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Comment by mushufasa | Hacker News Reader

System 76 (the small linux-only hardware manufacturer) just refreshed their Oryx Pro last month, which looks pretty capable and looks from afar to be really good build quality. https://system76.com/laptops/oryx

I haven't found many/any reviews of it since the refresh -- does anyone on HN have one who can attest?

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I have a new Oryx Pro. I'm not an expert on laptop build quality but to me the Oryx Pro looks and feels great. It is in fact a Clevo P955ER, which I know I could get for cheaper, but personally I want to support System 76's selling and supporting Linux laptops. I'd actually be interested to see if a straight-up Clevo P955ER with Pop!_OS installed is any more or less stable than an Oryx Pro.

Anyways here are my thoughts:

Good things: - Keyboard is pleasant to use (for me) - Trackpad feels good (not as good as Apple's trackpads but much better than most non-Apple ones) - Desktop-level performance - No Linux jankiness -- everything has just worked for me so far on Pop!_OS - Battery life is not as terrible as I thought it'd be on Intel graphics (~5 hours depending on what you're doing. I haven't tested this too thoroughly)

Complaints: - Need to reboot to switch between Nvidia and Intel graphics - Fans are always audible on Nvidia graphics no matter what you're doing - Nvidia graphics are required in order to use any external displays - Battery life is horrible on Nvidia graphics, so you basically have to switch graphics then shut down before unplugging from an external monitor if you plan on using it on-the-go

No _need_ to reboot. Restarting the Xorg/Wayland server, maybe. You might be able to fool it into thinking you just hot-plugged the GPU, at least as far as the screen layout is concerned.

Remember: the only reason you need to reboot linux is to get a new kernel, or because the kernel FUBAR'd and corrupted data.

I hear you, and I've restarted the display server plenty of times on my computers instead of restarting them, especially on my main desktop where I have lots more stuff running independent of the display (daemons, etc). But, I feel like particularly on a laptop, if you're restarting the display server, it's not much different than just restarting the whole machine. Certainly that's the case for the large majority of users. Anyway, I think the point is that it's a hassle, which it is, not that you literally "need to reboot".

Would it be possible to start a second display server like we used to, one on ctrl-alt-F8 and one on ctrl-alt-F7? So when you want to do some gaming you start up your gaming workspace and switch to it, and when you want to turn off the nvidia graphics you destroy the gaming workspace, but your document workspace that was using the intel graphics is still there? That feels like it could be somewhat usable.

Should be. Windows is actually not crashing the desktop when the driver balks, so you can AFAIK run a Windows VM on a Linux and switch the PCIe GPU (yes, i915 counts from Haswell on) via KVM/QUEMU/IO-MMU between host and VM, with the latter not caring much, but the former crashing Xorg.

I prefer to keep things up/running, i.e. demon-based software, file transfers, mounts (including LUKS password unlocking), music players, etc. Even SSH sessions.

I am still looking for a way to restart Xorg without having to restart the software on it, but so far I have not found a solution.

That makes sense. Pop_OS! has a button for switching graphics that prompts you to reboot. I bet that could be updated to only restart X11 or something https://github.com/pop-os/gnome-shell-extension-system76-pow...

I switched to a System76 Lumur last year after 5-6 years of MacBook Pro. The biggest adjustment for me was the battery life, it’s not terrible, but I remember I never had to think about charging my Mac. Aside from the flimsy hardware I can’t complain about anything else, I certainly don’t miss macOS and I’d take Linux over it any day. The price is a factor as well, I got a maxed out system for half the price, in another year I can buy a brand new System76 and I would have spent the same amount a MacBook Pro costs. Having said all this, I do miss the MacBook hardware quite a lot.

The hardware seems to be the killer for many of us: battery, fit and finish, and most importantly the trackpad/keyboard.

My mbp is having the common keyboard issues and while looking at replacements I can’t find anything remotely close that balances what I need. :/

Note no mention of battery life. Look at the internals and you'll see why - the battery is absolutely tiny, and the logic board, disk, and fans are comparatively massive. The parts are definitely not power-friendly either. Seems very optimized for staying plugged in, with only a quick unplug to go into a meeting. My guess is it'll do ~3hrs w that 55Wh battery at most. This competes with gaming laptops and not MBPs, though it does look nice.

I think System76 is using Clevo/Sager chassis still. You can buy these setups from a place like xotic and load up linux yourself for a bit less than System76 stuff costs.

Yeah, I don't get system 76's draw. If they were doing something meaningful with their systems like developing coreboot for them, that would make it a selling point at least. They have recently started using me_cleaner, which is a good start I guess. Other than that, I think they are developing their own distro, which seems like an utter waste.

I have a System 76 laptop from a few years back (not Oryx Pro), and while it's still my main home comouter, it's definitely a lot flimsier and heavier than any macbook. Battery life was never great, and by now it's shot far enough that I only use it while plugged in. That being said, it's remained a reliable system and I wouldn't mind upgrading to a newer model.

Consider asking for a new Battery next gift-giving holiday (Christmas?). If it's not that much, it's likely worth it unless it'd be of no use.

If it were only the battery, I'd replace it, but getting a new system will also scratch the itch to upgrade hardware specs. There's also some piece rattling around inside the case which must have broken off early on... (to my point about fragility compared to macbooks)

Consider (used) thinkpads. There are places that refurbish them, also selling you devices that just got out of their lease, due to the owner bailing out after only a few months. They are frequently available for half-price in good-as-new with still some warranty on them, which you don't need on the T and X series (not the carbon though). They need one screwdriver, for full disassembly.

You can't be serious? The thing doesn't even have a centred trackpad.

It has anumeric keypad so the touchpad is in the correct place.

It's the number pad that's in the wrong place. It should not be on the laptop.

I've got a HP with a number pad because no 15" model doesn't have one. I never use it (the number pad) but I have to shift the whole machine to the right to have the touchpad and the "real" keyboard in front of me. So most of the vern is on the right of my eyes. Great design!

Different users different requirements.

I bought Lenovo Thinkpad P50 instead of Dell XPS because the Thinkpad has a full keyboard.

Agreed about the requirements, but do you also shift the laptop right or bend your arms and shoulders?

I'd sell the numberpad as an external device. People that need it will buy it and place it to the right of the laptop (or maybe to the left for left handers, who knows?)

There is another design problem: it could shield the ports on the side where it is placed.

Another solution: engineer the screen so that it can be shifted 1/3 to the left when the laptop is open. That will align it with the spacebar and the touchpad.

About the XPS, I didn't buy it back in 2014 because the then current model had some thermal problem and because I like 3 physical buttons on the touchpad. HP ZBooks do have them.

This irks me as well. Even if it has a numpad, I’d still prefer the trackpad be in the middle.

I’ve read some reviews about System76 and a lot of people seem to hate build quality to the extend or returning them.

Then there’s https://lambdal.com/products/tensorbook that focus on ML workloads.

> System 76 (the small linux-only hardware manufacturer)

Nitpick: IIRC they purchase hardware from some other OEM vendor (Clevo Google suggests).

So what do they do, exactly? Install Linux and then resell?

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