8 ms·

YMMV but switching from laptop OS X to desktop Linux has been a gamechanger for me. Far cheaper, and the power / UX of a mid-range 2020 desktop blows my 2019 Ma

YMMV but switching from laptop OS X to desktop Linux has been a gamechanger for me. Far cheaper, and the power / UX of a mid-range 2020 desktop blows my 2019 Macbook Pro completely out of the water for my usecase. Code is a joy again. When I do use my Macbook on the go, I generally use VSCode remotely connected to my desktop because it's so much faster. I also use Regolith Linux, which is a noob-friendly tiling window manager version of Ubuntu, and it feels so slick with multiple monitors.

read_if_gay_ 7y ago
I switched from a macOS laptop to a Linux laptop and it’s been completely the opposite for me. I’ve been spending so much time fighting the OS, I’m actually considering buying a Mac again even though the laptop is just a few months old. You can call me too incompetent or whatever but I’ve been running into stupidly obscure bugs that even stumped some of my Linux guru friends. Just as one example of many, when the device is connected to a Thunderbolt display the Intel wifi driver crashes and restarts periodically which freezes USB input for about 15 seconds every time. This issue persisted across different Linux distributions, kernels and firmware versions. Don’t ask how long it took to figure this out. I have now connected a USB wifi dongle to the displays USB hub. I really miss the plug+play nature of macOS, I think Linux has it advantages and it might be better on desktops but it’s just been horrible for me on a laptop. I might have to try a MacBook plus a fast Linux desktop next.
- xnyan 7y ago
  I’ve had the same experience. Using windows and linux now, it’s shocking but windows has been a pretty good experience for getting work done.
- gen220 7y ago
  Linux laptops are a mixed bag, to say the least. One-off "precision tuned" (vs commodity) hardware is often to blame. In general, if you want a stable linux laptop experience, you should be buying old. It's not very attractive, but it is sustainable -- which is it's own kind of attractive! :) In general, my experience using debian-based distros as a laptop driver have been more or less frictionless. I use an older lenovo thinkpad (x1 carbon, 1st generation, purchased for like $200 secondhand a year and a half ago). In general, thinkpads have a reputation for having a plug+play linux experience, once you boot for the first time. I'd recommend giving them a try before throwing in the towel, if you have any patience in reserve. You can get pre-owned (older=more stable linux support) t-series thinkpads with very nice specs, especially if you're willing to trade off display resolution. Plus the parts that die (batteries, ram) are all commodity and replaceable, you could presumably run with the same laptop for a decade, if you're in to that sort of thing.
  - read_if_gay_ 7y ago
    This actually is a ThinkPad :( It’s a new X390 Yoga though. Maybe they’ve dropped the ball a little, it definitely matches my friends’ experience that the more traditional models are pretty stable.
    - karlgrz 7y ago
      Anecdotal evidence but I've had a great experience with the first gen X1 Extreme 4K and running ubuntu 18.04.
      - nullobject 6y ago
        I recentely ordered the X1 Extreme v2 and I am rediculously excited. It's my first non-Apple laptop in 20 years.
    - gen220 7y ago
      Sorry to hear this. Yeah, it’s probably a matter of getting an older one. The newer ones are trying to compete with surfaces and mbp, and it’s been painful to watch :/
  - celicaraptor 7y ago
    Hi, i have a Thinkpad L450 and when i was looking at switching to Ubuntu on my laptop, i saw that it had worse batery life than windows,i don't remember how much,maybe 10-15%?Do you have any experience on that?Battery life is pretty important for when i take my laptop on courses(not anymore eh)
    - snazz 7y ago
      TLP can be very effective. Have you tried it?
      - celicaraptor 6y ago
        I did try it,however i do not remember if it made any difference.Perhaps i didn't configure it properly?
- core-questions 7y ago
  > You can call me too incompetent or whatever but I’ve been running into stupidly obscure bugs that even stumped some of my Linux guru friends. No, you're not incompetent. As usual, manufacturers are putting weird features into their laptops that the Linux drivers and userspace can't keep up with - e.g. the debacle that is the Nvidia Prime gpu switching tech for low power vs high performance modes. Simply doesn't work most of the time, leaving you scratching your head. UEFI related woes are also common as we finally deal with having to give up on a decent experience with legacy boot. At this point the wise person buys a laptop with official Linux support out of the box. It helps you and it helps the community (vote with your dollars!).
  - taurath 7y ago
    Unfortunately I’ve had similar issues with “official” Linux supported hardware. Linux on desktop still requires forum diving.
