Never thought I’d see the day where I’d prefer an Apple device over a Windows one. I know they have their own issues, but in terms of ai implementation and security they’re miles ahead of MS.
Tbf, you’re just swapping one glass of tainted punch for another. Both murder your data privacy and security.
I guess if you like Apple’s form of abuse more than Microsoft’s, more power to ya. It definitely isn’t the escape hatch you think it is for privacy or security though, that belongs to the Penguin crew.
Privacy sure Linux has it beat. Security? Simply untrue, particularly by default, unless you put a lot of time into configuration, in not exactly sure where that narrative is from it’s completely false. macOS for example has way better app permission isolation that Linux does unless you use only flatpaks. Also the open source system scanner that gives devices a cybersecurity score that I’m forgetting the name of at the moment can be used to prove this correct without going into extremely long detail. Compare the results from macOS and Linux by default and it’s pretty solidly in macOS favor. I use both but this idea needs to stop being spread simply because people have a vendetta against closed source. I love Linux probably more than macOS but there are still reasons to like and use macOS.
Oh I know, Linux is the way, but I mean that Apple’s implementation is just that smidge less intrusive since all data is processed locally rather than in some datacenter somewhere.
They’ll still extract whatever can make them money, no illusions there.
Has that actually been verified by a third party auditor? After the “deleted photos reappearance” incident, I would imagine that any Apple promise of “processes initiated from your device stay on your device” would just be a marketing tagline with an escape clause in one of their EULAs.
Apple hardware is typically more difficult to install linux on, and is therefore less useful. I mean you can do it in many cases from what I hear, but I think it’s still not easy on average.
Most of the time, a MacBook is the only logical laptop choice. Gaming laptops mostly suck, either at actual gaming, or at being actual portable laptops. If they aren’t portable, just spend less money on a gaming desktop. If they are portable, they suck at gaming, and if they’re not MacBooks, the battery life isn’t as good and/or they aren’t as powerful. The best gaming on laptops is cloud gaming, and that works on MacBooks too.
Apple Intelligence isn’t miles ahead of anybody. It’s dead last, which is why I like it. I feel like Google and Microsoft are gonna push AI on you whether you want it or not, and that’s the point. Your hardware, serving them. Additional power draw, you pay for, so they can make more money (and naturally, not give any back).
I think the best choice is to get a non-gaming Windows laptop and install Linux on it.
If you don’t need something super powerful then get a refurbished Thinkpad T14 or Elitebook 840 G7 from eBay or Amazon.
Or if you need more CPU, a better screen, etc get a new Omnibook (7 or above) or Ideapad (5 or above) for a Macbook like feel or a Thinkpad for repairability.
My lemming on the internet, the Steam Deck costs less than a third of the price and the most expensive variant is just around half lmao
(Although I think one aspect where that argument for best laptop has holes is the used market for slim x86 devices. Apple Silicon may have advantages in terms of battery life, but software compatibility is still rough AF if you’re not an artist or in music production)
I’ve owned the m1 14 inch since it released it was definitely rougher at first but that’s not really true anymore. I’m not even sure I have any x86 applications on it at this point.
Software compatibility on the Mac is fine, unless you mean emulating Windows for gaming like the Steam Deck does so well. In that case, I’ve gotten Fallout 4 to work with Whisky, but that’s not a huge accomplishment. I have an M2 Pro Mac mini from 2023 and Fallout 4 came out in 2015. It’s not a great platform for gaming in any case. I play Blue Prince on it and that looks good. Stray, too. Those are newer games, but not particularly demanding. They look okay, but the framerate isn’t good. Xbox (Series X) is a better platform for both.
I’m not discounting or disregarding the Deck, I just haven’t got one so I cannot say what it can or can’t do. I’ve only heard good things about it. I have a friend who may be trying to unload one, I just can’t spare the cash right now and I’m not that interested in owning one. And I think he does have the most expensive version. And I think he’s upgraded the SSD in it. So sure, it would be a good deal and he’d make a good deal for a friend, I just don’t really have the room for it. Still, it is tempting.
Tbf, I haven’t touched a Mac in ages (and never personally owned one in my life), because the combination of the “luxury™” device tax and Apple’s vindictive anti-repair stance (and their walled garden on principle but that’s not relevant here) basically put them on my “never buy and never recommend” list. I have heard of good work being put on a compatibility layer similar to Wine on their front, but I’d imagine specialist software that depends on GPU acceleration (in my case, CAD software) would struggle to run in that scenario on Apple Silicon.
