I haven't used Linux in a couple of years, but I'm about to purchase a used laptop (probably a Dell or an HP) and was wondering if anyone knows what Linux distro in 2015 offers the best out-of-the-box WiFi support for laptops?
Thanks!
Almost every distro offers a "live" version that runs off a USB stick. Pick a distro with a philosophy you like, and then try the live version to check hardware support. If it works and you like it, install it permanently.
The major distros all have great hardware support these days, so I think it's unlikely you'll encounter one you can't run.
Ubuntu was/is intended to replace Windows, including in the enterprise. It's backed by a for-profit company called Canonical, which makes its money by offering enterprise support. The benefit of Ubuntu is that Canonical patches/supports LTS versions for a long period of time, and you can rely on those a little bit more. Another benefit is that they pay people to maintain packages, so you can always find Ubuntu repos for things.
Mint is basically Ubuntu with a more "classic" desktop bundled with it. You can achieve the same thing by using XFCE or some GNOME-alternative on Ubuntu though. It really depends how deep you want to go with that stuff.
DistroWatch offers a guide to choosing a distro[1] as well as a ranking in popularity[2].
I used to love Fedora, but it was too buggy for me. I've heard the latest release is fantastic, though.
elementaryOS is getting a lot of buzz right now, so look into that as well.