    - kyawzazaw 7y ago
      I have been using popOS and have no problems really. The docking/connecting to Monitors/webcams have been really smooth. I am not a power user of other peripherals though.
    - freedomben 7y ago
      Who is declaring that hardware "official" and if they're calling it "supported" shouldn't they be supporting it?
      - taurath 7y ago
        It was a Dell XPS 13 Developer Edition with Ubuntu, far and away the most recommended distro/hardware combination. Everything else seems to be less supported. If someone doesn't know how to dig into terminal commands and google stuff on your phone to troubleshoot, you shouldn't even attempt linux on a desktop.
        6y ago
- pwr22 7y ago
  I recently got a new laptop and bought it from one of those linux specialist places after having a pretty terrible compatibility experience with my previous high end HP laptop.
- Obi_Juan_Kenobi 7y ago
  Laptop vs. Desktop. Linux laptop experience is notorious for weird quirks and instabilities with the hardware. Desktop is a lot smoother.
- ufmace 7y ago
  I don't completely love any setup, but I'm starting to think that Windows 10 + WSL is the best open-source development setup. Huge variety of hardware, plus all hardware actually works right, plus pretty much any popular desktop app works reliably and has a good GUI, plus all Linux CLI tools are there and work right.
- twicetwice 7y ago
  What laptop are you using? I think that would be helpful context. I've been running Ubuntu 16.04 on my Dell XPS 15 9560 with almost no issues (and none that aren't easily resolved with a shell script or a keyboard shortcut) for almost three years now. I get the sense that the more popular the hardware, the fewer issues you'll have running Linux on it. I certainly wouldn't call you "too incompetent" -- but I might call you just plain unlucky. If you want to go back to macOS because you don't have to be "lucky" to get a laptop that plays nice, I don't blame you. But for me, the tradeoffs to stay on Linux have been minimal and absolutely worth it.
- drEv0 7y ago
  Far less obscure than the issue you cite but I have found keyboard shortcuts across the OS and third party apps on Linux are so incredibly inconsistent when compared to macOS (or Windows for that matter.) I find I'm constantly bouncing between control, alt, and super to achieve what I could do in macOS with just super.
- tracker1 7y ago
  As an intermediate, install windows on the insiders channel, though update 20h1/2004 should be out soon for GA. I had to jump into windows for a few things last month, and WSL2 on windows has become pretty good and bearable, the Docker beta support for WSL2 also really good... seems to use a bit more memory than I recall. But linux cli with a Windows GUI has been surprisingly bearable... Remote (wsl/ssh) extensions for VS Code invaluable as well.
  - pat2man 6y ago
    You are saying the alternate to probably the most used developer setup is a combination of multiple beta release channels?
    - tracker1 6y ago
      I am suggesting trying a software-only alternative to buying another laptop.
- fold3 6y ago
  Truth is, Linux doesn't work well on new hardware unless it is some specific models that state Linux support like some dell or thinkpad machines. You bugs will probably be fixed in a couple of months/years.
wildrhythms 7y ago
Is there a distro/DE/WM that handles UI scaling gracefully? Every time I try to go back to Ubuntu with my 5K monitor I'm met with the worst UI scaling options imaginable. For example, scaling up the titlebars, but leaving everything else tiny... or scaling options being limited to 1.0 or 2.0. I still want to output to the monitor at 5K, but with the whole UI scaled up. Mac OS and Windows 10 (to a lesser extent) handle this without issue. I would love to move to Linux full time, but this has been a hurdle for me.
- riezebos 7y ago
  In all the articles about ubuntu 20 that I saw today one of the main improvements mentioned was HiDPI diplay support, maybe this solves your problem. Meanwhile, the MS Surface I'm typing this on has a blurry Task Manager and unreadable notifications because 75% of them fall off my Full HD screen.
  - snazz 7y ago
    I wonder why this has been such an issue for Microsoft. If I remember correctly, the entire Computer Management program and all of its subcomponents have no functional UI scaling. As pretty as a Retina monitor is, I'm glad that I went with a cheaper, lower-resolution monitor with good color accuracy and reliability. With subpixel hinting, it's very sharp from my usual sitting position. With laptops, I can see the advantage of going HiDPI.
- calaphos 7y ago
  YMMW but I had a really good experience with 2x scaling on a 4k Laptop Screen in standard Ubuntu and gnome. There are still some apps which ignore dpi settings (zoom) or need to be forced to scale (often electron stuff, although you can usually just zoom with Crtl+ there). Otherwise awesome sharp text and fluid. Fractional scaling seems to be quite a mess, at least in KDE it breaks a lot of layouts.