(Plus, a used thinkpad is cheap as cheap can be and again, an entry-level, fully repairable and upgradeable deck will run you around $300 with much better game performance for it’s portable weight class)
Tbf, I haven’t touched a Mac in ages (and never personally owned one in my life), because the combination of the “luxury™” device tax and Apple’s vindictive anti-repair stance (and their walled garden on principle but that’s not relevant here) basically put them on my “never buy and never recommend” list.
All good points. So here’s what ya do - slide on over to your favorite used gear hub and pick up a 10 year old 8GB model for like $50 or $100. These things sold for thousands back in the day but now they’re just beautiful old advanced-for-the-time hardware (that often run linux super easy if you get bored).
A little research will keep you to the ones that can be upgraded easily.
Grok all the rounded edges and backlit island glass-touchpad beautifulness. Wonder at how they got a good sound from tiny speakers in 1847 or whatever. Enjoy kicking around the candy colored icons and see how the configurations are just two clicks to wherever you want to be. It’s like a vacation from scrolling through a textfile. Or, get jiggy with the BSD and go nuts. Get a free apple ID and smile guiltily when all your other cheap rescues line up behind it and interact seamlessly.
Just don’t use your real name, keep behind your favorite recipe of networking, etc., obvs. And you might decide it’s a good thing.
To be clear, Apple’s compatibility layer is mostly inaccessible to the user. Even with the latest macOS, so you should have GPTK (Game Porting Tool Kit), you can’t just run a Windows game. You have to do some work… or use something like Whisky. And the guy who made Whisky stopped working on it so people could pay subscription fees to CrossOver (which is not a bad product; in fact, it funnels money into WINE which helps everyone). So in theory with CrossOver your CAD software may work… or may not… but it sounds like it wouldn’t be worth it for you to try.
But wait — just out of curiosity, how upgradeable is a ThinkPad? Typically the motherboard limits what you can do (e.g. if it’s an AMD system, an AM4 means you can use most of the newest stuff, but there’s some stuff locked behind AM5 you won’t be able to touch, but it’s the same on the Intel side as well). So, just curious how far you can actually take a $300 used ThinkPad. I used to build, so it’s just that, a curiosity.
The Steam Deck is the most upgradeable, you can do all sorts of crazy stuff (I probably phrased that poorly in the prior comment), but the used thinkpad’s milage probably varies based on which model you buy. Standard stuff like RAM, storage, and so on are easily upgraded though (unlike Apple who SOLDERS THEM IN for some “fuck you” reason).
Never thought I’d see the day where I’d prefer an Apple device over a Windows one. I know they have their own issues, but in terms of ai implementation and security they’re miles ahead of MS.
Tbf, you’re just swapping one glass of tainted punch for another. Both murder your data privacy and security.
I guess if you like Apple’s form of abuse more than Microsoft’s, more power to ya. It definitely isn’t the escape hatch you think it is for privacy or security though, that belongs to the Penguin crew.
Privacy sure Linux has it beat. Security? Simply untrue, particularly by default, unless you put a lot of time into configuration, in not exactly sure where that narrative is from it’s completely false. macOS for example has way better app permission isolation that Linux does unless you use only flatpaks. Also the open source system scanner that gives devices a cybersecurity score that I’m forgetting the name of at the moment can be used to prove this correct without going into extremely long detail. Compare the results from macOS and Linux by default and it’s pretty solidly in macOS favor. I use both but this idea needs to stop being spread simply because people have a vendetta against closed source. I love Linux probably more than macOS but there are still reasons to like and use macOS.
I think you meant OpenBSD, instead of Linux; it has the best security features of any OS.
Oh I know, Linux is the way, but I mean that Apple’s implementation is just that smidge less intrusive since all data is processed locally rather than in some datacenter somewhere. They’ll still extract whatever can make them money, no illusions there.
Has that actually been verified by a third party auditor? After the “deleted photos reappearance” incident, I would imagine that any Apple promise of “processes initiated from your device stay on your device” would just be a marketing tagline with an escape clause in one of their EULAs.
Apple hardware is typically more difficult to install linux on, and is therefore less useful. I mean you can do it in many cases from what I hear, but I think it’s still not easy on average.
Most of the time, a MacBook is the only logical laptop choice. Gaming laptops mostly suck, either at actual gaming, or at being actual portable laptops. If they aren’t portable, just spend less money on a gaming desktop. If they are portable, they suck at gaming, and if they’re not MacBooks, the battery life isn’t as good and/or they aren’t as powerful. The best gaming on laptops is cloud gaming, and that works on MacBooks too.
Apple Intelligence isn’t miles ahead of anybody. It’s dead last, which is why I like it. I feel like Google and Microsoft are gonna push AI on you whether you want it or not, and that’s the point. Your hardware, serving them. Additional power draw, you pay for, so they can make more money (and naturally, not give any back).
