new MBP or Ubuntu Dell?
Discussion
About 2.5 years ago my Ubuntu laptop gave up the ghost, a local guy (he actually worked for Pistonheads) was selling a 2010 13" MBP for cheap so thought why not it will tide me over and it has done me very well. I upgraded it to 8GB ram and Samsung SSD.
Just recently its been running a bit pants, despite recently being wiped and re-installed. video's struggling to run and it being a bit sluggish. So I was out in Barcelona today, sat outside lovely breeze, had chrome open with 2 tabs and a .pdf open, no videos etc. Machine is sat at +70 degrees with the fans going hard. It's been doing this a lot recently but put it down to the weather we have had.
It's also now not supported by Apple for OS updates so is "stuck" on High Sierra, combined with it being quite chunky compared to today's models.
The machine isn't used for anything special at all just browsing really, few image edits in Gimp, occasionally taken away with me abroad. I have previously run Ubuntu/SUSE/Linux Mint laptops and also Chromebooks.
So I have been thinking to replace it, I'm not a big Apple user (Most of my stuff is Google such as Pixel XL 2, Chromebase, Google Home), but must admit the MBP has been a dream to use.
Do I;
1. Buy a new 13" MBP (2017 model) which is currently £1,1199 in Currys + £200 cash back for trade in of old device (I am however not sure mine qualifies because they say up to 7 years old and mines 2010)
2. Buy a second hand MBP again and sell mine on (Seem to be going for £200-250), problem is here people are trying to sell 2nd hand ones for £900+
3. Buy a new Dell Ubuntu XPS 13 £1168 at the moment (i5, 8gb ram and 256SSD versus MBP 128SSD)
I was quite tempted by the Ubuntu XPS but, I recently bought a Porsche Cayman S and have COBB Tuning for it, the COBB tuning device requires software to update and its Windows or Apple only. So I would need to run Windows in virtual machine and I'm also not sure how "premium" the XPS will feel.
Thread isn't supposed to turn into a debate over Windows vs Apple or Apple vs Linux.
Just recently its been running a bit pants, despite recently being wiped and re-installed. video's struggling to run and it being a bit sluggish. So I was out in Barcelona today, sat outside lovely breeze, had chrome open with 2 tabs and a .pdf open, no videos etc. Machine is sat at +70 degrees with the fans going hard. It's been doing this a lot recently but put it down to the weather we have had.
It's also now not supported by Apple for OS updates so is "stuck" on High Sierra, combined with it being quite chunky compared to today's models.
The machine isn't used for anything special at all just browsing really, few image edits in Gimp, occasionally taken away with me abroad. I have previously run Ubuntu/SUSE/Linux Mint laptops and also Chromebooks.
So I have been thinking to replace it, I'm not a big Apple user (Most of my stuff is Google such as Pixel XL 2, Chromebase, Google Home), but must admit the MBP has been a dream to use.
Do I;
1. Buy a new 13" MBP (2017 model) which is currently £1,1199 in Currys + £200 cash back for trade in of old device (I am however not sure mine qualifies because they say up to 7 years old and mines 2010)
2. Buy a second hand MBP again and sell mine on (Seem to be going for £200-250), problem is here people are trying to sell 2nd hand ones for £900+
3. Buy a new Dell Ubuntu XPS 13 £1168 at the moment (i5, 8gb ram and 256SSD versus MBP 128SSD)
I was quite tempted by the Ubuntu XPS but, I recently bought a Porsche Cayman S and have COBB Tuning for it, the COBB tuning device requires software to update and its Windows or Apple only. So I would need to run Windows in virtual machine and I'm also not sure how "premium" the XPS will feel.
Thread isn't supposed to turn into a debate over Windows vs Apple or Apple vs Linux.
Edited by AJB88 on Wednesday 19th September 19:48
If you're not opposed to Windows or maybe dual booting the Surface devices look and feel pretty close to Apple build quality, the surface book2 base model matches the Mac you mention in specs and the display is actually even higher resolution.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/p/surface-book-2/8...
https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/p/surface-book-2/8...
