# Used Laptop recommendations for FreeBSD



## Tracker (Dec 11, 2022)

Looking to get a second hand/used laptop, current one is 10+ yrs old.

Any recommendations for a newer model that's hopefully supported by FreeBSD (13.x?) to get up and running without much of a hassle ?
- wifi, suspend/resume, external monitor, decent battery, 12 gb+ ram support ... must

Low budget secondary market recommendations with hopefully easier spare parts to find - should it conk off.

Also any tips on what to keep in mind when buying a used machine?

Thinkpad or some other machines ?


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## rotor (Dec 11, 2022)

One thing I have found to keep in mind with the used laptops, the batteries tend to be near end-of-life.

Aside from that general item, my personal preferences are ThinkPad T-series and as a place to buy, I've been quite happy with www.laptopcloseout.com


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## Tracker (Dec 11, 2022)

rotor said:


> One thing I have found to keep in mind with the used laptops, the batteries tend to be near end-of-life.
> 
> Aside from that general item, my personal preferences are ThinkPad T-series and as a place to buy, I've been quite happy with www.laptopcloseout.com


Thanks - yea batteries are usually first to take a hit - even with my 8-12 hr+/day use I doubt they'll last very long even if in good condition.

I did come across the T590 model iirc , a while back - was just wondering if it would be compatible/easy to get running.

Open to hearing about other more recent options. 

Wondering if there's any touchscreen laptops that work well with freebsd at budget level


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## chrbr (Dec 11, 2022)

I have a Lenovo T470 which does not work with FreeBSD. There is a thread about one month ago about details.There are at least three CPU options for the T470 which does not make a final judgement about the T470 family easier .
This is just to let you know about a bad experience.


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## Tracker (Dec 11, 2022)

chrbr said:


> I have a Lenovo T470 which does not work with FreeBSD. There is a thread about one month ago about details.There are at least three CPU options for the T470 which does not make a final judgement about the T470 family easier .
> This is just to let you know about a bad experience.


Wow this is eye opening. Had very little idea that a given model most people assume would work, just wouldn't work.

What's the easiest way to find out if it's a supported model or not? Take a bootable USB and test it somehow? (Not sure exactly how)


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## jbo (Dec 11, 2022)

As some already did, and many on this forum probably will: I can also recommend the Lenovo ThinkPad series.
I usually run a T or P series for the heavy lifting and an X series as my daily driver (the X1 Carbon, previously 3rd gen, last year I upgraded to the 9th gen).

Unfortunately, there is no debate that the ThinkPads got gradually worse compared to the original IBM models. But I guess we have to work with what we got, not what we hoped for. In the end, the Lenovo ThinkPad experience out-performed anything else I touched so far.


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## cracauer@ (Dec 12, 2022)

jbo said:


> As some already did, and many on this forum probably will: I can also recommend the Lenovo ThinkPad series.
> I usually run a T or P series for the heavy lifting and an X series as my daily driver (the X1 Carbon, previously 3rd gen, last year I upgraded to the 9th gen).



Does FreeBSD X11 work with the integrated Intel graphics on the 9th gen?


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## K5KGT (Dec 12, 2022)

I like my Lenovo T495, works great with FreeBSD


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## Crivens (Dec 12, 2022)

I have a second hand X230 with an i5, integrated graphics. It works well enough for me, all HW is supported. Only the USB ports seem to be giving up with time. Replacement batteries are easy to come by and the form factor is very travel friendly.


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## meaw229a (Dec 12, 2022)

cracauer@ said:


> Does FreeBSD X11 work with the integrated Intel graphics on the 9th gen?


I can confirm that Intel graphics 9 gen runs FreeBSD 13.1-Release X11 very nice w/o problems. I use it on a Desktop.
On my Notebook I have Gen 10. Runs also very well.

To the Op's question. May have a look at Lenovo Thinkbook 15iml, 10 gen I7 with integrated graphics.
(Yes that:s not a typo, Thinkbook and not Thinkpad)

Has Intel I7, 520 GB PCI NVME, 16GB Ram and a real good screen.

