For anyone who’s looking for a laptop, but doesn’t want to buy something pre-loaded with Windows/MacOS or would like to support a smaller company than Dell, HP, etc… System 76 has just put out an updated Oryx Pro today. The new Darter Pro was released recently as well.
Most notable differences are nice slim bezels and 8th-gen Intel processors. The base size for the Oryx has been increased from 15" to 16" as well, and they still have the 17" model if you like the larger screen size.
I’d be very curious if @wendell or someone else from this forum did a review.
I 
System76, but their laptops have been garbage. My Oryx Pro was literally the worst laptop I’ve ever owned, and I’ve owned eMachines.
I’ve very much enjoyed my Meerkat though, and the Wild Dog was solid. I’m eager to see if their laptops are getting any better now that they’re moving more stuff in-house.
I wish I could find more reviews as well. There are a few floating around YouTube, but none of them seem to be that enthused or disappointed by it, just meh.
I’m glad I didn’t buy one when I was looking a couple months ago then lol. Plus the fact that they just released an upgrade. I would have been upset.
I’ve been wanting to get one for a while, I just don’t have the money to at the moment. I’m making damn sure I pay off my 0% interest at Best Buy and PayPal so I’m not late and get charged out the ass for interest.
Once that’s done I might start saving up for a Darter Pro. I’m still running a Lenovo T420 as my main laptop because I love the keyboard on it and nothing else in modern laptops comes close, but I’m getting tired of the crappy screen.
Speaking of loving keyboards, I’m really curious about this claim.
System 76 resells laptops, Clevo, IIRC. I’m still using my Gazelle Pro from 6 years ago. I want to replace it for a smaller laptop, but I can’t think of a reason short of the fact that it’s heavier than modern laptops.
I really wish I had something to say about their more recent laptops. But the best I have is the fact that I’m still using a 6 year old laptop without much of anything to complain about.
This. The T420 has been a great nix laptop, but the latest updates have slowed it down, and the screen is getting really dated. I’d love for System76 to be the company that gives us basically what some Mac people have (the Mac people that have had the balls to flash a Macbook to linux). Great hardware, great screen, no windows. I’m also holding out for them to have AMD options.
Nope. Still shitty chicklet with no backlighting.
Their bad keyboards bug me.
IMO they don’t have a competitive product.
The laptops with the best keyboards are in this order: Google pixilbook, surface laptop 2, surface book.
Walk into a best buy and test out my claims. S76 has good ethics but mediocre hardware. Depends on if they provide you with enough value tbh. Not a bad buy, just not for everyone.
Seriously. I’d gladly pay the premium if they made their own stuff and it was actually nice hardware. There are too many laptops on the market with shitty flimsy trackpads and limp keyboards.
Ah, so nothing with decent I/O 
I did that a few days ago actually 
. I was quite whelmed. The best one in my opinion was on a Lenovo Yoga 900 series, but it’s not convincing enough to make me drop the T420. Didn’t care for the MS keyboards, Dell XPS felt okay, HP Spectre was a little mushy. I even felt the 2018 MacBook Pro keyboard and it feels worse than the 2016 that I use for work. I actually really enjoy the clickiness of the 2016 model, it just jams ALL THE TIME and there’s no clearance so it’s impossible to get shit out. The 2018 still has annoyingly short travel, except now it’s less clicky so now it’s uncomfortable AND boring.
I’m mostly debating between System76, Lenovo X1 Carbon or Extreme, or the new Dell XPS 13. I’m in no rush though realistically, so I probably shouldn’t be thinking about it too much or I’ll just end up buying it when I don’t really need it until my next trip, which won’t be for a couple months at least because I just went to Portland two weekends ago.
Kinda getting off topic a little bit now, but really the only things making me want to drop the T420 are the screen quality and the fact that my travel backpack, which I payed a lot of money for because it’s really nice, won’t fit a thick laptop so I can’t bring my T420 with me when I fly. It has plenty of power. I put 16GB of RAM and a 500GB SSD in it, so it’s fast. But the viewing angles are horrendous. I thought about doing the HD+ screen upgrade, as it’s not expensive and I’m not afraid to take laptops apart, but that still doesn’t solve the size problem. Although I could do the screen upgrade AND get a really nice new backpack and that would still cost a hell of a lot less than buying a new laptop for the specs I want.
