The picture isn't even of my yard
The package wasn't at my entrance too, it was just on the sidewalk 😕
Fwiw, this is the only time the UPS driver has left the package in that spot. Normally it's right next to the front door.
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PSA: Lenovo has gotten in trouble for hidden Chinese malware on their laptops, multiple times.
Careful with their hardware; it's no longer the company that built the name.
Lenovo is shit. They really aren't worth a damn anymore.
I've had fingerprint driver issues with my expensive Lenovo Yoga, and AHCI driver issues with an expensive Lenovo ThinkPad. Support is non existent, and if you do manage to find any help through their channels, they don't help and don't care.
My next laptop will be with Framework or some other company that doesn't try to screw me.
Which brands are actually good these days, apart from Framework? I already avoid HP and Acer.
Are Toshiba still around?
System76
Everyone is suggesting Dell, and I agree, with one caveat:
Order from their business division. Those machines are designed not to be a hassle, because they want return business customers. Dell business machines have no bloat, and consumer-grade extras often come as standard features on business machines. Just better all-around, even the designs.
Only catch is, you need a business license to order this way, or a friend with one.
In high school I got my laptop replaced under warranty. Whatever they sent me, the service ID tag apparently had the number for a business machine or something because I always got routed to the business support techs after that. They always seemed a little confused when they found out I wasn’t a business owner/user, but supported me anyway since that’s where the service ID for my machine got me. Support was infinitely better. Actual techs who clearly were not reading from a script. Based out of the US or Canada so no frustrating language barrier caused by your support base speaking a completely different language from your user base and having apparently the minimal amount of training in English. I could just tell them I’d already run diagnostics and had an error code for them, and they’d take it from there without wasting my time repeating the same troubleshooting I’d already done. The contrast between the two levels of support is astounding. Dell clearly gives zero shits about supporting home users.
Looks like you got a taste of the good life early on, and now you're jaded. I tease (but not really).
Not sure if it's still the case, but Dell used to assign a support tech/team to each business account, and you could call them any time, directly. They'll dick around with home users, who'll only purchase a handful of devices over a lifetime. But, businesses order hundreds of machines at a time, and Dell isn't stupid.
Something else to consider is that home support has to do stuff like help aunt Bertha find the Facebook icon on her desktop (in the late 90s, I was one of the guys they'd send to her house, as a last-last-last resort, oh boy). Where, businesses will often have their own tech calling Dell, with real problems, that are costing money. Those are two vastly different skill sets, and it would be a waste to use the same support team for both sides.
The contrast between the two tiers really is striking though, and it seems you found that out early.
I don't have my own business, but my workplace allows us to buy personal products through some of their suppliers like Zones and CDW, using the company's corporate discount (but paying with our own personal credit card). I wonder if that'd be sufficent to order a Dell business laptop. They usually use Lenovo ThinkPads, but might also have a business Dell account or rep I can order through directly... I'll have to check.
Most companies in my country use dells, they're pretty nice in general. At least with unix
Toshiba is technically still around but they make a bunch or random electronics for appliances and servers
Dell XPS might be good but I'm not sure, somehow I doubt it.
Macs of course will work properly, at the expense of having to use macOS.
My trio used to be Apple, Dell and Lenovo. But now it's Framework and Apple.
Dell XPS is good, they even have one which ships with Linux pre-installed. So, no worries about driver compatibility, at least on that version. In fact I believe this is the laptop presently in use by Linus Torvalds, fwiw.
What is not to trust about Dell?
I just worry about driver support as I do for Lenovo. They're probably fine, but again, I haven't used a Dell in a while.
Since when can macs only run macOS?
The M2 chip is ARM, it just adds some hurdles. I think there's some work being done for dual-booting Linux on the M2 chip, but as for Windows you have to use Parallels in macOS.
Older Macs with Intel processors will of course run any OS no problem.
Wow I hadn't even considered that. Thanks.
Doesn't Windows 11 have an ARM version?
Yeah but it doesn't work on macOS, only Surface Pro and Raspberry Pi, and a few others I think.
You should always reinstall the OS anyways. No reason not to really.
It was firmware-level, and installed itself. Reinstalling the OS was not a solution.
https://thehackernews.com/2015/08/lenovo-rootkit-malware.html
Seems Linux would be immune
Lots of OEMs now ship Dolby software and drivers preinstalled but without download packages available so you can't do a clean install without losing features you paid for. ASUS is guilty of this one as well as having other software tied to the factory install ID. It's always a good idea to take a factory condition backup or the machine before paving it over with a clean windows install.
Seems like a manufacturer that one shouldn't support.
You're not wrong. Personally I take a backup of the drive in its factory state and then install Linux - I'm over Windows in general.
I think you're referring to IBM. Lenovo has always been suspicious.
As another commenter hinted at, "Thinkpad" used to mean IBM laptop; Lenovo bought the name (and PC division of IBM) for that reason, and they don't mind if people think they're still IBM, because OG Thinkpads were the bomb. This is what I was getting at.
It's bananas that the IBM association is just gone now, because the name was huge in the 90s. Sometimes a fella can really feel old.
That's why I was confused - nobody said anything in this particular thread about Thinkpads, and you said "Wait till you hear where Lenovo came from" after I'd mentioned IBM.
If you were saying "Guess what, Lenovo came from IBM," I'd essentially just said that.
Apologies for the confusion, and the late reply. I see what you mean; my comment could have been worded far better.
Exactly because of stuff like the above, I'm just returning from a long break from social media. I'll do better. Thanks for highlighting the issue, take care.
Hey no problem! And I didn't mean anything by it; my reply could have been read with snark included, and I definitely didn't intend it. Good on you for taking breaks when you need to. You're good people, and the world needs more of you.
What about ThinkPads?
You mean the laptops made by Lenovo that security researchers found hidden spyware on?
https://boingboing.net/2015/09/22/yet-another-pre-installed-spyw.html
Build quality and user-serviceability not what they used to be.
Let me introduce you to the fully soldered made in China Thinkpad Z series. Thinkpad is no longer a safe choice without carefully checking the model.