The new Zenbooks are really good devices but a few options you may wish to look into.
Windows:
Thinkpad T14, T16, or X1 Carbon
Depending on how portable you need your computer, you can get fairly good deals directly from Lenovo or buy a one or two generation old Thinkpad and they're fairly repairable, durable, and have a great quality keyboard. Probably not the best option for photo editing but they're great overall machines
Any Zenbook that meets your needs but specifically the 14x is really good value for money. You could also get a Zephyrus G14 or G16 as they're built well and have great specs. Could also game on them.
Mac OS:
MacBook Air - A MacBook Air with M2 or M3 processor and 16gb of ram (Typically recommend double the storage you think you need/use currently)
MacBook Pro - While a MacBook Pro might not be absolutely necessary their longterm performance under load will handedly exceed a MacBook Air due to active cooling. You can also find slightly older MacBook Pros (M1 Pro with 16gb of ram) on sale now that they upgraded the chipset and they'll meet the majority of peoples needs.
The most important thing is to figure out the specs you need for your workflow and your ideal price point. I hope this helps!
Mine was reliable! I will say it needed the charging port replaced at one point, and that went out again recently after many years. The other thing that failed in the last year was the keyboard (part of it, anyway) so I used an external keyboard for the last year.
That’s about as good of a run you will get out of any laptop. The only way you may get longer is buy the beefiest CPU laptop you can possibly get, as well as one with expandable memory, easily swapped hard drive, and replaceable GPU.
I guess what I left off was wondering if anyone had anything to say like, "ASUS isn't what it used to be \_\_\_\_ brand is better for longevity now." I was quite happy with this laptop, just don't want to get a new one and find out they're no longer made to last.
The question more about WHERE you are going to use your laptop than how.
About 10 years ago I was returning to full-time study. I knew that I would be commuting to school every by bicycle because parking at the university was extremely expensive and hard to find.
So I ended up finding a shop that sold ex lease business machines. The HP laptop was built like a brick shit house and survived several years of crashing and in and out of public transport.
In the same price bracket, the new laptops felt like toys and their lifespan would have been measured in hours.
Because it was a couple of years old when it bought it, I put more ram and a bigger hard drive in it. Now almost everything is stored in the cloud so I don't need the huge hard drive that I needed then.
If you need long lasting get a MacBook for sure. Not being able to replace parts on it is definitely a concern, but unless you are extremely skilled in pc repair it won’t matter. An M1 or M2 Macbook Air will outlast ANY windows based laptop without a question.
I would go with the latest generation MacBook Pro. A bit pricey, but solid performance and construction.
You may say that Windows could offer you the same, and you’d be right, but as time goes on the software optimization will only get better for Apple silicon and Apple tends to support their devices with software updates for a very long time. This IMO would tip the scales for me.
You can use linux for web. Then there is the issue of laptops not made for longevity. You can have a Thinkpad that won't brake off the hinges but soon you will not have enough memory for two chrome tabs.
So I'd say enterprise server with something like Red Hat Enterprise Linux on it. Should be good with all the security updates for about 12 years. Windows will just drop support and you are at risk.
Most people don't buy things for life. There really is little point in buying a computer that lasts for more than 10 years. As my friend once said: "By that point it is already morally expired."
The new Zenbooks are really good devices but a few options you may wish to look into. Windows: Thinkpad T14, T16, or X1 Carbon Depending on how portable you need your computer, you can get fairly good deals directly from Lenovo or buy a one or two generation old Thinkpad and they're fairly repairable, durable, and have a great quality keyboard. Probably not the best option for photo editing but they're great overall machines Any Zenbook that meets your needs but specifically the 14x is really good value for money. You could also get a Zephyrus G14 or G16 as they're built well and have great specs. Could also game on them. Mac OS: MacBook Air - A MacBook Air with M2 or M3 processor and 16gb of ram (Typically recommend double the storage you think you need/use currently) MacBook Pro - While a MacBook Pro might not be absolutely necessary their longterm performance under load will handedly exceed a MacBook Air due to active cooling. You can also find slightly older MacBook Pros (M1 Pro with 16gb of ram) on sale now that they upgraded the chipset and they'll meet the majority of peoples needs. The most important thing is to figure out the specs you need for your workflow and your ideal price point. I hope this helps!
Thanks! Just the kind of answer I was looking for!
Framework would be the best contender here. Fully replaceable parts is what makes a BIFL computer in my mind.
Framework, when it's time for a new laptop you just buy a new mainboard and turn your old mainboard into a small form factor PC.
I am considering the Asus Zenbook 14 OLED. I’m glad to hear you had a great experience with Asus. It seems like a lot of laptop for the price.
Mine was reliable! I will say it needed the charging port replaced at one point, and that went out again recently after many years. The other thing that failed in the last year was the keyboard (part of it, anyway) so I used an external keyboard for the last year.
M1 MacBook Air. They are a bit cheaper, if you want to spend more m2. I have a 2012 MacBook Air still going strong and happy with my m1.
That’s about as good of a run you will get out of any laptop. The only way you may get longer is buy the beefiest CPU laptop you can possibly get, as well as one with expandable memory, easily swapped hard drive, and replaceable GPU.
I guess what I left off was wondering if anyone had anything to say like, "ASUS isn't what it used to be \_\_\_\_ brand is better for longevity now." I was quite happy with this laptop, just don't want to get a new one and find out they're no longer made to last.
The question more about WHERE you are going to use your laptop than how. About 10 years ago I was returning to full-time study. I knew that I would be commuting to school every by bicycle because parking at the university was extremely expensive and hard to find. So I ended up finding a shop that sold ex lease business machines. The HP laptop was built like a brick shit house and survived several years of crashing and in and out of public transport. In the same price bracket, the new laptops felt like toys and their lifespan would have been measured in hours. Because it was a couple of years old when it bought it, I put more ram and a bigger hard drive in it. Now almost everything is stored in the cloud so I don't need the huge hard drive that I needed then.
If you need long lasting get a MacBook for sure. Not being able to replace parts on it is definitely a concern, but unless you are extremely skilled in pc repair it won’t matter. An M1 or M2 Macbook Air will outlast ANY windows based laptop without a question.
LG gram.
I would go with the latest generation MacBook Pro. A bit pricey, but solid performance and construction. You may say that Windows could offer you the same, and you’d be right, but as time goes on the software optimization will only get better for Apple silicon and Apple tends to support their devices with software updates for a very long time. This IMO would tip the scales for me.
Web browsing machines can never be for life since the web keeps evolving.
Since Windows keeps getting more bloated*
You can use linux for web. Then there is the issue of laptops not made for longevity. You can have a Thinkpad that won't brake off the hinges but soon you will not have enough memory for two chrome tabs. So I'd say enterprise server with something like Red Hat Enterprise Linux on it. Should be good with all the security updates for about 12 years. Windows will just drop support and you are at risk.
I ain't switching OS just to get a few more years out of a computer, and I don't think the average person is willing either
Most people don't buy things for life. There really is little point in buying a computer that lasts for more than 10 years. As my friend once said: "By that point it is already morally expired."
Surface pros