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Ask HN: Developer laptop under $500

8 points| xux | 12 years ago | reply

What are your suggestions for a developer laptop? I'll mainly use it for web dev:

- html/css/js/angularos editing

- need basic linux tools such as ssh

- need to be lightweight, long battery life, slim

My budget is $500

19 comments

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[+] aaren|12 years ago|reply
Very recently I bought a Thinkpad X200s (12inch screen) from ebay (<£200). I put in 8GB of RAM (£50) (max the chipset will support) and a 256GB SSD (OCZ Octane, ~£120).

Total cost £370, which is just under $600. If you skip the extra ram and get a lower capacity SSD, you can get this under $500.

I installed Crunchbang 64bit. I do lots of coding on this machine. My battery lasts about 7 hours. Very lightweight. The Thinkpad keyboard is excellent.

I would consider the SSD essential for both speed and battery saving, but you could make it cheaper still without.

You could go back another generation and get an X60/61. These are even cheaper. The Thinkpad build quality is excellent. I expect mine to last for at least 5 years.

[+] phaus|12 years ago|reply
I just got a T430 with 8gb and a 256 SSD on the Lenovo Outlet for $449. They have been clearing inventory lately to make space for the new models.
[+] Samuel_Michon|12 years ago|reply
For that budget, I’d suggest buying a second hand MacBook Air. Looking at the listings on eBay, you could get a pristine one with 13" LED backlit screen, 1.7Ghz i5 with 128GB SSD, 4GB RAM, and with a fresh battery. The MacBook Air is a slim laptop with long battery life, and using the standard OS, you can run all the POSIX apps you could possibly want (or just install a GNU/Linux distro, which the machine is very compatible with, drivers and everything.) That generation has 7 hours of battery life, with WiFi turned on.

Otherwise, what you’re describing is an Ultrabook, and you won’t get a new one for $500.

[+] joombar|12 years ago|reply
I find 4GB RAM isn't enough for dev. Especially if I'm doing web work and have to spin up multiple VMs to run my tests on all platforms. One weakness of the MBA: no upgradable RAM.

If I were buying again I'd get 8GB.

[+] xux|12 years ago|reply
I'm curious why everyone is recommending a Mac. Always been a PC guy. How easy is it to get used to coding on a Mac / installing packages?
[+] MrMeker|12 years ago|reply
Acer chromebook. I paid $199 for mine. They just released a new version so the previous should be cheaper now.

With nitrous.io, you will be able to do everything you list. With an installation of chrouton, you can do anything you want, locally and offline. Another tool worth looking at is Caret, a great imitation of Sublime Text that runs as a Chrome app and supports multiple cursors.

I get 3-4 hr battery life, but I have the stock battery. There are others available with 150% the capacity of the original.

Speaking of upgrades, the Acer C7 is the most easily and possibly the only upgradeable chromebook. It supports up to 16GB RAM and any size laptop hard drive. Mine came with a 16GB SSD, of which 2.3GB is available with a full, well used chrouton install. I am thinking of upgrading the RAM as 2GB is getting tight with instances of chrome running under both operating systems. Having a computer with a 1:1 ratio of RAM to hard storage would be kind of strange.

Overall, the keyboard and screen are really nice. The touchpad is what could be expected for $200.

[+] stefcosma|12 years ago|reply
Agreed. An Acer Chromebook would be a good choice if your're using it to web dev. But I would suggest you try Koding (http://koding.com) Mainly because it has a few notable features that are perfect for a Chromebook.

A Chrome app https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/terminal/kogcfmeen...

Free virtual machine (VM) with Ubuntu, root access, apt-get, and many commonly used tools

Built-in Terminal with 256-color support

All languages, databases, and command-line tools are supported

Various file upload options such as Drag & Drop, Dropbox, Clone from Github, FTP and the ability to access them using SSH

Real-time code and terminal collaboration with integrated chat abilities

Subdomains serve PHP, Perl, Python via Apache, and additional ports are available for other web apps

So in my opinion that's your best choice. :)

[+] xux|12 years ago|reply
I've heard about how Nitrous can be unreliable. What has your experience been?
[+] autotravis|12 years ago|reply
"My budget is $500" + "need to be lightweight, long battery life, slim"

good luck with that.

Chromebook or http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=Proper... are my suggestions.

[+] mehrdada|12 years ago|reply
Get a used (prev. gen) MacBook Air off of Craigslist.
[+] csense|12 years ago|reply
A netbook (eee pc or the like). You're not going to get a great laptop display at the low end, so I recommend an external monitor.