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System76 Pangolin Linux-first laptop with AMD internals now in stock

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Re: System76 Pangolin Linux-first laptop with AMD internals now in stock

#81

Post by somethingwitty1 »

Aperocky wrote: post #56
loudtieblahblah wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

i deeply hate being without a numpad. I understand it's duplicated space, but typing numbers on a numpad is just a million times faster than going above the alphabet keys.

is it? I don't think it's any slower than typing other characters.

I did data entry for a job. In my experience, the numpad was considerably faster and accurate. It has been a long time, but I recall it cutting down entry time by ~5-6x (yes, I finished my daily quota in about an hour or two, instead of all day). The advantage was being able to use multiple fingers comfortably, without looking (there is a nice nub on most numpads) and leaving a hand free for letters/tabs. But like anything, I'm sure there are people that would have a different experience.

Re: System76 Pangolin Linux-first laptop with AMD internals now in stock

#82

Post by baron_harkonnen »

protomyth wrote: post #2

I wish a person could order one of these without the numeric keypad. I deeply hate being off-center to the screen when typing on these larger portables.

I'm curious do you touch type, and, if so do you also touch type on the numpad?

I suspect the divide here is between people that are touch typists w/ experience in numeric data entry and people who still need to look at the physical keyboard to type.

As a touch typist I've never particularly cared where the keyboard is, and while I haven't used a numeric keypad in years, I still miss having one.

Re: System76 Pangolin Linux-first laptop with AMD internals now in stock

#83

Post by driverdan »

jm4 wrote: post #31
ruined wrote: post #12

1080p screen is a no-go. come on yall, it's 2021

I would have thought the same several years ago. At age 40+, 1080p on a laptop is still good. Even at 1080p, I have to go into accessibility settings to enlarge text. I'm pretty much out of the market for 4k screens on laptops these days. Also had to switch to a big phone and crank up the text size.

I'm 40 and the difference is very obvious to me. I have no interest in any low DPI screens.

Re: System76 Pangolin Linux-first laptop with AMD internals now in stock

#84

Post by cure »

second--shift wrote: post #71

who buys these instead of Lenovos for running Linux on? Lenovo T14's are going for 65% of the asking price of one of these, if you don't care about intel vs amd.

I have bought a few System76 laptops, though not this variant - I like to buy the ones that ship with coreboot.

As for the price difference: you can buy the base model of the System76 and upgrade ram/disk yourself. This is harder to do on the Lenovo ones; it seems the T14 has (some of) the ram soldered on (ugh).

But, it is nice to see that you can actually buy a T14 with Ubuntu preinstalled (if you are willing to wait 4+ months...), and they list it next to the (more expensive!) Windows version:

https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/p/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpadt/th...

Re: System76 Pangolin Linux-first laptop with AMD internals now in stock

#85

Post by Thoreandan »

Unfortunately, it looks like https://tech-docs.system76.com/models/pang10/README.html> the Pangolin line has several non-open blobs in the firmware, so it's unclear if you can disable the AMD Platform Security Processor.

The only available tech specs seem to be for pang10 not pang11 hardware, maybe this will change.

Re: System76 Pangolin Linux-first laptop with AMD internals now in stock

#86

Post by as1mov »

jagger27 wrote: post #25
abledon wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Isn't 1080p way better for battery life + its mostly indistinguishable in pixels? unless you are like, looking really close at the pixels? remember its 1080p inside a 15" monitor, not a 24" monitor a PC has.

It's like no one here has used a MacBook before. They've been putting 2560 by 1600 displays in 13" MacBooks for what, a decade now?

Eh not really, I've used the hidpi MacBooks for work, it doesn't really make a big difference.

I can tell the difference between a 1440p/4k and a 1080p screen, but it doesn't bother me to the point where I won't buy machines which don't have it, it's just a nice bonus.

Re: System76 Pangolin Linux-first laptop with AMD internals now in stock

#87

Post by luc_ »

albertgoeswoof wrote: post #60
caslon wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Southpaw here! I'd never buy a laptop without a number pad. The track pad being off-center is also good. Gaming? 78462 make for the best movement, and the number pad also has seven non-numerical buttons to bind things to. It also puts your index finger right next to lENTER, which is so useful for games that make use of it. Programming? Bind the buttons to commonly-used UNIX programs to make for a better IDE than an I…

Yes the numpad comes in useful when I’m calculating all day

irony over text..?

Re: System76 Pangolin Linux-first laptop with AMD internals now in stock

#88

Post by bartvk »

smegger001 wrote: post #51
1MachineElf wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed. The least they could do, if a numpad really is necessary, is put something of equal size on the left side. A macro pad would be novel, or even just a left numpad so that right-hand mouse users could enter numbers at the same time.

i wonder if splitting the alphabet portion of the keyboard down the middle and putting the numpad in between would work. It would look like some unholy abomination but may be more ergonmoic

I actually have this setup on my desk. Meaning, I have a Kinesis Freestyle 2 (split keyboard) and in between, there’s an Apple trackpad.

Re: System76 Pangolin Linux-first laptop with AMD internals now in stock

#89

Post by reaperducer »

1MachineElf wrote: post #5
protomyth wrote: post #2

I wish a person could order one of these without the numeric keypad. I deeply hate being off-center to the screen when typing on these larger portables.

Agreed. The least they could do, if a numpad really is necessary, is put something of equal size on the left side. A macro pad would be novel, or even just a left numpad so that right-hand mouse users could enter numbers at the same time.

They could do what Apple did 20 years ago: Make them modular.

You used to be able to pop the trackball out from the right side of the keyboard area, slide the keys to the right, and then re-insert the trackball into the left side.

Do the same with a num pad, instead of a trackball. And for people who don't want the num pad, make available half-width blank inserts to occupy the space on both sides.

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