  - tracker1 7y ago
    2x seems to work well most places... it's definitely fractional scaling that sucks.
blattimwind 7y ago
For price-performance, absolute performance and acoustics laptops never made any sense at all. A 3700X annihilates the highest perf part Apple uses and can be cheaply cooled under full load without causing much noise; or without causing any noise for slightly more expense. And the 3700X is a midrange offering, not high end (unlike the Apple part).
- dannyw 7y ago
  Absolutely, but, sometimes you’re on the move. The 3700X is a mid-high range offering btw. 3600 and 3600X (which isn’t wotth) is midrange.
  - copperx 7y ago
    We're not going to be on the move any time soon, so if there's a good time to build a tower it's now.
- zebnyc 6y ago
  Is there a config you would recommend? Primary use case would be for programming & browsing. Would prefer not to build as I haven't done it but am not averse to the idea. Thanks
JadeNB 7y ago
> Far cheaper, and the power / UX of a mid-range 2020 desktop blows my 2019 Macbook Pro completely out of the water for my usecase. Which laptop do you use? I tried to switch from my just-post-Intel MacBook Pro to the Lenovo X220 several years ago, figuring Linux support + IBM quality (they had been fairly newly bought out) would give me a solid machine. Turns out several stuck pixels on the monitor and a keyboard on which some keys didn't work were officially regarded as within acceptable quality range. (Plus, I hated the trackpad, but that's my preference rather than a hardware issue.)
jvanderbot 7y ago
Just want to plug i3. i3 + Ubuntu has been my go-to for 7 years. https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2019/06/install-regolith-linux-i3-gaps-ubuntu https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2019/06/install-regolith-linux-i...
p1necone 7y ago
What's the fascination with laptops anyway? Are that many people really working from coffee shops? I'm pretty much always coding on the same desk at home and a mid-high end desktop is significantly cheaper than a decent laptop and much more powerful than even the really high end laptops. The ergonomics are also much better, although that can be fixed on laptops with docks and separate monitors etc too.
- Leherenn 7y ago
  I had a laptop at my previous job, now a desktop. If you have to do a demo in a different room, it's a pain. Your best bet is usually to use another laptop. Same thing if you want to have a call in a quiet place and want to check emails/reference during the call. Work from home is also easier, you don't have to use 2 computers or carry your tower (though currently that's viable).
- adsljfl3 7y ago
  I'm sheltering in place and in the past 3 hours, I've coded in like 3 areas of my house. I also need to move when my partner is working and is on a call.
  - p1necone 7y ago
    Not having a dedicated work area like a home office or just a desk and office chair in a corner of the living room (this is my solution) sounds like a nightmare to me.
    - lloeki 7y ago
      Having a single spot to work at, never to change location, posture, or surrounding sight sounds like a nightmare to me. I have two sofas, a small desk and a bigger one in two different rooms, a balcony, a table in the kitchen and one in the garden. I frequently switch and move between all of those, which helps me a lot in getting out of coding slumps and refocus. I was so happy to give up my static one desk multimonitor setup at the office for a nimble 13" laptop work from home situation. To each his own.
nikanj 7y ago
It’s probably more the desktop vs laptop than the Linux vs Macos
apfsx 7y ago
Why have I never heard of Regolith Linux, it looks like exactly what I've wanted out of a Linux distro for years without me spending forever customizing it to my liking. Thanks for this gem.
nullobject 6y ago
Regolith is what pulled me away from MacOS. Very minimal, elegant, and super productive.
xenreal 6y ago
The same story. I was mac os addict for a long time since 2010 MacBook air and 2012 MacBook pro. They were amazing machines with stable *nix based OS. But since that time Apple more focused on phones, desktop OS didn't get much better. The only thing they are doing is more and more cloud integration to lock you in the Apple ecosystem. I got tired of that. Now I prefer to use Regolith Linux, because it's much better for the development to have a Linux system with proper package management, without messing with the brew. The distro is insanely fast, and you can almost forget about a mouse with i3. It also is really minimalistic, and default settings are really good. I didn't have any urge to change anything. And it works really great on Thinkpad laptops which have an amazing keyboard. For home, I am using NUC Hades Canyon with last-get desktop i7 processor which a bought for 300$ and you know what, it's at least 2 times fast comparing 2019 MacBook Pro 15'. RIP mac mini. All drivers installed out of the box, even wifi and external sound card works without any notch.