If you’re gonna spend MacBook money, might as well get a Framework
I think the best choice is to get a non-gaming Windows laptop and install Linux on it.
If you don’t need something super powerful then get a refurbished Thinkpad T14 or Elitebook 840 G7 from eBay or Amazon.
Or if you need more CPU, a better screen, etc get a new Omnibook (7 or above) or Ideapad (5 or above) for a Macbook like feel or a Thinkpad for repairability.
My lemming on the internet, the Steam Deck costs less than a third of the price and the most expensive variant is just around half lmao
(Although I think one aspect where that argument for best laptop has holes is the used market for slim x86 devices. Apple Silicon may have advantages in terms of battery life, but software compatibility is still rough AF if you’re not an artist or in music production)
I’ve owned the m1 14 inch since it released it was definitely rougher at first but that’s not really true anymore. I’m not even sure I have any x86 applications on it at this point.
Software compatibility on the Mac is fine, unless you mean emulating Windows for gaming like the Steam Deck does so well. In that case, I’ve gotten Fallout 4 to work with Whisky, but that’s not a huge accomplishment. I have an M2 Pro Mac mini from 2023 and Fallout 4 came out in 2015. It’s not a great platform for gaming in any case. I play Blue Prince on it and that looks good. Stray, too. Those are newer games, but not particularly demanding. They look okay, but the framerate isn’t good. Xbox (Series X) is a better platform for both.
I’m not discounting or disregarding the Deck, I just haven’t got one so I cannot say what it can or can’t do. I’ve only heard good things about it. I have a friend who may be trying to unload one, I just can’t spare the cash right now and I’m not that interested in owning one. And I think he does have the most expensive version. And I think he’s upgraded the SSD in it. So sure, it would be a good deal and he’d make a good deal for a friend, I just don’t really have the room for it. Still, it is tempting.
Steam Deck (or any Linux device) does not emulate Windows for games. A translation layer is much different.
Tbf, I haven’t touched a Mac in ages (and never personally owned one in my life), because the combination of the “luxury™” device tax and Apple’s vindictive anti-repair stance (and their walled garden on principle but that’s not relevant here) basically put them on my “never buy and never recommend” list. I have heard of good work being put on a compatibility layer similar to Wine on their front, but I’d imagine specialist software that depends on GPU acceleration (in my case, CAD software) would struggle to run in that scenario on Apple Silicon.
(Plus, a used thinkpad is cheap as cheap can be and again, an entry-level, fully repairable and upgradeable deck will run you around $300 with much better game performance for it’s portable weight class)
All good points. So here’s what ya do - slide on over to your favorite used gear hub and pick up a 10 year old 8GB model for like $50 or $100. These things sold for thousands back in the day but now they’re just beautiful old advanced-for-the-time hardware (that often run linux super easy if you get bored).
A little research will keep you to the ones that can be upgraded easily.
Grok all the rounded edges and backlit island glass-touchpad beautifulness. Wonder at how they got a good sound from tiny speakers in 1847 or whatever. Enjoy kicking around the candy colored icons and see how the configurations are just two clicks to wherever you want to be. It’s like a vacation from scrolling through a textfile. Or, get jiggy with the BSD and go nuts. Get a free apple ID and smile guiltily when all your other cheap rescues line up behind it and interact seamlessly.
Just don’t use your real name, keep behind your favorite recipe of networking, etc., obvs. And you might decide it’s a good thing.
All fair.
To be clear, Apple’s compatibility layer is mostly inaccessible to the user. Even with the latest macOS, so you should have GPTK (Game Porting Tool Kit), you can’t just run a Windows game. You have to do some work… or use something like Whisky. And the guy who made Whisky stopped working on it so people could pay subscription fees to CrossOver (which is not a bad product; in fact, it funnels money into WINE which helps everyone). So in theory with CrossOver your CAD software may work… or may not… but it sounds like it wouldn’t be worth it for you to try.
But wait — just out of curiosity, how upgradeable is a ThinkPad? Typically the motherboard limits what you can do (e.g. if it’s an AMD system, an AM4 means you can use most of the newest stuff, but there’s some stuff locked behind AM5 you won’t be able to touch, but it’s the same on the Intel side as well). So, just curious how far you can actually take a $300 used ThinkPad. I used to build, so it’s just that, a curiosity.
The Steam Deck is the most upgradeable, you can do all sorts of crazy stuff (I probably phrased that poorly in the prior comment), but the used thinkpad’s milage probably varies based on which model you buy. Standard stuff like RAM, storage, and so on are easily upgraded though (unlike Apple who SOLDERS THEM IN for some “fuck you” reason).
Exactly, in the same boat with this one. It’s not exactly like shoving copilot into freaking notepad.