w520 should work pretty well with both nouveau and nvidia drivers. If you don't need to use external ports, just disable nvidia. No brand is good with optimus.

w520 should work pretty well with both nouveau and nvidia drivers. If you don't need to use external ports, just disable nvidia. No brand is good with optimus. Just avoid nvidia for your sanity. Without nvidia, all laptops will fare pretty well. Thinkpads and Dell's business laptops are still a good choice. Other niche brands have problems of their own and make different tradeoffs.