GrumpyTwig said:
If you're not opposed to Windows or maybe dual booting the Surface devices look and feel pretty close to Apple build quality, the surface book2 base model matches the Mac you mention in specs and the display is actually even higher resolution.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/p/surface-book-2/8...
Windows is a no from me, Been a Linux user since 2001 all the way through school, Don't get on at all with mums Windows 10 laptop, I have to use Windows 7 at work but that's the extent of my Windows usage. https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/p/surface-book-2/8...
Quite easy to switch between Linux and MacOS but Windows is another thing.
In previous years I have bought Windows machines and just installed Linux over it but I really can't be bothered with semi hardware support etc these days hence looking at the Ubuntu edition Dell.
Edited by AJB88 on Wednesday 19th September 21:13
mikef said:
GrumpyTwig said:
Surface devices look and feel pretty close to Apple build quality
Right... One to file with the “HDDs are as fast as SSDs” advice on another ongoing thread
Edited by GrumpyTwig on Wednesday 19th September 22:50
AJB88 said:
Is there a sweet spot in terms on MBP? 2015/2016? Ideally I'd like to keep magsafe.
Not really, IMO.You'll have to go back to the 2015 models for magsafe. I think you can get USB-C magsafe adaptors, but it's slightly wide of the mark having to keep an adaptor around which you can potentially knock. Bonus is you wouldn't get touchbar either but these models are now three years old, or more. With just about everything being soldered on these days you're taking a gamble on a potentially expensive repair on an already aged device.
We have three 15” MacBook Pro’s in the household, a 2015 and two touchbar 2017s. I worried about the lack of MagSafe but it’s a bit like losing the DVD drive - at first you think wtf then soon you realize you didn’t actually need it - tripping over cables was only a worry when batteries didn’t last for a working day. The touchbar doesn’t get much use except for the fingerprint login, which is worth the extra in itself
I’d say you can’t go wrong with a 2017 . We’re now issuing the latest MacBook Pros at work and the keyboard is a bit quieter, but not enough to make me change over.
I’d say you can’t go wrong with a 2017 . We’re now issuing the latest MacBook Pros at work and the keyboard is a bit quieter, but not enough to make me change over.
mikef said:
AJB88 said:
COBB tuning device requires software to update and its Windows or Apple only
ging84 said:
chromebook
You can buy a chromebook and still have more than enough money left over to buy a windows laptop to run your tuning software
I have no idea how the tuning software works, but if it is directly connecting to the car to map I would seriously consider having a dedicated device for it anyway, do you really want to be flashing your car with the same machine you use to watch porn or download random s
t ?
There is no good time to get crypto locked, but in the middle of flashing your car definitely seem like the worst.
I have no idea how the tuning software works, but if it is directly connecting to the car to map I would seriously consider having a dedicated device for it anyway, do you really want to be flashing your car with the same machine you use to watch porn or download random s
t ?There is no good time to get crypto locked, but in the middle of flashing your car definitely seem like the worst.
ging84 said:
You can buy a chromebook and still have more than enough money left over to buy a windows laptop to run your tuning software
I have no idea how the tuning software works, but if it is directly connecting to the car to map I would seriously consider having a dedicated device for it anyway, do you really want to be flashing your car with the same machine you use to watch porn or download random st ?
There is no good time to get crypto locked, but in the middle of flashing your car definitely seem like the worst.
No the flashing device is a separate device that plugs into a MacOS/Windows machine simply to update. I have no idea how the tuning software works, but if it is directly connecting to the car to map I would seriously consider having a dedicated device for it anyway, do you really want to be flashing your car with the same machine you use to watch porn or download random s
t ?There is no good time to get crypto locked, but in the middle of flashing your car definitely seem like the worst.
The only Chromebook I would want is the Pixel. I've had others in the past.
