[linux-audio-user] What laptops do the devs have?

[Robin Gareus]

Joshua Boyd wrote:
> On Tue, Mar 06, 2007 at 03:35:06PM -0800, Ken Restivo wrote:
> 
>> I may need to sell my Mac Mini and buy a laptop instead, for use live,
>> or just for being mobile and being able to make music without being
>> chained to the computer and monitor at home. 
> 
> Intel Mini or G4?
>  
>> I want to avoid any laptop that requires proprietary video drivers--
>> like NVidia-- so that there aren't interactions between the driver and
>> realtime mode. Also I want to avoid any laptop that isn't widely in
>> use for linux audio already, using jackd, and ideally using freebob
>> too. 
> 
> I had a Thinkpad R50.  Everything was perfectly supported, except
> firewire.  Firewire drives worked nicely, but firewire video devices
> could be problematic.  Never tried firewire audio.  The onboard ATI
> graphics are well supported by Xorg.  Onboard audio is reasonably
> clean.  I wouldn't call it pro-quality, but running the onboard output
> to a PA wasn't embarrassing.
> 
> Now I have a Lenovo 3000 n100.  Nvidia graphics.  Suspend doesn't work.
> Hibernate doesn't work.  Wireless doesn't work.  Onboard audio is too
> noisy for me to consider ever connecting directly to a PA.  Stay away
> from the Lenovo 3000s.  I hear the newer Lenovo Thinkpads are still good
> if you go with Intel graphics though.
> 

second that! i945GM on Lenovo X60s works just fine.

the laptop worked almost instantly with Linux incl. suspend+hibernate,
2nd Video-Head, wireless, etc. stock debian kernel. - the integrated
speaker however is embarrassing!

realtime-2.6.20 + hibernate are still somewhat exclusive (see other
thread). - jack+ardour+sc+pd+.. work just great with USB soundcard(s).
It won't beat a PCI-Soundcard Desktop PC in performance but that's not a
point. - I have not yet tried Firewire audio, but ext. 1394-harddisks
work fine. (beware it's a 4pin connector only - no power via 1394
connector as with most PC laptops!)

> If I was installing the Lenovo again, I think I would go back to 32bit
> instead of 64 though.
>  
>> Most of the really good, cheap new laptops seem to have Intel Core
>> Duo's, and I'm not sure how many people beside myself are out on the
>> bleeding edge with Duo's. Still, whatever I'm going to buy is going to
>> be older and used, because that's all I can afford. 
> 
> I wouldn't call it all that bleeding edge.  Dual core AMD and Intel
> chips have been around for a few years, and dual processor a lot
> longer.   I wouldn't worry about it.

Dual Core is quite well supported. I'd rather buy 2x32bit that 1x64bit -
at least for another year or so ;) - but Lenovo is not the cheap
solution. you might get similar performance with a Latitude D620.