Section 04
Which computer to buy
Tap what you want it for and the model is there, with its link. All of them are bought on Amazon internacional and for every one it says whether the memory can be expanded or is soldered — which is what decides whether it lasts you three years or ten.
Uso 01
Office and school
You work or study on the machine all day: email, documents, classes, video calls, twenty tabs.
7 máquinas · desde $174 USD
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Uso 02
Gaming
You play games, and you also want the system not to fall over on you.
1 máquina · 5 PC armadas · desde $1,441 USD
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Uso 03
Heavy work
You compile, edit video, run models, move data that does not fit in 16 GB.
3 máquinas · desde $359 USD
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Uso 04
Homelab
You want a server in your house: backups, media, your own services.
1 máquina · desde $169 USD
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Precios leídos el · 30 máquinas · 26 se amplían · 3 con tope · 1 soldadas
+ See them all together, to compare− Close
| What for | Laptop | Desktop |
|---|---|---|
| Office and school | Dell Pro 14 Plus PB14250 · ThinkPad T14 Gen 3 · ThinkPad X1 Carbon · Latitude 5420 · Latitude 5450 · ThinkPad T14 Gen 4 · Latitude 5430 · ThinkPad L14 Gen 5 · ThinkPad T480 · Latitude 5320 · ThinkPad T14 Gen 6 · ThinkPad L14 · Latitude 5450 · Latitude 5400 | ThinkCentre M70q Tiny (i5-12500T) · OptiPlex 7010 Micro (13ª gen) · OptiPlex 3060 Micro · ThinkCentre M70q Gen 5 Tiny |
| Gaming | ThinkPad P16 (RTX Ada) · ThinkPad P1 Gen 7 · Precision 3591 | — |
| Heavy work | ThinkPad P16 Gen 2 · Precision 3561 · ThinkPad P14s Gen 2 · ThinkPad P16 Gen 2 | ThinkStation P3 Tiny Gen 2 · Precision 3630 Tower · ThinkStation P3 Tiny |
| Homelab | — | ThinkCentre M720Q Tiny (i5-8400T) · ThinkCentre M70q Tiny nuevo |
And if the one you like is not here? Knowing how to read a machine's name — what a ThinkPad's letter means, when the memory is soldered, what to ask before buying refurbished — works for any of them, including one this page does not mention.
What to check before you buyAnd if you want to check it
Where these six come from
The first thing that comes up in a search is «failure rate by brand». It is not on this page, and it is worth saying why: six sites give six different tables, none publishes where the sample came from, and several contradict themselves within the same page — one puts Lenovo as the brand with the fewest failures and four lines later assigns it a figure that leaves it fifth. They are invented numbers with a precise face on.
What can be checked is an obligation: how many models each manufacturer certifies with Ubuntu. Certifying means signing up to shipping patches when something in Linux breaks on that model. One that does not certify owes you nothing. Counted by hand on 25/08/2026 on ubuntu.com/certified/laptops:
- 649DellLatitude 152
- 350LenovoThinkPad 338 · ThinkBook 6
- 343HPZBook 156 · EliteBook 125I do not recommend it
- 7Alienware16 Aurora 7
- 4FrameworkFramework Laptop 4
649 + 350 + 343 + 7 + 4 = 1,353 — y el catálogo entero son 1,353. Cuadra.
The sum closing on the model is what matters, because then the rest follows without checking brand by brand: if those five already are the whole catalogue, any other is at zero. Zero models: ASUS, Acer, MSI, Razer, Samsung, LG, Gigabyte, Huawei. An uncertified laptop can work perfectly; what it does not have is somebody obliged to fix it.
+ And the same on desktops, where the sum does NOT add up− Close
- 259HPEliteDesk 36I do not recommend it
- 228DellOptiPlex 83 · Precision 53
- 216LenovoThinkStation 101 · ThinkCentre 87 · IdeaCentre 2
- 3AMD AECGZCU10x 3
- 2IntelNUC7 2
- 1ASUSPro ET900N G3 1
- 1DFIES220-CS 1
On laptops the sum came out exact, and that is why it could be stated that the other brands were at zero. Here it does not. Seven more makers were checked one by one and all give zero, but 4 models still do not turn up. They change no recommendation; they do change what this page has the right to assert.
And the fact that changes the recommendation most is not a high number: it is a zero. Not one gaming tower is certified. Alienware, which on laptops is the only certified gaming machine in the world, has zero on desktops. Far from leaving the category without an answer, it improves it: in a tower you choose every chip, there is no soldered memory in any of them, the wifi is a cheap card instead of a life sentence, and the graphics change with two screws.
And before any of this come the 6 things that decide whether a machine works for Linux —the full criteria are here—, y si todavía no sabes si vale la pena cambiar, start with the one you already have.