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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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I'd recommend against any lenovo laptop after the T580 and T490. My company switched to dell since the lenovo laptops had so many failures and weird issues that we'd have to keep an extra one in stock for every 10 in use.
But if the older stuff suits your needs, go for it. Lenovo used to make great laptops.
Same reason most people recommend gettinf a Honda/Toyota when asked for a general recommendation for a car. If you need to ask the question, then your needs are probably not that specialized. So something generally reliable, widely accessible, and good value would be appropriate. Lenovo still tends to fit that description.
Spare parts and resilience. Thinkpads are the most tanky laptops available.
They are cheap and durable, and they work with most major Linux distros without much headache.
I have a spec'd out S76 Lemur, which is a great laptop for throwing in a backpack as a daily driver, and really packs a punch with a small footprint.
But I also have a couple ThinkPads that cost less than $100 to replace that I use for doing experiments in the field where a laptop is more likely to get damaged. No need to needlessly drag thousands of extra dollars in kit out into a mountain trail to do radio experiments. For that kind of work, these old systems have more than enough resources, and if I fall in a stream, or get caught in rain, the worst I have to do is replace the system for $80 refurbished on Amazon.
Of course, I've never actually had any issues requiring replacement, but ThinkPads are really hard to break. I'm not as convinced about the Lemur's durability, and would rather take fewer risks with it.
I hope nobody recommends Thinkpads manufactured after 2020. They're pure garbage in so many ways, that there's no point to list them all.
I'm sure it's not everyone's reason, but mine was "Thinkpad still has physical left, right and middle mouse buttons".
Used thinkpads especially the older ones (t480 and older) have a ton of extra parts floating around, and you can get them cheap. I built a t480 with 8th gen i7 from parts for around $170 over a year ago, it has been a great experience. I upgraded the trackpad and keyboard and plan to upgrade the screen, cooling, and battery next.
I literally threw a ThinkPad at a brick wall in rage a long time ago and it was fine a t-42 iirc. reccomended them ever since
I dropped my T420s down the steps by accident. No issues, but the disc drive managed to fly out haha.
Price, keyboard and build quaility are my main reasons for buying a Thinkpad 3 years ago.
They are available for a good price second hand and their keyboard is the best laptop keyboard I've tried. Most of those Linux manufacturers use Clevo designs and thus the keyboard isn't amazing. Even if they design a laptop themselves it's difficult to nail the keayboard.
My next laptop will probably be from framework. But that depends whether I'm willing too spend as much and the other options available. And framework doesn't even sell laptops with Linux preinstalled.
I don't like thinkpads anymore. They used to be great but Lenovo decided to kill off their best feature - the keyboards.
My fingers actually hurt when typing on a ThinkPad keyboard now. They are so shit.
I think people are nostalgic and they remember what the brand used to be. But I'm not impressed by them anymore. They keep scoring top marks at notebookcheck reviews however, but every new ThinkPad has disappointed me with bad screen or bad looks or feel.
I believe Dell even has some models that come with Linux preinstalled.
Dell, HP and Lenovo can deliver with Linux pre-installed
Not just deliver - they support them. I've got a Dell micro-PC running as an Ubuntu Server and it regularly receives BIOS and firmware updates from Dell through the default fwupgdr-mgr.
I, for one, haven't had to look at laptop manufacturers for nearly a decade because my Thinkpad is still running Linux without a problem.
Aside from political reasons (which are valid!), what makes those manufacturers worth choosing over a Thinkpad?
I agree with a bunch of the comments here but wanted to add that there's a decades-long legacy of good FOSS/Linux support on Thinkpads. Before any of these companies existed, Linux was running pretty reliably on Thinkpads.
I do like the newer options with these newer manufacturers, but I won't be getting rid of my Thinkpads any time soon. I'm running a Framework now too.
Those are all expensive, used Thinkpad is below the ground-dirt cheap...$150?!
My Thinkpad Ultrabook was insanely cheap even with a docking station. I do donate to Pop OS once a year though as a thanks for their work and I recommend the same. It's like $12 a year on their site and they do great work.
Trying to get one of their laptops but thats in short order for me, for now.
Adding on:
Also, why the hell would anyone ever recommend Lenovo for anything after the Superfish scandal?
Cost? Framework is not really "Linux oriented".
Because those laptops suck.
Thinkpads are good and cheap. If someone has a bunch of money to spend on a computer they buy a Mac.
Computers are more or less the sum of their parts.
For the longest time, and even now I think, the "Linux laptop" companies mostly sold re-branded quasi-generic laptops from Chinese manufacturers and focused on the software aspect to ensure compatibility. This meant that a lot of aspects were cheapened out on. The chassis, trackpad, keyboard, display, fit and finish in general were second class. Sure it was a machine that ran Linux, but most computers do that pretty well.
Laptop shopping is already fraught with pain and hazards. How do you know you're getting something that wont break down? Add the "vote with your wallet" premium price on these boutique Linux laptops, and they don't seem that appealing.
Thinkpads on the other hand have a huge community of nerds documenting compatibility. They have enterprise customers dumping pallets of used machines into the used market every year, and have far better parts accessibility than the quasi-generic machine.