read_if_gay_ 7y ago

I switched from a macOS laptop to a Linux laptop and it’s been completely the opposite for me. I’ve been spending so much time fighting the OS, I’m actually considering buying a Mac again even though the laptop is just a few months old. You can call me too incompetent or whatever but I’ve been running into stupidly obscure bugs that even stumped some of my Linux guru friends. Just as one example of many, when the device is connected to a Thunderbolt display the Intel wifi driver crashes and restarts periodically which freezes USB input for about 15 seconds every time. This issue persisted across different Linux distributions, kernels and firmware versions. Don’t ask how long it took to figure this out. I have now connected a USB wifi dongle to the displays USB hub. I really miss the plug+play nature of macOS, I think Linux has it advantages and it might be better on desktops but it’s just been horrible for me on a laptop. I might have to try a MacBook plus a fast Linux desktop next.

xnyan 7y ago
I’ve had the same experience. Using windows and linux now, it’s shocking but windows has been a pretty good experience for getting work done.
gen220 7y ago
Linux laptops are a mixed bag, to say the least. One-off "precision tuned" (vs commodity) hardware is often to blame. In general, if you want a stable linux laptop experience, you should be buying old. It's not very attractive, but it is sustainable -- which is it's own kind of attractive! :) In general, my experience using debian-based distros as a laptop driver have been more or less frictionless. I use an older lenovo thinkpad (x1 carbon, 1st generation, purchased for like $200 secondhand a year and a half ago). In general, thinkpads have a reputation for having a plug+play linux experience, once you boot for the first time. I'd recommend giving them a try before throwing in the towel, if you have any patience in reserve. You can get pre-owned (older=more stable linux support) t-series thinkpads with very nice specs, especially if you're willing to trade off display resolution. Plus the parts that die (batteries, ram) are all commodity and replaceable, you could presumably run with the same laptop for a decade, if you're in to that sort of thing.
- read_if_gay_ 7y ago
  This actually is a ThinkPad :( It’s a new X390 Yoga though. Maybe they’ve dropped the ball a little, it definitely matches my friends’ experience that the more traditional models are pretty stable.
  - karlgrz 7y ago
    Anecdotal evidence but I've had a great experience with the first gen X1 Extreme 4K and running ubuntu 18.04.
    - nullobject 6y ago
      I recentely ordered the X1 Extreme v2 and I am rediculously excited. It's my first non-Apple laptop in 20 years.
  - gen220 7y ago
    Sorry to hear this. Yeah, it’s probably a matter of getting an older one. The newer ones are trying to compete with surfaces and mbp, and it’s been painful to watch :/
- celicaraptor 7y ago
  Hi, i have a Thinkpad L450 and when i was looking at switching to Ubuntu on my laptop, i saw that it had worse batery life than windows,i don't remember how much,maybe 10-15%?Do you have any experience on that?Battery life is pretty important for when i take my laptop on courses(not anymore eh)
  - snazz 7y ago
    TLP can be very effective. Have you tried it?
    - celicaraptor 6y ago
      I did try it,however i do not remember if it made any difference.Perhaps i didn't configure it properly?
core-questions 7y ago
> You can call me too incompetent or whatever but I’ve been running into stupidly obscure bugs that even stumped some of my Linux guru friends. No, you're not incompetent. As usual, manufacturers are putting weird features into their laptops that the Linux drivers and userspace can't keep up with - e.g. the debacle that is the Nvidia Prime gpu switching tech for low power vs high performance modes. Simply doesn't work most of the time, leaving you scratching your head. UEFI related woes are also common as we finally deal with having to give up on a decent experience with legacy boot. At this point the wise person buys a laptop with official Linux support out of the box. It helps you and it helps the community (vote with your dollars!).
- taurath 7y ago
  Unfortunately I’ve had similar issues with “official” Linux supported hardware. Linux on desktop still requires forum diving.
  - kyawzazaw 7y ago
    I have been using popOS and have no problems really. The docking/connecting to Monitors/webcams have been really smooth. I am not a power user of other peripherals though.
  - freedomben 7y ago
    Who is declaring that hardware "official" and if they're calling it "supported" shouldn't they be supporting it?
    - taurath 7y ago
      It was a Dell XPS 13 Developer Edition with Ubuntu, far and away the most recommended distro/hardware combination. Everything else seems to be less supported. If someone doesn't know how to dig into terminal commands and google stuff on your phone to troubleshoot, you shouldn't even attempt linux on a desktop.
      - 6y ago
pwr22 7y ago
I recently got a new laptop and bought it from one of those linux specialist places after having a pretty terrible compatibility experience with my previous high end HP laptop.
Obi_Juan_Kenobi 7y ago
Laptop vs. Desktop. Linux laptop experience is notorious for weird quirks and instabilities with the hardware. Desktop is a lot smoother.
ufmace 7y ago
I don't completely love any setup, but I'm starting to think that Windows 10 + WSL is the best open-source development setup. Huge variety of hardware, plus all hardware actually works right, plus pretty much any popular desktop app works reliably and has a good GUI, plus all Linux CLI tools are there and work right.
twicetwice 7y ago
What laptop are you using? I think that would be helpful context. I've been running Ubuntu 16.04 on my Dell XPS 15 9560 with almost no issues (and none that aren't easily resolved with a shell script or a keyboard shortcut) for almost three years now. I get the sense that the more popular the hardware, the fewer issues you'll have running Linux on it. I certainly wouldn't call you "too incompetent" -- but I might call you just plain unlucky. If you want to go back to macOS because you don't have to be "lucky" to get a laptop that plays nice, I don't blame you. But for me, the tradeoffs to stay on Linux have been minimal and absolutely worth it.
drEv0 7y ago
Far less obscure than the issue you cite but I have found keyboard shortcuts across the OS and third party apps on Linux are so incredibly inconsistent when compared to macOS (or Windows for that matter.) I find I'm constantly bouncing between control, alt, and super to achieve what I could do in macOS with just super.
tracker1 7y ago
As an intermediate, install windows on the insiders channel, though update 20h1/2004 should be out soon for GA. I had to jump into windows for a few things last month, and WSL2 on windows has become pretty good and bearable, the Docker beta support for WSL2 also really good... seems to use a bit more memory than I recall. But linux cli with a Windows GUI has been surprisingly bearable... Remote (wsl/ssh) extensions for VS Code invaluable as well.
- pat2man 6y ago
  You are saying the alternate to probably the most used developer setup is a combination of multiple beta release channels?
  - tracker1 6y ago
    I am suggesting trying a software-only alternative to buying another laptop.
fold3 6y ago
Truth is, Linux doesn't work well on new hardware unless it is some specific models that state Linux support like some dell or thinkpad machines. You bugs will probably be fixed in a couple of months/years.

