and non working stuff and eventually some work-arounds

I have an XPS15 (9570 i9 with Ubuntu 18.04.01) and I have hardly run into issues and certainly not serious ones.

I am swearing much less now I don't use Windows so much (even though Windows was in a VM).

If your problem is dual-booting Windows, then why would you dual boot? For games, get a gamer PC. For work, use a VM.

It seems a little harsh to blame Linux for Windows killing your boot ;-)

Oh I'm not blaming Linux - the problem is definitely manufacturers not testing their machines for Linux. I'm especially mad at Dell because the XPS line is supposedly "Linux friendly" and yet not. Last time I buy a Dell.

I'm travelling at the moment, so a desktop games machine is not an option. And I have to test stuff on Windows. But when the Purism turns up I'll relegate the XPS to games machine duty ;)

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