Then there's the trackpoint, you never need to leave the home row. You're not victim to subpar trackpads(Every non-mac trackpad is subpar, sorry, I don't make the rules, they suck absolutely.)
I've had my X1 Carbon 4th gen since new in 2016. Even if I can't upgrade it, 7 years on its still nearly perfect. I got an Dell XPS 15 from work ~5 years ago and I've gone through two batteries, finishes are wearing off, the hinge is wonky, and IT HAS NO TRACK POINT.
Since the regular points have already been covered by other people, I'll add one thing that I like:
Two batteries. The external one is drained first, and it can be replaced while the laptop is running, because there's an internal battery. I have 24Wh internal, a 16Wh external (it's old, originallly it was 24Wh) and 72Wh external, in a 12 inch laptop (achievable because 72Wh battery sticks out and acts like a stand), giving me more battery life than anything else without an external power bank.
And I got mine for dirt cheap.
Heck, why buy a pre-made laptop anyway, just take this bag of microchips and this spool of solder and compile your own!
System76 and other Linux-oriented hardware "manufacturers" basically take Clevo laptops and rebadge and mark them up. I got one from System76 and have been less than impressed with it considering what they charged for it. The screen is awful (purple tint to it) and the hardware didn't fully work with any distro for a while. I wished I'd just bought a refurbished Thinkpad.
#1 reason, easier to convince businesses to purchase them in bulk; also getting a time tested model makes IT feel more comfortable that they can manage the devices appropriately.
My thinkpad model officially supports linux, so there is no problem there. It is also much cheaper than any of those brands, and it's also available from the regular stores.
15 years ago I would have been surprised to hear that Thinkpads are cheap laptops !
The second hand market for Lenovo laptops is usually pretty good. Lots of corporations have hardware cycles and recycle the things in huge waves. I've picked up an X230 and X270 for fractions of what they were worth new. Accessories too.
Because most of these brands offer high-end laptops, the secondhand market is small and the new ones vastly exceed the needs of a lot of users.
Most people just browse the web, stream media, use productivity apps…these things don’t need much horsepower. The majority of people don’t need to run AAA games or graphics/video editing on their laptop.
Because of this, there is a great market for secondhand business laptops, and tons of great deals there. And of the big business brands (HP, Dell, and Lenovo), Lenovo tends to have the most compatible hardware (while also usually being very easily serviceable or upgraded).
I bought a Lenovo T470s with charger and a decent battery at a flea market on Father’s Day for $100 USD and he had a stack of them. Ordered some more memory and a bigger NVMe for $70, and now I have a very useful, practical, everyday laptop for less than $200, and it dual-boots a licensed Windows 10.
Thinkpads are cheap and accessible basically everywhere. They are business-grade devices and you can get one when folks retire their machines. A lot of places practically give them away. They were just gonna get thrown out anyways.
Framework is dumb expensive - a 16 even skimping out on RAM/HDDs comes out to over 3k CAD, and that's for a disassembled kit -- pre-built with full components comes out to easily over 3.5k, which is like a MacBook price for the promise of upgradability down the line.
System76 are rebranded shitty components from Chinese manufacturers. They're not better for Linux than any general consumer laptop, and their entire position is basically branding regarding freedom and 1776. Ironic that a company so deeply American in nature basically just resells garbage from China.
cheap (companies sell off their stocks when upgrading so you get a few years old business laptop for a fraction of the price)
cheap and plentiful parts
popular models are usually easy to upgrade and repair
it's built so coked up business sharks can throw it across the office
best laptop keyboards
trackpoint and physical mouse buttons
great Linux support
I've never met a Thinkpad that didn't like Linux :)
I've gotten a lenovo legion 5 for something around 1600$, with a 3070 rtx on it. Before that I had another legion as well, with 2060. I've gotten intel both times, my friend got the amd one. Why? They are a bit cheaper than the competition and I don't really understand why asus version of essentially the same hardware costs more. Why not a linux oriented company instead of lenovo? Well linux isn't as out of reach as it was 10 or even 5 years ago. Almost every driver you need is available even if you do a clean arch install out of the box. So why get a device that you can't easily sell later on, won't get god warranty services overseas and might be hard to repair in a pinch?
All this to say, get whatever you like. I think even on a macbook you can get a perfectly fine linux setup. I hate it when people assume linux needs to run on something specific and is out of reach. Get what you like at whatever price range you want, you'd be hard pressed to run into an issue installing and using linux on it.
I've gamed, developed web and android apps, patched kernel on asus rog series, lenovo legion series, some random msi model and a base configuration acer model. Almost zero problems.
Ease of availability of third party repair/replace parts, and due to economies of scale, them being cheaper as well. Also I know that Lenovo will officially provide me the parts easily even 6-7 years down the line, no matter if I am a business or home/personal owner of a ThinkPad. The only complaints I am seeing are the newest fingerprint readers on selected models like Yoga being less compatible, other than that everything is as standard on Linux as it gets.
for another (other than Tuxedo) EU based solution: https://slimbook.es/en/
(They are at Valencia, Spain).
But I have no about idea its quality as I have never tried one.