wildrhythms 7y ago

Is there a distro/DE/WM that handles UI scaling gracefully? Every time I try to go back to Ubuntu with my 5K monitor I'm met with the worst UI scaling options imaginable. For example, scaling up the titlebars, but leaving everything else tiny... or scaling options being limited to 1.0 or 2.0. I still want to output to the monitor at 5K, but with the whole UI scaled up. Mac OS and Windows 10 (to a lesser extent) handle this without issue. I would love to move to Linux full time, but this has been a hurdle for me.

riezebos 7y ago
In all the articles about ubuntu 20 that I saw today one of the main improvements mentioned was HiDPI diplay support, maybe this solves your problem. Meanwhile, the MS Surface I'm typing this on has a blurry Task Manager and unreadable notifications because 75% of them fall off my Full HD screen.
- snazz 7y ago
  I wonder why this has been such an issue for Microsoft. If I remember correctly, the entire Computer Management program and all of its subcomponents have no functional UI scaling. As pretty as a Retina monitor is, I'm glad that I went with a cheaper, lower-resolution monitor with good color accuracy and reliability. With subpixel hinting, it's very sharp from my usual sitting position. With laptops, I can see the advantage of going HiDPI.
calaphos 7y ago
YMMW but I had a really good experience with 2x scaling on a 4k Laptop Screen in standard Ubuntu and gnome. There are still some apps which ignore dpi settings (zoom) or need to be forced to scale (often electron stuff, although you can usually just zoom with Crtl+ there). Otherwise awesome sharp text and fluid. Fractional scaling seems to be quite a mess, at least in KDE it breaks a lot of layouts.
- tracker1 7y ago
  2x seems to work well most places... it's definitely fractional scaling that sucks.

