Buying a Laptop for Linux Use

Now that Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) has replaced the Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) on most new laptops these days, especially the ones with Windows 8 on it, it's time to educate a Linux user on what they should be considering when in the market for a new laptop.  What this means is you won't be able to easily install Linux on PC's with UEFI on them unless it's one of the three Linux distros which supports UEFI.

You have five options:

1.  Pick a Linux distro which supports UEFI. - As of this posting, there are only three:  Fedora 18, openSuSe 12.3 and Ubuntu 12.10.  However, just because you pick one of those 3 doesn't meant it's guaranteed to work on all UEFI laptops.  You need to pick a Manufacturer which allows those 3 distros to be installed on it.  I've read that Samsung's UEFI boot options have caused their laptops to be inoperable so you might want to choose a different laptop manufacturer.

2.  Disable Secure Boot on your UEFI PC. - To install Linux distros, other than Fedora 18, openSuSe 12.3 and Ubuntu 12.10, you "may" be able to disable  the Secure Boot option on UEFI and enable their installation on your UEFI laptop.  The best thing to do if you are going with this approach is to find out directly from the manufacturer of your laptop, how to disable Secure Boot on UEFI.  That is, if they give you the option to.   Not all manufacturers will allow you to do this.  Try installing the Linux distro you've selected after you've disabled Secure Boot.  Some distributions like Ubuntu will have instructions on how to deal with Secure Boot on UEFI.  Others may not so be aware of this before you go through all the work of trying this approach.

3.  Buy a Non-OS laptop. - Instead of dealing with the hassle of UEFI, you can buy a laptop with no OS installed from these vendors.  Then install your Linux distro of choice on it.

4.  Buy a laptop with Linux pre-installed. - Instead of dealing with the hassle of UEFI, you can have the vendor install your Linux distro choice on the laptop of your choice.  See the Linux Friendly Vendors tab on this site.

5.  Buy a Chromebook and install Linux on it. - You can install a Linux distro in a dual boot situation with Chrome OS on a Chromebook.  Or you can install your chosen Linux distro to replace Chrome OS.

Obviously, there are pros and cons with each method above.  It depends what you are using it for and what you are willing to pay in additional costs for the convenience of ease of use.  If you are an average user and do not want to deal with the hassle of researching and preparing a laptop for Linux use, you are better off buying Linux pre-installed even if it costs slightly more than a Windows 8 laptop.  Over time, you will accrue the benefits of using Linux over Windows, when you don't have to deal with annual anti-virus licenses or additional licenses for Office or other Windows compatible software.  You will also no longer need to defrag your laptop.  If you are not using your laptop for Development, Graphic Design or CPU intensive processing and just want to get the cheapest laptop possible with Linux on it, you should consider buying a Chromebook and installing Linux on it.  If you are a Developer, a Graphic Designer or Video Producer and you don't mind doing some extra "prep" work yourself, consider options 1-3.  However, I think option 2 should be the last resort for everyone, considering it requires the most research.