Linux laptop recommendation thread🐧💻

I'm on the market to buy a new laptop, and Lemmy has successfully coaxed and goaded me to give Linux a serious try.

I've never used *nix as my personal OS.

Which hardware/laptop do you recommend? And which OS to pair it with for a Linux newbie?

I'm a software engineer, and quit my job to pursue an MSc in AI. So my uses will be:

• programming
• study
• browsing lemmy
• gaming