Hi guys I want to buy a laptop for programming, but I couldn’t figure out what i really want .
my budget range from 600$ to 1200 .
I found these laptops in the market
(i3 - 4g ram - 256 giga ssd) for 600$
(i5 - 8g ram - 512 giga ssd) for 800$
(i7 - 16g ram - 512 giga ssd) for 1200$
and also ryzen 3 5 and 7 .
here what I want you to Know :
1- I want to use this laptop for programming only (and browser of course),
2 - I will programming for android (for now ),that’s mean i need to install android studio , IntelliJ IDEA or Eclipse (maybe other).
so I’m afraid if I buy 1200$ laptop i will regret it , because don’t need that much ram or cores or ssd capacity.
and if i buy 600$ i will regret it too ,because it will be too slow or not ideal for programming,less ram -less capacity -less core
I was depressing for long time and I’m slowly back on track so i don’t know what going on ( on tech world).
and also there are laptop 2 in 1 (laptop and tablet) with pen, is it worth to buy ?.
dose the laptop now upgrade-able in terms of ram , saying this because of what going on in part replacement issue (like apple ).
so help please what should I buy.
pardon my English not my first Language, and thanks in advance.
Edit : thank you guys very much , that’s really help and very informative. 👍 😍
I have a framework laptop and really like it.
The main benefit is that it is fairly future proof, so you could get one the of the cheaper ones now and then upgrade if you need better ram/CPU/apu
pardon my English not my first Language, and thanks in advance
Considering OP might not from the US nor Europe, I don’t think Framework will fall on his budget (I mean he probably could get a lower end one, but alas), and shipping would be a hassle.
I liked framework a lot, but understand that they’re new in town and selling world wide is not an easy feat to do for new company.
I am a big fan of my Framework laptop. It is super easily upgradable and repairable so should last a good while. They are a little sold out of all of their old models so they only have pre-orders right now. They have options for a 13th gen i5 and a Ryzen 5 that both start at $850. The intel ones ship sooner and are have cheaper DDR4 RAM (vs DDR5 for Ryzen). The $850 is “base”, an i5 configured with 16g of RAM, a 500gb SSD, and no OS (assuming you’ll use linux or already own windows) is just under $1100. You can go as low as just over $1k for 8g of ram and 250g SSD.
If you’re concerned with cost they do have refurbished 12th-gen i5s in stock now for $720, but you’ll need to buy RAM and an SSD (which if buying from them would bring your total to $820 for 8g of RAM and 250g of SSD).
I can’t comment on the tablet/pen stuff. I have never owned a laptop that does that. It might be worth it if you do drawing or whiteboarding and stuff, but those are the only people I know of that actually use that sort of stuff.
Be careful with the Intel laptop chips and make sure you understand what you’re getting. My work laptop has an i7 with 12 “cores” but it’s 10 of the low powered e-cores and 2 of the hyperthreaded p- cores, so for heavy applications (like compiling) it’s a glorified dual core i3.
System76 laptops I’ve seen recommended, I’m currently deciding between one of these and a Framework laptop
I’ve been very happy with my System 76 laptop. I suspect I’ll try Framework next time, just because I like the concept.
I hadn’t heard of them. That’s a pretty cool concept though. Thanks for bringing it to my attention!
Buy the cheapest MacBook model you can find with an M-series chip and as much RAM as you can stomach the cost for.
I’d say 8gb is barrrrre minimum for doing app development. You’ll want 16gb.
Listen, I’m the last person you’d expect to recommend a Mac. I am an Android guy. No other Apple products in my place.
…but I’ve owned every top end model from pretty much every relevant PC manufacturer just trying to find something as reliable, hassle free, and well built as my work Mac and it just doesn’t exist.
The MacBooks are just in a whole other class. The battery life, the standby time, the speed of those M1/2 chips, runs cool and quiet.
I’m neutral on MacOS. It tends to stay out of my way. I don’t use any of the Apple apps. It is usually stable as hell. My work MBP currently has an up time of 68 days without a reboot, and the only reason it rebooted last time was for security patches.
Build quality is unmatched, screen is great, trackpad is still a generation ahead of anything else, keyboard is great.
I accept my fate, Fediverse. Roast away
I’m not here to “roast” but M chips aren’t fully supported for everything a software engineer could be compiling/running. At the current moment, they’re not quite as well-supported in every single way possible like an x86 chip would be for dev environments (even though we all really want them to be).
Nothing wrong with recommending a Mac. I’m not a Mac guy myself but I am pretty productive with one.
The stack overflow survey showed 33% of devs are using MacOS. You won’t (or shouldn’t) be roasted for recommending a mac.
