XPS 13 developer edition 7th generation available • Hacker News Board

Re: XPS 13 developer edition 7th generation available

#361

Post by n1000 » Fri, Jan 05, 2018, 10:29 AM UTC

dingo_bat wrote: post #52

Where's the fucking USB ports?!? I have literally used or observed zero USB C devices till now. I've seen newer phones but who plugs phones into computers anymore? The main issue is flash drives, external HDDs, mice, keyboards, LTE modems, Kindle, and so on. None of those are available in type C variants and I don't want to be inconvenienced by my new laptop. If I wanted to hurt myself I'd just buy from Apple!

Yes. I was ready to finally replace my MacBook Pro with the XPS. The main reason being the presence of one USB A port. That is now gone and I already start to reconsider the MacBook.

Re: XPS 13 developer edition 7th generation available

#362

Post by inconsistency » Fri, Jan 05, 2018, 10:40 AM UTC

dangrossman wrote: post #199

I regret buying a maxed out XPS 13 a year and a half ago. My list of problems: * Coil whine * Noisy fans * Heat issues * USB-C port has a bad pin (only works in one orientation with pressure) * Charging port inconsistently charges * Bad cell in the battery, so it suddenly shuts off without warning when on battery The charging issues started just around the 12 month mark, so I quickly sent to a repair center under war…

I got an XPS 15 at about the same time. I've always had similar issues, especially with heat. Let me add 2 more:

* Upgrading from win 8.1 to win 10 causes frequent bluescreens unless speedstep is disabled, which leads to massive heat issues. There havn't been any driver updates since, so Dell seem to have no interest in fixing this.

* Random electric shocks where my arms touch the front of the unit while typing. Happens whether plugged in or not. Super annoying.

Overall I honestly can't recommend these. Reasonably good specs and sleek design but flaky construction and too many issues to be worth it. I'll probably get an HP next.

Re: XPS 13 developer edition 7th generation available

#363

Post by touristtam » Fri, Jan 05, 2018, 11:17 AM UTC

jlgaddis wrote: post #242

The RAM is soldered on and you can't get more than 16 GB of it? This sounds like a MBP, I guess I'll pass. I've a 5+ year old ThinkPad that has had 32 GB in it since the day I got it.

Can't replace the HDD either in those. And forget about a proper docking station a la TP.

Re: XPS 13 developer edition 7th generation available

#364

Post by tedcrilly » Fri, Jan 05, 2018, 11:17 AM UTC

rootbear wrote: post #77

scorown wrote: post #56

My first Dell as developer machine is XPS 15 9560 but it is in no way a developer machine: - The thunderbolt dock wire out and laptop USB C are on opposite hands. I have to place my laptop on top of the dock like a giant book resting on a brick. - Awful coil whine on the power adapter. - Touchpad is annoying to use when clicking moves the finger resulting in wrong place click. - Had to replace Killer wifi card with I…

I have a 13" 9360 and have similar concerns. I just replaced my Killer WiFi, but Bluetooth is still broken. I think I just haven't found the right driver yet. Did you get it working under 16.04? The touchpad is a mess, I mostly use an external mouse. I don't know why Apple seem to be the only ones who can get touchpads right. But even with the above, I do like my XPS and would buy it again. The compact size and light…

The touchpad problems are well documented, e.g. https://bugzilla.kernel.org/show_bug.cgi?id=197683. If your XPS is still under warranty you can request touchpad replacement referring to the thread I linked to above. I'm just scheduling mine, hope it fixes the problem.

Re: XPS 13 developer edition 7th generation available

#365

Post by touristtam » Fri, Jan 05, 2018, 11:24 AM UTC

LeifCarrotson wrote: post #76

FBISurveillance wrote: post #27

IMO, it does not make sense to buy any of those new models: whether it's Dell, HP, or else--before we see models with 32Gb of RAM. It's been told here over and over since 2016 when first Touchbar MacBook got released. It's 2018 and all of us, including manufacturers, are locked with 16GB of RAM and those upgrades look like a joke. Within last month I noticed myötähäpeä when someone asks me for laptop advice. Hopefull…

Agreed. 'Else' including the previously commendable Lenovo Thinkpad lineup: Today, they announced that the x280 (either that or the previously lighter and thinner X1 Carbon being the equivalent of Dell's XPS 13) will feature: - 16 GB max of soldered-on RAM. :( - Removed RJ45 Ethernet port. :( - Reduced battery capacity by 40%. :( - Removed external hot-swappable battery. :( - Removed 2.5mm SATA drive bay. :( - 2.5mm…

Anniversary or x270 then? :(

Re: XPS 13 developer edition 7th generation available

#366

Post by sergiosgc » Fri, Jan 05, 2018, 11:33 AM UTC

chimeracoder wrote: post #59

sergiosgc wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Which model? We are looking into buying quite a few, and Thinkpads are the first choice here. We never had problems in the past, but I've been hearing about problems in their mid-range models. I'd like to avoid those, at the very least.

