Ask HN: Which is the best laptop for a programmer in the market today?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6586430

by saching90 • 13 years ago

1 2 13 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

ressaid1• 13 years ago

macbook pro

LeoSolaris• 13 years ago

"Best" is a very subjective term.

Depends on what kind of programming you're doing, what works well in my opinion would be:

Web dev? Something with a big enough screen that you're comfy and a keyboard you like.

Application programmer? Add a good processor to compile the code quickly, a solid state hard drive, and a large amount of ram. Think "More than usually advertized" and you're in a good ballpark.

Game dev? Stick in an excellent graphics card that is under a year old on top of the last two answers.

For the last two answers, that is, of course, if you want the compile times to be as short as possible so you can be as productive as possible. If you're just hacking around and learning any of these, then get a good middle of the line laptop that is ergonomically pleasing to you. For learning, is it more about budget than anything else.

Single biggest thing to look for is the solid state drive. Technically speaking, one can code with a pen and paper, though doing that is usually called math. Anything more than that is just going to make the process smoother and faster.

Ask HN: Which is the best laptop for a programmer in the market today?

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