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I switched from Mac to a Lenovo Chromebook

blog.johnozbay.com

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Re: I switched from Mac to a Lenovo Chromebook

#141

Post by whywhywhywhy »

vile_wretch wrote: post #97

> Figma and Spotify have some of the best web apps out there as well, so that's all good too! The Spotify web app is still much more limited than the desktop app. > Did you know that Adobe ported Photoshop etc to web, with all the AI bells and whistles and the web apps perform incredibly well? Perfect if all you need out of Photoshop is the AI portion, I guess. > As a side note, it is no surprise that Adobe's suite o…

> Apple's most bulletproof "just works" features ever

It only just works if all devices are logged in to the same Apple account. Otherwise you have to allow a 10 minute window in the phones settings.

Work Mac laptop not logged in won’t see an iPhone unless you go into settings. My home and work PCs I both own can’t even be airdropped to, I know some people think this adds value to Mac machines but in a world where the most powerful gpu isn’t on a Mac it actually makes the apple ecosystem feel like trash if you’re someone working on the top end of computing and can’t send a file from your workstation to your phone.

Re: I switched from Mac to a Lenovo Chromebook

#142

Post by Terretta »

tverbeure wrote: post #23
wmichelin wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Framework has always been appealing to me as a Mac competitor

If I could choose only 1 criterium to select a laptop, it's the quality of the trackpad. So far, I haven't tried anything that comes close to a Macbook.

> So far, I haven't tried anything that comes close to a Macbook.

The trackpad on Apple's newest iPad Pro keyboard case is excellent.

Downside: whenever you go back to your Macbook you'll try poking the screen a lot.

Re: I switched from Mac to a Lenovo Chromebook

#143

Post by NetOpWibby »

Aurornis wrote: post #47

Going from complaining about Apple not having enough polish in the fine details of their UI to suggesting we all switch to Chromebooks is so completely inconsistent that there must be other motivations. In one post they're complaining about things like Apple having the search bar in different locations in different apps, and in the next post they're seriously trying to tell us that a laptop that requires modifying th…

I scrolled to the bottom and this passage caught my eye:

   Since you have a proper linux under the hood, you can easily install and use things like nodejs / npm etc as well.
I immediately closed the tab.

Re: I switched from Mac to a Lenovo Chromebook

#144

Post by dangus »

traderj0e wrote: post #67
Aurornis wrote: post #47

Going from complaining about Apple not having enough polish in the fine details of their UI to suggesting we all switch to Chromebooks is so completely inconsistent that there must be other motivations. In one post they're complaining about things like Apple having the search bar in different locations in different apps, and in the next post they're seriously trying to tell us that a laptop that requires modifying th…

"After my last blog post I received tons and tons of emails from people mentioning that they switched to X or Y because of Liquid Glass, and much like them, I switched away from the Apple ecosystem thanks to these ongoing issues as well." Then within 2 sentences: "So this blog post is about my painful journey trying to find a nice piece of hardware that works and feels just as good as Apple's hardware as a web develo…

The author did a horrible job doing laptop research if the goal was to replace a MacBook’s build quality and overall vibe.

I have no idea why this random Mediatek chip was the qualifier for finding a system.

Just Josh Tech (YouTube) and their associated site bestlaptop.deals is my favorite resource at the moment for laptop reviews and for finding the best fit. I’m not affiliated with them in any way, I just think they are thorough and present with a critical eye avoiding a lot of hype YouTuber BS.

They aren’t the best at recommendations for Linux laptops as they don’t fully install the OS but they at least try it out on a live image.

To me the clear winner right now for people who like Linux and want something that’s a MacBook-like experience is the Framework 13 Pro. Framework appears to have resolved basically all of the shortcomings of the current revision (which still is no slouch), they’ve added a CNC aluminum build and haptic trackpad, and it’s a first-class Linux experience that’s Ubuntu certified.