I second the Mac recommendation. I use Linux on my desktop, but use Mac for laptop, after 6 years of using MBP (I still use my mid-2015 15" MBP for mobile development and day to day work), I can vouch for their quality (but skip the 2017, 2018, butterfly keyboard + touchbar crap, our company have buttload of those broken). Their M1/M2 battery life is just out of this world.
If OP worry about spending big and having buyers remorse, I recommend MBP.
I have an x86 MacBook.
How well do the M-series MacBooks work if you want to run Windows or Linux in a VM?
From what I’ve read: not well.
I do a substantial amount of software development inside a Linux VM on an M2 Pro. Runs fine. The guest OS is AArch64 too.
I use Lima for this.
For programming, you need as much RAM and as much processor as you can manage, and all other considerations are secondary. If you’re intending to keep this machine for more than a year or two, that becomes even more important, because software always seems to expand to fill the space available—kind of like clutter. If you’re buying a laptop, you’re sacrificing upgrades in return for portability, so assume that you’re going to have a hard time adding more RAM after you buy (the memory might even be soldered in place if it’s a cheap thin-and-light machine). Framework is an exception to that.
I find the Ryzen processors offer better value for money than Intel, but the last time I checked they were more difficult to find in laptops. You shouldn’t compromise on other things just to get the AMD chip.
2-in-1 with pen: likely not worth it unless you, y’know, want or need a tablet anyway.
You could do your programming theoretically on any laptop, although I’d say faster the better/easier it’ll be for you in the long run. In regard to your comment on upgradability I’d recommend taking a look at a Framework laptop where their whole goal is repairability which comes with the added benefit of being upgradable.
Those Framework laptops look amazing. I hope they take off so the big guys take notice.
@out_of buy what you can afford . The more power the better when programming. Remember you are running 2 maybe more applications at once. The IDE and the application you are debugging (maybe not so much with Android dev). Unlike a normal user who is just using their browser or word or excel . HTH
Have you checked out Framework? They have a great selection.
Personally, I bought a 14" Alienware just for remote programming in vscode on a server. I don’t play games on it, but it’s quite the powerhouse for everyday use.
Look for used ThinkPads with Ryzen, I bought an L14g2 (5850U+16GB) for about 600 USD and it’s just amazing value
Others have said it already, but I love my Framework laptop. I have one of the first gen ones, running Ubunut, and I’m looking forward to upgrading it to the new AMD motherboard they’re releasing later this year. The fact that they have upgrade paths for their laptops is amazing.
They really do deserve success with their business model, it’s great to see cases being made available that turn the used mobos into ‘new’ computers as well.
As many people are saying, a DIY frame.work laptop should be considered if you can get one on your country. Screen is good for work, battery life is decent, Linux compatible, trackpad and keyboard are good, you get to choose your ports, etc. I use one daily for work, mainly docked to my monitor but if the weather is decent I’m out in a park working.
If your doing android work, you’ll be running Android studio and likely an emulator. Both love ram. Get 16gb if you can afford it. I believe many newer laptops are going with unupgradable ram, you’ll need to check the specific laptop carefully.
Cores will also be loved by Android studio and the emulator.
Check the video out put options as well, you’ll likely want an external monitor at some point, the benefits of dual (and triple) monitors can’t be overstated.
If your concerned about cost, maybe look for second hand stuff? But lots of cores and lots of RAM will be worth it in the long run.
I would recommend taking a look in the second hand market. You’ll find great deals there.
As for the device itself, I think a Lenovo Thinkpad would be the best option for your needs.
I personally use a $200 Thinkpad T480 i found on eBay. Has 8th gen i5 processor, 16 GB memory, and 256 GB storage on an SSD.
For your case, you are going to need at least 16GB. I remember that 4 years ago I loaded Android studio with 8GB and it took a while to load. It also ran a little slow. I suggest 16GB,preferably 32GB and SSD at least 512.
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Buy current gen Ryzen if you can. They are more efficient (= longer battery life) and offer more GPU muscle than their Intel counterparts. Just make sure it’s a 7X4X part, the 4 indicates it’s actually Zen 4
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1000$ is way too much if all you want to do is programming. If that’s really all you want to do, all you’ll really care about is it not being complete garbage in some regard and the keyboard. Maybe the display if you want to work outside.
Edit: I realized this might be confusing. To be clear: I mean if you want to splurge on a laptop, you might as well get a Ryzen one. I don’t recommend spending too much on a laptop used for programming only tho
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IntelliJ and BlueStacks both love RAM
They also love CPU.
For a dev machine, I wouldn’t go below 16GB RAM and at least a current-generation i5 (or Ryzen equivalent).