Everything works fine, very happy with it.
Only needed to replace the Wifi M2 card with a Intel one. Cost me 15 bucks.
Fan noise was an issue but with small settings it is now quiet as a mouse.

But the way to get there was not easy. Bit of reading needed but I think that's normal on FreeBSD Notebook.


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## jbo (Dec 12, 2022)

cracauer@ said:


> Does FreeBSD X11 work with the integrated Intel graphics on the 9th gen?


Yes it does.
It was a bit flaky in the beginning (about 12 months ago) but for the past several months I had no major issues with it. I regularly hook up a 4k TV via the HDMI port and that works great too (with sound as well!). There used to be some visible screen tearing effects when watching a movie that way but from what I can tell that problem also fixed itself since the last update a few weeks ago.

Let me know if you'd like to have more details.


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## cracauer@ (Dec 12, 2022)

Time to ebay a 9th gen X1 Carbon I guess  Thanks, folks.


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## jbo (Dec 12, 2022)

cracauer@ said:


> Time to ebay a 9th gen X1 Carbon I guess  Thanks, folks.


It depends a bit on your personal experiences but the weakest part on this machine is by far the keyboard. We are miles away of what a good ThinkPad keyboard used to be. This is unfortunately half way to the MacBook Pro keyboard.
Just as a word of warning tho. It wasn't a no-go for me as other aspects of the machine fully fit my requirements and preferences.
The updated display aspect ratio is extremely nice in my opinion too. There is/was a lot of criticism over that in the broader consumer market but for your typical text file based workloads this is extremely nice


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## cracauer@ (Dec 12, 2022)

jbo said:


> It depends a bit on your personal experiences but the weakest part on this machine is by far the keyboard. We are miles away of what a good ThinkPad keyboard used to be. This is unfortunately half way to the MacBook Pro keyboard.
> Just as a word of warning tho. It wasn't a no-go for me as other aspects of the machine fully fit my requirements and preferences.
> The updated display aspect ratio is extremely nice in my opinion too. There is/was a lot of criticism over that in the broader consumer market but for your typical text file based workloads this is extremely nice



Yeah, I currently have a 4th gen X1 Carbon and the keyboard already isn't that great.

I am typing this on a 2019 MacBook. Not just because of the keyboard but to a major extent because of the trackpad. And the speakers. And the screen. And... well on some counts Macbooks just plow the competition.


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## chrbr (Dec 12, 2022)

I have just found https://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/ThinkWiki which is more focused on Linux. It gives a lot of hardware specs, too. It should also be useful for FreeBSD. Happy digging .


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## openbsd98324 (Dec 30, 2022)

Tracker said:


> Looking to get a second hand/used laptop, current one is 10+ yrs old.
> 
> Any recommendations for a newer model that's hopefully supported by FreeBSD (13.x?) to get up and running without much of a hassle ?
> - wifi, suspend/resume, external monitor, decent battery, 12 gb+ ram support ... must
> ...




The Acer ES1-531-C6F1 notebook works very very well with FreeBSD.
Model No. : N15W4

ath0 wireless works and it is super super stable !!!

/etc/rc.conf :


```
wlans_ath0="wlan0"
ifconfig_wlan0="WPA DHCP"
ifconfig_wlan0_ipv6="inet6 accept_rtadv"
sshd_enable="YES"
# Set dumpdev to "AUTO" to enable crash dumps, "NO" to disable
dumpdev="AUTO"
keymap=de
ntpd_enable="YES"
ntpd_sync_on_start="YES"
sshd_enable="YES"
fusefs_enable="YES"
# allscreens_flags="-f terminus-b32"
#apache24_enable="YES"
fsck_y_enable="YES"
```


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## cmoerz (Dec 30, 2022)

Lenovo x270 works very well. Supports up to 32GB RAM, even though its spec says only 16GB.


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## Cammando (Jan 1, 2023)

I have a pre-owned X230 with integrated graphics and an i5. For me, it functions enough; every hardware is supported. Only the USB ports appear to be deteriorating over time. The form factor is relatively portable, and replacement batteries are readily available.


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