Thinking about a new laptop
Jun. 1st, 2025 11:58 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dreamsharkCurrent one is heading towards 6 years old: Lenovo X1 Carbon 14" / Windows 10. It still works fine, but Microsoft is dropping support for Win10 in the fall, so it's time to move up. I'm having a hard time finding what I want, which is pretty specific.
I want a 14" model, very durable, excellent keyboard, touch screen, and as many USB ports as I can possibly get. I also want Windows 11 Pro, not the crippled "Home" version, but may have to buy that separately and upgrade. And no, my geeky friends, I have no interest in running Linux. I was all about the Linux when I worked in a networking lab, but it does not meet my needs at home.
Connectivity is the hardest thing. It is increasingly difficult to find laptops with more than one USB-A port. I do not understand why people don't care about this. Although 95% of the time I use my laptop as if it were a desktop (connected to a hub with 2 monitors and a fancy keyboard) I seem to be constantly plugging and unplugging devices from the 2 USB ports I have. Webcam, DVD drive, RFID mouse, thumb drives, external backup drives, occasionally even an Ethernet dongle. And that's not even counting the keyboard and whatever else is connected to that steaming hot USB-C hub.
Anybody have suggestions? I won't really need it until October, but with the on/off tariff situation I might want to make a purchase before prices go through the roof. I don't think there are any laptops manufactured in the USA, and even if they are they are probably using mostly imported electronic components.
So far, the ASUS Expertbook line looks promising.
I want a 14" model, very durable, excellent keyboard, touch screen, and as many USB ports as I can possibly get. I also want Windows 11 Pro, not the crippled "Home" version, but may have to buy that separately and upgrade. And no, my geeky friends, I have no interest in running Linux. I was all about the Linux when I worked in a networking lab, but it does not meet my needs at home.
Connectivity is the hardest thing. It is increasingly difficult to find laptops with more than one USB-A port. I do not understand why people don't care about this. Although 95% of the time I use my laptop as if it were a desktop (connected to a hub with 2 monitors and a fancy keyboard) I seem to be constantly plugging and unplugging devices from the 2 USB ports I have. Webcam, DVD drive, RFID mouse, thumb drives, external backup drives, occasionally even an Ethernet dongle. And that's not even counting the keyboard and whatever else is connected to that steaming hot USB-C hub.
Anybody have suggestions? I won't really need it until October, but with the on/off tariff situation I might want to make a purchase before prices go through the roof. I don't think there are any laptops manufactured in the USA, and even if they are they are probably using mostly imported electronic components.
So far, the ASUS Expertbook line looks promising.