Not OP, but I got the X1 Carbon, which was (at the time) their top-of-the-line Ultrabook and believed to be their most Linux-compatible laptop. I had a number of issues with the Thinkpad that were all relatively minor in and of themselves, but overall, I ended up switching back to the XPS 13, and I plan on sticking with this line.

I'm on my third X1C. First-gen, 3rd then 5th generation. Never had an issue with Linux compatibility. The middle one had a malfunction with the voltage regulator, promptly fixed by Lenovo. Other than that, my opinion on the X1 Carbon is stellar. I'm wary of some of the newer models, but not of this one.

Re: XPS 13 developer edition 7th generation available

#367

Post by digitalronin » Fri, Jan 05, 2018, 11:48 AM UTC

pjmlp wrote: post #339

crispinb wrote: post #307

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> If you think Apple has fallen in terms of quality I don't. I've found Apple (hardware) to be reliable and long-lasting. It's the developer-hostile designs where I think they've gone crazy.

I don't find Apple designs hostile at all for Objective-C and Swift developers, their main developer customer base.

I disagree with the last part of this sentence. I know a lot of developers, the vast majority of whom have preferred Apple laptops for years, and very few of whom develop in Objective-C and Swift. I agree with a lot of other commenters that Apple are becoming more and more complacent and arrogant about the developer part of their customer base, which I think is larger than perhaps they realise.

Re: XPS 13 developer edition 7th generation available

#368

Post by pjmlp » Fri, Jan 05, 2018, 12:17 PM UTC

digitalronin wrote: post #367

pjmlp wrote: post #339

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't find Apple designs hostile at all for Objective-C and Swift developers, their main developer customer base.

I disagree with the last part of this sentence. I know a lot of developers, the vast majority of whom have preferred Apple laptops for years, and very few of whom develop in Objective-C and Swift. I agree with a lot of other commenters that Apple are becoming more and more complacent and arrogant about the developer part of their customer base, which I think is larger than perhaps they realise.

Then they should have bought a laptop with a pure GNU/Linux or BSD variant, and help companies that target UNIX developers stay in business.

Pure UNIX server software was never the developers target market of neither NeXT or Apple.

UNIX compatibility was always just a means to port UNIX workstation software into their OSes, not as a means to write UNIX server software.

Just like Microsoft did in the past and is now doing it again.

Their developer target market are the ones using their sancioned languages and SDKs.

Re: XPS 13 developer edition 7th generation available

#369

Post by drwu » Fri, Jan 05, 2018, 12:34 PM UTC

torgard wrote: post #98

Max 8gb for regular display... I mean, who uses touch screens for development? I can't really imagine a scenario where it would be helpful for me. Maybe when doing work in Illustrator and Photoshop, but I usually use a different machine for that anyhow, because of Adobe's lack of Linux support. I don't want to pay for something I won't use. I am otherwise actively looking for a laptop. System76 does not have European…

> I mean, who uses touch screens for development?

Touch screen is very helpful if you do not plug a mouse. Not just for web/mobile apps.

For scrolling the console lines / codes, it gives you a better feeling than finding the correct Fn-key combination and location of the PageUp/Down keys. The scrolling using a touch screen is definitively not comparable with the two-finger gestures on the touch pad.

Selecting a window / moving window around is also more comfortable with a touchscreen than using the keyboard or touchpad.

Re: XPS 13 developer edition 7th generation available

#370

Post by tepmoc » Fri, Jan 05, 2018, 12:43 PM UTC

jhasse wrote: post #141

nkkollaw wrote: post #61

Very cool, but as an owner of the Cube Thinker/i35--which has the same exact 3000x2000 3:2 aspect ratio display as the Surface Book (but costs $500)--I can't imagine why any developer would put up with a 16:9 display. Specially if you have "developer" in your product name, why can't they figure out that 16:9 is not the best aspect ratio for everyone? I write code the whole day, not watch movies. That huge extra verti…

IMHO 16:9 is best for coding. You can have multiple files side by side. Or a terminal next to your editor. When Debugging: Watching variables, call stack, ... next to your code.

16:9 fine for desktop displays where its usually large diagonals, but on 15' or smaller is kinda lose too much vertical space.

Anyway is about personal choice and currently there isn't much choice for 3:2 laptops for reasonable price/specs