2.9 KiB
2.9 KiB
ThinkPad Recommendations for NixOS + Coding
Top Two Picks
1. Lenovo ThinkPad T14 Gen 1 (AMD) — Best Overall ⭐
| Spec | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | 2020 (6 years old) |
| CPU | AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 4650U (6c/12t) or Ryzen 7 PRO 4750U (8c/16t) |
| RAM | 8GB soldered + 1x SODIMM slot (max ~40GB) |
| Storage | 1x M.2 NVMe |
| GPU | Radeon RX Vega 6/7/8 (great for Wayland/Niri) |
| Price (AUD) | ~00–00 |
| Secure Boot | Easily disabled in BIOS — no lock-in |
2. Lenovo ThinkPad T480 — Budget / Max-Upgrade Pick 💰
| Spec | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | 2018 (8 years old) |
| CPU | Intel 8th Gen i5-8250U (4c/8t) or i7-8650U (4c/8t) |
| RAM | 2x SODIMM slots — fully upgradable to 64GB |
| Storage | 1x M.2 NVMe + 2.5" SATA bay |
| Battery | Dual hot-swappable (internal + external) |
| GPU | Intel UHD 620 (fine for Niri) |
| Price (AUD) | ~00–50 |
Generation Differences (T14 series)
| Gen | Year | AMD CPU | Key Changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gen 1 | 2020 | Ryzen 4000 (Zen 2) | First T14 — 8GB soldered + 1 slot |
| Gen 2 | 2021 | Ryzen 5000 (Zen 3) | Same chassis, CPU bump |
| Gen 3 | 2022 | Ryzen 6000 (Zen 3+) | USB4, DDR5, better iGPU |
| Gen 4 | 2023 | Ryzen 7040 (Zen 4) | Newer CPU, minor refresh |
| Gen 5 | 2024 | Ryzen 8040 (Zen 4) | Latest |
Note: Gen 1 AMD was the last affordable sweet spot. Gen 3+ get pricey second-hand. The T480 is older but uniquely has 2x SODIMM slots — all T14 models have soldered RAM.
Why Ryzen over Intel for This?
| AMD Ryzen (T14 G1) | Intel (T14 G1) | |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-core perf | ~60-80% faster (6-8 cores) | 4-core, struggles with compilation |
| iGPU (Wayland/Niri) | Radeon Vega — excellent driver, smooth compositing | Intel UHD — works but weaker |
| Battery life | Better — Ryzen 4000 efficient | Worse on 10th gen Intel |
| Thunderbolt | ❌ No (but USB-C DP works fine) | ✅ Yes (Intel version only) |
| Price second-hand | Cheaper than Intel version (less demand) | Often priced higher |
The Ryzen 4000 series was a generational leap — AMD jumped from 4 cores to 6-8 cores while Intel was still on 4 cores with 10th gen. For coding (compilation, VMs, NixOS builds), the extra cores make a huge difference.
Secure Boot / Lock-in Note
The "signed" problem you hit was Secure Boot. Both the T480 and T14 let you disable it trivially:
- F1 at boot → Security → Secure Boot → Disabled
- Boot NixOS installer
No signed drivers, no Pluton chip, no Microsoft gatekeeping.
Bottom Line
| If you want... | Get this |
|---|---|
| Best performance for coding | T14 Gen 1 AMD Ryzen 7 (~00-650 AUD) |
| Cheapest entry + max upgradeability | T480 i5 (~00-400 AUD) + upgrade RAM/storage later |
Search eBay AU: "ThinkPad T14 Gen 1 AMD Ryzen" or "ThinkPad T480"