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FWIW, I find current gen (starting with 8th) HP EliteBooks decent enough. They work perfectly in Linux (actually better than Windows, since for a while some bit

FWIW, I find current gen (starting with 8th) HP EliteBooks decent enough. They work perfectly in Linux (actually better than Windows, since for a while some bits weren't recognized...). They're quiet unless I'm compiling something (if I don't use Windows, which for some reasons gets the fan spinning even when it's supposed to be asleep). The trackpad is good, even though it's worse than my 2013 MBP's. The main issue I have with them is the absurdly bad displays. Even the top-of-the-line display is ridiculously bad.

jader201 3y ago
> Even the top-of-the-line display is ridiculously bad. To me, that’s far from “decent enough”, not even taking into account the other (more minor) differences you name.
- vladvasiliu 3y ago
  The reason I mention it is because some people don't really care about display quality. I know basically none of my colleagues do. They'll see a MBP and go "yeah, it looks better. so?". But they do care if half the things don't work (think borked wifi or no webcam). So, for people like this, I find it's a good data point. And even though I do care about display quality, given my usage pattern, this isn't much of an issue in practice, since 99% of this PC's usage is tethered to a high-quality external screen. If I had a gorgeous MBP, I'd still be looking at the same monitor. The battery doesn't last as long as an M mac, either. But then again, I rarely use it away from a desk. I could technically use one of those mini pcs that I'd cart around, but for the 1% of the time when I do use while out and about, it's a good compromise.
nicolaslem 3y ago
I daily drive a Gen 9 on Linux, it works fairly well, it even gets BIOS updates through fwupd now! However I cannot state how bad the display is, it's dragging-a-window-leaves-a-visible-trail bad.
- mrguyorama 3y ago
  Every single LCD display technology right now has serious flaws. I don't understand it.
- vladvasiliu 3y ago
  As far as I remember, the "best" displays on the Elitebooks sport a whopping 72%... NTSC coverage. Some are worse, at around 48% or something. I don't understand why they cheap out so much on displays. These could be very nice little laptops... My 10 yo MBP's display is running circles around them...
webnrrd2k 3y ago
Just to add a data point, the HP ElitBooks have been my replacement for ThinkPads. I find the to be a good replacement. I've been running Redhat on an HP elitebook 840 g6, which Ive had for about a year now, and I've been very happy with it. The trackpad is mostly good, not great, but I'm more of a nub guy and that works perfectly.
- vladvasiliu 3y ago
  > I'm more of a nub guy and that works perfectly I'd never had a PC with a trackpoint before the hp, but I can't get used to it. How do you configure it? I find it's either uncontrollably quick, or slow as molasses. I like the idea of being able to drive it without moving my hand to the trackpad.
  - webnrrd2k 3y ago
    One of the first things I do with a new Fedora install is turn down the speed in the control panel. It takes a little tweaking to get right for my tastes, but I find it a small price to pay. But I've also been using a trackpoint for years, and I don't think I remember how awkward it felt at first. It m8ght not be your thing, but I've found them to be very convenient and intuitive.

jader201 3y ago

> Even the top-of-the-line display is ridiculously bad. To me, that’s far from “decent enough”, not even taking into account the other (more minor) differences you name.

vladvasiliu 3y ago
The reason I mention it is because some people don't really care about display quality. I know basically none of my colleagues do. They'll see a MBP and go "yeah, it looks better. so?". But they do care if half the things don't work (think borked wifi or no webcam). So, for people like this, I find it's a good data point. And even though I do care about display quality, given my usage pattern, this isn't much of an issue in practice, since 99% of this PC's usage is tethered to a high-quality external screen. If I had a gorgeous MBP, I'd still be looking at the same monitor. The battery doesn't last as long as an M mac, either. But then again, I rarely use it away from a desk. I could technically use one of those mini pcs that I'd cart around, but for the 1% of the time when I do use while out and about, it's a good compromise.

nicolaslem 3y ago

I daily drive a Gen 9 on Linux, it works fairly well, it even gets BIOS updates through fwupd now! However I cannot state how bad the display is, it's dragging-a-window-leaves-a-visible-trail bad.

mrguyorama 3y ago
Every single LCD display technology right now has serious flaws. I don't understand it.
vladvasiliu 3y ago
As far as I remember, the "best" displays on the Elitebooks sport a whopping 72%... NTSC coverage. Some are worse, at around 48% or something. I don't understand why they cheap out so much on displays. These could be very nice little laptops... My 10 yo MBP's display is running circles around them...

webnrrd2k 3y ago

Just to add a data point, the HP ElitBooks have been my replacement for ThinkPads. I find the to be a good replacement. I've been running Redhat on an HP elitebook 840 g6, which Ive had for about a year now, and I've been very happy with it. The trackpad is mostly good, not great, but I'm more of a nub guy and that works perfectly.

vladvasiliu 3y ago
> I'm more of a nub guy and that works perfectly I'd never had a PC with a trackpoint before the hp, but I can't get used to it. How do you configure it? I find it's either uncontrollably quick, or slow as molasses. I like the idea of being able to drive it without moving my hand to the trackpad.
- webnrrd2k 3y ago
  One of the first things I do with a new Fedora install is turn down the speed in the control panel. It takes a little tweaking to get right for my tastes, but I find it a small price to pay. But I've also been using a trackpoint for years, and I don't think I remember how awkward it felt at first. It m8ght not be your thing, but I've found them to be very convenient and intuitive.