It's Becoming Possible To Run Linux Distributions On The HP/ASUS/Lenovo ARM Laptops

[Vistaus]

The decent price is the sticking point from my point of view. That is particularly true for System76 etc. since their benefits over buying a Dell laptop and simply installing Linux on it are marginal at best. Often, they are trailing behind when it comes to current generation hardware. And the industrial design is.. well.. a matter of taste but not on par with other hardware manufacturers. That being said, if AMD keeps working on their linux support the way they have been for the last couple of years, the best choice might be to skip the still experimental ARM stuff and simply buy a Lenovo (or other standard) laptop with an AMD APU.

I don't care if System76 might be a generation behind, as long as said generation offers decent performance...

[andyprough]

Overpriced junk. Many reviews talk about "you'll get used to using a computer that runs slower". Here's a typical Amazon review of the ASUS model:

But here's the problem: Performance is dreadful. Even with applications compiled for the new processor I'm seeing it do no better than a cheap Intel netbook from 2015. This may not be so much of an issue with basic tasks like web browsing and word processing, but you could certainly do the same or better for far less money with a Chromebook or other low end Intel device.

[schmidtbag]

I beg to differ. I still have a bad taste in my mouth from NVidia's failed lead-free solder balls fiasco. I know four people who all got screwed by the failing NVidia laptop GPU's. NVidia stalled and denied for so long, most folks ended up scrapping their new $$$$ laptops before vendors slowly began rolling out recalls. And even when you sent in your dead NVidia laptop for a recall replacement, they simply replaced the board with another identical one that was certain to fail again. Ugh, it pisses me off just thinking about it. I'm never buying NVidia ever again.

I never heard about this. Do you have a source?
Also, what's the problem with using lead? Unless it caused functionality issues, I don't see what's wrong with it. It's not like that's the only toxic material you'll find in a laptop, let alone have any real exposure to.

[schmidtbag]

Overpriced junk. Many reviews talk about "you'll get used to using a computer that runs slower". Here's a typical Amazon review of the ASUS model:

Not sure what reviews you looked at, but from what I've seen, only x86 programs run "dreadfully slow", because they're emulated. Add on top of the fact that Windows is a bit too bloated for ARM use. Run native ARM binaries and these laptops have very reasonable performance for their price. The problem with Windows is the VAST majority of its binaries are x86, but Linux doesn't have this problem. You can easily get by running a typical Linux setup without a single x86 binary.

[torsionbar28]

I never heard about this. Do you have a source?
Also, what's the problem with using lead? Unless it caused functionality issues, I don't see what's wrong with it. It's not like that's the only toxic material you'll find in a laptop, let alone have any real exposure to.

It was a few years back, probably forgotten by most folks now. Except those that got screwed in the wallet by it.

https://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer...hips-defective

https://www.semiaccurate.com/2010/07...bump-material/

https://www.cnet.com/news/lawsuit-al...-chip-defects/

Between this fiasco, and their uncooperative stance on open-source driver development, I share Linus's 'F U NVDA' sentiment.

[andyprough]

Not sure what reviews you looked at, but from what I've seen, only x86 programs run "dreadfully slow", because they're emulated. Add on top of the fact that Windows is a bit too bloated for ARM use. Run native ARM binaries and these laptops have very reasonable performance for their price. The problem with Windows is the VAST majority of its binaries are x86, but Linux doesn't have this problem. You can easily get by running a typical Linux setup without a single x86 binary.

These are the specs of a $240 Walmart laptop. Only difference I can see is the Snapdragon chip. Are those selling for $400 each? Did I miss something? I'm reading that the 835 costs closer to $100 apiece.

[starshipeleven]

Overpriced junk. Many reviews talk about "you'll get used to using a computer that runs slower". Here's a typical Amazon review of the ASUS model:

500% unexpected.

[schmidtbag]

These are the specs of a $240 Walmart laptop. Only difference I can see is the Snapdragon chip. Are those selling for $400 each? Did I miss something? I'm reading that the 835 costs closer to $100 apiece.

I haven't heard about those laptops, but for $240 (or $400) you're going to get a pretty crappy Windows experience whether you're emulating x86 binaries or not.

[aht0]

I'd also like to add here that Qualcomm SoCs with a Modem (like these laptops) the modem is run at higher privilege than the main CPU, and it has DMA, and it is horrendously complex and large thing that can do a lot of stuff like actually initializing the SoC or enforcing firmware signatures on boot.

Basically, the modem on Qualcomm hardware is roughly equivalent to the Intel ME.

Same story with the phones. Technically, QC SoC's have glaring backdoor into system through cellular modem as a bridge head. Does not matter how well you try to secure your software or not.

[Sonadow]

Ugh, I'd thought we would get past the point of device specific image files.

Another thing I'm woried about is that the Infrastructure around ARM isn't as flexible as x86. Like, as far as I know I can't just pop a CD into an ARM laptop and boot from it and install the system like that. :'( Maybe that's why ARM hasn't catched on..

ARM is dead to me and the market as a whole as long as this isn't addressed. No one, not even Windows users, want to deal with device-specific image files.