Having gone over 15yrs without any unwarranted laptop failures I had a spate of issues with Dell XPS machines and the latest Macbooks.
I now have a Lenovo X1 Carbon and it's the best built of all three by far (which is asking for trouble!). But not sure you'll get one for the budget point you're looking at.
Of the ones you're looking at, the previous gen MBP is probably the one that will last longest from a build perspective, but they are long in the tooth now. It also has a much better keyboard than the XPS IMO (don't underestimate how annoying a poor keyboard is - I won't be buying another Apple laptop until they either improve or ditch their butterfly keyboards).
I now have a Lenovo X1 Carbon and it's the best built of all three by far (which is asking for trouble!). But not sure you'll get one for the budget point you're looking at.
Of the ones you're looking at, the previous gen MBP is probably the one that will last longest from a build perspective, but they are long in the tooth now. It also has a much better keyboard than the XPS IMO (don't underestimate how annoying a poor keyboard is - I won't be buying another Apple laptop until they either improve or ditch their butterfly keyboards).
AJB88 said:
The only Chromebook I would want is the Pixel. I've had others in the past.
I can recommend the PB alright. It'll do everything you've listed above. Both Android apps and Linux apps run in the regular everyday stable channel.I do my image editing in Google Photos and Snapseed, but have GiMP installed too as a backup in case I have to do heavy lifting some day.
My PB is now my sole machine for work & home. I did test the Windows version of Office 2016 on the PB in August, Excel and Word worked fine with Crossover. Not sure if your COBB software would, as it may have difficulty communicating with USB addresses etc
You could get a PB, then wipe/refresh the Mac and keep that as a specific machine for your COBB tuning device. It's not worth trying to sell at this point anyway.
Other than that, buy the Dell with Ubuntu, and either run the COBB programme in a VM, or keep the Mac for that specific purpose, as above.
Edited by Corso Marche on Friday 21st September 13:40
Corso Marche said:
I can recommend the PB alright. It'll do everything you've listed above. Both Android apps and Linux apps run in the regular everyday stable channel.
I do my image editing in Google Photos and Snapseed, but have GiMP installed too as a backup in case I have to do heavy lifting some day.
My PB is now my sole machine for work & home. I did test the Windows version of Office 2016 on the PB in August, Excel and Word worked fine with Crossover. Not sure if your COBB software would, as it may have difficulty communicating with USB addresses etc
You could get a PB, then wipe/refresh the Mac and keep that as a specific machine for your COBB tuning device. It's not worth trying to sell at this point anyway.
Other than that, buy the Dell with Ubuntu, and either run the COBB programme in a VM, or keep the Mac for that specific purpose, as above.
Want to try wrap everything up into one device again, a few years ago I had:I do my image editing in Google Photos and Snapseed, but have GiMP installed too as a backup in case I have to do heavy lifting some day.
My PB is now my sole machine for work & home. I did test the Windows version of Office 2016 on the PB in August, Excel and Word worked fine with Crossover. Not sure if your COBB software would, as it may have difficulty communicating with USB addresses etc
You could get a PB, then wipe/refresh the Mac and keep that as a specific machine for your COBB tuning device. It's not worth trying to sell at this point anyway.
Other than that, buy the Dell with Ubuntu, and either run the COBB programme in a VM, or keep the Mac for that specific purpose, as above.
Edited by Corso Marche on Friday 21st September 13:40
Chromebook
Lenovo Linux
HP Windows (for a few bits of car software such as VCDS)
The PB does everything apart from the dedicated COBB software as its MacOS/Windows only. I did ask their development team about Android/Linux support but they said there wasn't a market for it.
GrumpyTwig said:
mikef said:
GrumpyTwig said:
Surface devices look and feel pretty close to Apple build quality
Right... One to file with the “HDDs are as fast as SSDs” advice on another ongoing thread
Edited by GrumpyTwig on Wednesday 19th September 22:50
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