blattimwind 7y ago

For price-performance, absolute performance and acoustics laptops never made any sense at all. A 3700X annihilates the highest perf part Apple uses and can be cheaply cooled under full load without causing much noise; or without causing any noise for slightly more expense. And the 3700X is a midrange offering, not high end (unlike the Apple part).

dannyw 7y ago
Absolutely, but, sometimes you’re on the move. The 3700X is a mid-high range offering btw. 3600 and 3600X (which isn’t wotth) is midrange.
- copperx 7y ago
  We're not going to be on the move any time soon, so if there's a good time to build a tower it's now.
zebnyc 6y ago
Is there a config you would recommend? Primary use case would be for programming & browsing. Would prefer not to build as I haven't done it but am not averse to the idea. Thanks

JadeNB 7y ago

> Far cheaper, and the power / UX of a mid-range 2020 desktop blows my 2019 Macbook Pro completely out of the water for my usecase. Which laptop do you use? I tried to switch from my just-post-Intel MacBook Pro to the Lenovo X220 several years ago, figuring Linux support + IBM quality (they had been fairly newly bought out) would give me a solid machine. Turns out several stuck pixels on the monitor and a keyboard on which some keys didn't work were officially regarded as within acceptable quality range. (Plus, I hated the trackpad, but that's my preference rather than a hardware issue.)

jvanderbot 7y ago

Just want to plug i3. i3 + Ubuntu has been my go-to for 7 years. https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2019/06/install-regolith-linux-i3-gaps-ubuntu https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2019/06/install-regolith-linux-i...

p1necone 7y ago

What's the fascination with laptops anyway? Are that many people really working from coffee shops? I'm pretty much always coding on the same desk at home and a mid-high end desktop is significantly cheaper than a decent laptop and much more powerful than even the really high end laptops. The ergonomics are also much better, although that can be fixed on laptops with docks and separate monitors etc too.

Leherenn 7y ago
I had a laptop at my previous job, now a desktop. If you have to do a demo in a different room, it's a pain. Your best bet is usually to use another laptop. Same thing if you want to have a call in a quiet place and want to check emails/reference during the call. Work from home is also easier, you don't have to use 2 computers or carry your tower (though currently that's viable).
adsljfl3 7y ago
I'm sheltering in place and in the past 3 hours, I've coded in like 3 areas of my house. I also need to move when my partner is working and is on a call.
- p1necone 7y ago
  Not having a dedicated work area like a home office or just a desk and office chair in a corner of the living room (this is my solution) sounds like a nightmare to me.
  - lloeki 7y ago
    Having a single spot to work at, never to change location, posture, or surrounding sight sounds like a nightmare to me. I have two sofas, a small desk and a bigger one in two different rooms, a balcony, a table in the kitchen and one in the garden. I frequently switch and move between all of those, which helps me a lot in getting out of coding slumps and refocus. I was so happy to give up my static one desk multimonitor setup at the office for a nimble 13" laptop work from home situation. To each his own.

nikanj 7y ago

It’s probably more the desktop vs laptop than the Linux vs Macos

apfsx 7y ago

Why have I never heard of Regolith Linux, it looks like exactly what I've wanted out of a Linux distro for years without me spending forever customizing it to my liking. Thanks for this gem.

nullobject 6y ago

Regolith is what pulled me away from MacOS. Very minimal, elegant, and super productive.

xenreal 6y ago

The same story. I was mac os addict for a long time since 2010 MacBook air and 2012 MacBook pro. They were amazing machines with stable *nix based OS. But since that time Apple more focused on phones, desktop OS didn't get much better. The only thing they are doing is more and more cloud integration to lock you in the Apple ecosystem. I got tired of that. Now I prefer to use Regolith Linux, because it's much better for the development to have a Linux system with proper package management, without messing with the brew. The distro is insanely fast, and you can almost forget about a mouse with i3. It also is really minimalistic, and default settings are really good. I didn't have any urge to change anything. And it works really great on Thinkpad laptops which have an amazing keyboard. For home, I am using NUC Hades Canyon with last-get desktop i7 processor which a bought for 300$ and you know what, it's at least 2 times fast comparing 2019 MacBook Pro 15'. RIP mac mini. All drivers installed out of the box, even wifi and external sound card works without any notch.