Other than that, I’d be looking at options like the Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i Aura Edition 15, maybe even a Zenbook Duo 2026 if the idea of a second screen on the go is appealing and money is no object.

Someone looking for some discrete GPU performance that rivals or beats MacBook Pros equipped with Pro or Max chips can look at the Zephyrus G14/G16. Sure, they’re “gamer” laptops, but I really like them in person and they feel very premium. They’re pretty well established as the best thin and light gaming laptops on the market, very close in dimensions to MacBook Pro.

Re: I switched from Mac to a Lenovo Chromebook

#145

Post by lukan »

ufmace wrote: post #58
galleywest200 wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think they mean closed as in it is more difficult to install whatever you want on a ChromeOS machine as opposed to a MacOS machine.

What is it that you want to install on ChromeOS that you are unable to? All of the usual Linux and open-source stuff works fine on the built-in Linux environment on it. Possibly even a little better than MacOS in some cases, since you don't need to worry about Apple app signing. There's not literally nothing you can't do, but the list is a lot shorter than most people think, especially those who haven't really tried…

But if I don't want to have to use a VM?

Well, then you can only put it in dev mode and use chromebrew. Which I am glad exists, but even installing node can be a pain and the way to get it running changed over the years.

Re: I switched from Mac to a Lenovo Chromebook

#146

Post by wffurr »

lukan wrote: post #108
nolist_policy wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As someone using a Chromebook as my daily driver, not getting into my workflow and quickly doing what I want is exactly ChromeOS's UI. Especially virtual desktops combined with the touchpad: Switching between tabs, going forwards and backwards in history, switching virtual desktops and apps is all done with a few gestures.

Hm, maybe that part is more polished, but I don't use it. My pain points are very basic stuff, quickly opening a file explorer, finding files, copy paste, navigating folders. It all improved, but still feels awkward and is way slower (takes more clicks/key presses) than in linux or windows.

I have never had any problem with any of those things on any OS I have used. Pin the files app to your taskbar, boom, easy access to files and folders. Hit the circle key and type in the launcher box to search. Copy paste is...identical other than Ctrl vs cmd?

ChromeOS is fine. I wish they hadn't given up on Steam and models with dgpus, but I prefer playing games on a Switch these days anyway.

Re: I switched from Mac to a Lenovo Chromebook

#148

Post by jeffbee »

fragmede wrote: post #117
makeitdouble wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

ChromeOS will run on any standard machine and subsystems (qndroid, linux) work decently good. What concrete points makes you put macos as more open ?

Root on the host OS. Can't change the MAC on the wifi adapter, for instance.

You can change the wifi mac on any chromeos machine with literally `ifconfig`.

Re: I switched from Mac to a Lenovo Chromebook

#149

Post by bigyabai »

babypuncher wrote: post #20
_imnothere wrote: post #11

I can't think of any valid reason for a person with sane mind to do this. Yes, macOS is somewhat closed, but it's definitely more open than ChromeOS.

ChromeOS is the absolute last desktop operating system I would choose to use for myself. Linux, macOS, and Windows would have to be completely dead and buried before I would switch, and at that point I might just consider abandoning tech altogether and joining an Amish commune or something.

When was the last time you tried ChromeOS, out of curiosity? I'd always reach for Linux first, but I'm hard-pressed to put Windows or macOS in second place when both are so miserably bloated.

Re: I switched from Mac to a Lenovo Chromebook

#150

Post by bigyabai »

QuercusMax wrote: post #134
traderj0e wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm willing to bet it's easier to set up a Linux VM on a Chromebook than on a Mac. But the other side is that anything not explicitly requiring Linux will work natively in macOS, where you also get a nicer terminal. Like I've not needed a Linux VM in years, and the author doing web dev probably won't either.

pretty dang easy to run a Linux container on MacOS using Colima ( https://github.com/abiosoft/colima ).

Relative to native Docker and Crostini, my experience using Colima at work was like pulling my own teeth out.
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