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TrueStoryBob @lemmy.world

Would it be difficult for me to build a Linux equivalent to a Chromebook?

So, my 10 year old Chromebook has reached the end of the line and, because of [gestures vaguely around at the state of everything], I obviously don't want to buy another one. I am beginning the process of evacuating all my stuff from Alphabet's ecosystem specifically (mostly Google Drive) and other big tech generally.

Essentially, what I need is an inexpensive mid-tier laptop. No gaming, no need to run complex stuff like video/audio editing, nothing like that... I just need to be able to stream video, look at my email, check social media, download text and photo files, etc (so, running a web browser and saving files... that's it). I'd ideally like to have something I could setup once and then potentially not have to fuss with for years (outside of updates obviously)... like a Chromebook.

Coming to Lemmy because I just have no idea where (else) to get started.

Which distro do y'all think would be a good fit for this purpose? Should I play around with different ones? What laptop manufacturers should I look at? Which ones should I avoid? When I buy one, how do I get a machine that's just formatted without Windows already installed? Should I order direct from the manufacturer or would it be more prudent to buy from a retailer (for like shipping and returns policy purposes)? Has someone already built exactly what I'm talking about, written/vlogged about it answering all my questions, and I just can't find it because of the enshitifacation of search engines?

Any suggestions, tips, blogs to read, tech channels to watch, etc, are all greatly appreciated!

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  • what is your budget? for hardware, I would either recommend a used laptop, or some entry level laptop. For a scale, I bought something for 500$ USD (did not buy in US, converting pricing to it) and for that I got - a recent-ish 8 core cpu, with a good (relatively) igpu, 24 GiB Ram, 1 TB storage, and 50Whr battery. If you want to target for 300$, you can roughly halve these specs, and get reasonable deals.

    For distro - Anything works. If you want something to set and forget - pick a immutable distro like Silverblue. All distros essentially will act same, don't try many. What you may want to try is Desktop environments (you can either check youtube videos, or project webpages). If no windows is installed, manufacturers either put opendos on it, or just plain blank, in either case you would prepare a installer media (instructions available on all distro websites, it is easy), go to bios, allow usb booting, then plug the usb, while booting select the media, and start. Then most installers are guided enough to help you.

    Best of Luck.

    • Budget is basically: whatever I need to spend to have a device last at least six to seven years or beyond. I'm willing to spend more for quality, but the thought process is that if I can buy used and still get quality/longevity then that's what I'll do. Someone else suggested to try and get a used machine from my work, which almost embarrassingly hadn't occurred to me. They're about to do a laptop replacement cycle and, while I'm not issued a work laptop, there's going to be like fifty to choose from (if they haven't already been promised to a school or something). Gonna ask our IT manager about it Monday.

      Also, thanks for the info about the distros, having only fooled around with works-out-of-the-box PC's for forever now, switching over to Linux can be a bit overwhelming.

      • Going for 6-7 years - you need to keep a few things in mind

        • depending on usage - battery would have to replaced once or twice - so machine has to be somewhat repairable.
        • a subset of above - 2 or 3 cleanings per year
        • also try to find repair guides for your device, the harder it is to repair, less good of a deal it is. For my old laptop, i have to not only remove all of the motherboard, but then de-rivet a back plate, and then replace keyboard and re-rivet. This forced me to buy a external keyboard.
        • go for a good display - at this price, tn is very common, my old laptop was tn, and it sucked. go for IPS. (difference in price would be $10)
        • if you are flexible with budget, don't buy really old stuff. Anything from last 3-4 or even 5 years is fine, but any older is definitely not. since you want to future proof, going for maybe $100 more for a better cpu may even pay well, if you amortize the cost over 4-5 years
        • go for something not plastic body - my last laptop was plastic body, and in nearly 2 years of daily commute and medium to heavy usage, all edges broke, and in 1-2 falls, i even had display bleed. Unscrewing and screwing back made plastic bits fail over time. If you can find a metal body, then great, if not, try to get something which has parts of body metal reinforced (my current one is this)
        • whatever hardware you get - please check linux compatibility beforehand. for laptops this will include keyboard - touchpad, wifi cards, and so on
        • do not go for a gimmicky device

        Don't be overwhelmed by linux. These days, operating systems are anyway glorified boot loader for browsers, where people do everything. If you need any help, post in communities and you will find help. You can also message me if you would like that.

43 comments