3 ms·

I think normal people (ie non-developers) are less concerned about the performance, as the battery life and the need to almost never need a fan (and keep it on

I think normal people (ie non-developers) are less concerned about the performance, as the battery life and the need to almost never need a fan (and keep it on your lap comfortably). You can commonly find Macbook Airs at $800, and I doubt many are buying sub-$400 laptops, unless they are going with low-end Chromebooks, in which the Chromebook vs Windows is a reverse spin on whether consumers are overpaying vs what they really need. Dropping from 95% to 57%, I don't think it's unreasonable that a time will come when Windows no longer has a majority.

rjsw 4y ago
I'm just back home from a long vacation. My computer while I was away was my $250 Pinebook Pro, it worked fine for everything that I wanted to do, that included a fair bit of development work.
- bdcravens 4y ago
  Anyone who is a developer is likely comfortable with Linux. I feel most non-devs could probably make do with a basic distro, but there's plenty of small gotchas that we don't even give a second thought to. Pine is clear who their audience is: "This is limited quantity production due to a severe global electronic components shortage. Please do not order the Pinebook Pro if you’re seeking a substitute for your X86 laptop, or are just curious and you’re ordering it with an intent to file a return/refund return request. These pre-orders are meant for enthusiasts familiar with the Arm architecture and interested in the PineBook Pro for this specific reason. Thank you." However, this does underpin the point that ARM-based computers are extremely viable.
ldhough 4y ago
> almost never need a fan While I am also concerned about and need the extra performance, this point seems somewhat underappreciated in discussions about the ARM macbooks. Fan noise is so incredibly annoying and distracting and I think not having it improves productivity.

rjsw 4y ago

I'm just back home from a long vacation. My computer while I was away was my $250 Pinebook Pro, it worked fine for everything that I wanted to do, that included a fair bit of development work.

bdcravens 4y ago
Anyone who is a developer is likely comfortable with Linux. I feel most non-devs could probably make do with a basic distro, but there's plenty of small gotchas that we don't even give a second thought to. Pine is clear who their audience is: "This is limited quantity production due to a severe global electronic components shortage. Please do not order the Pinebook Pro if you’re seeking a substitute for your X86 laptop, or are just curious and you’re ordering it with an intent to file a return/refund return request. These pre-orders are meant for enthusiasts familiar with the Arm architecture and interested in the PineBook Pro for this specific reason. Thank you." However, this does underpin the point that ARM-based computers are extremely viable.

ldhough 4y ago

> almost never need a fan While I am also concerned about and need the extra performance, this point seems somewhat underappreciated in discussions about the ARM macbooks. Fan noise is so incredibly annoying and distracting and I think not having it improves productivity.