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Study The CNS
Anecdotal Subtext


Registered: 11/17/20
Posts: 1,588
Loc: Mexico
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Purism Laptops
#27064168 - 11/30/20 08:32 AM (3 years, 1 month ago) |
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Any opinions/experiences with this organization?
https://shop.puri.sm/shop/librem-15/
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ch0ppie


Registered: 11/18/20
Posts: 593
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No, but tell me you're not interested in that i7 7500U GPU-less $1300 laptop, or am I missing something?
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DancingWolf
FluffButt


Registered: 08/31/19
Posts: 797
Last seen: 30 days, 5 hours
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Maybe look at Clevo laptops or Sager laptops (rebranded Clevos, different BIOS so don't flash em wrong). Much better specs and prices, they are also up-gradable on their higher end like PCs.
That laptop you linked is junk and I wouldn't even entertain spending half of the asking price on it. If you aren't gaming then get something used; literally blow the dust out of the heatsinks and interiors, and format it. You should be formatting all new computers and laptops anyway for security and bloatware reasons.
Shows $1,599 here.
Seriously, get a sager/clevo. Great specs and their build quality is excellent. I used to have one of their top tier desktop replacements when I was a little more mobile and it was as thick as my phone was wide. Power bricks top out at 300 watts, so some models need 2X power bricks with an adapter if you want mobile power. Remember to remove the battery when plugged in. Batteries should only be inside laptops when using it mobile or when charging it.
https://www.sagernotebook.com/home.php https://www.sagernotebook.com/Notebook-NP7958F1.html
Link is the same price but much better specs. Very customizable computers and I recommend upgrading the screen / panel option for either 90%+ NTSC or IPS.
Avoid Toshiba like the plague... I lost count on the number of hardware failures people brought to me.
Edited by DancingWolf (12/01/20 11:10 PM)
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Study The CNS
Anecdotal Subtext


Registered: 11/17/20
Posts: 1,588
Loc: Mexico
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What about the OS? Wouldn't you rather have a system pre-indtalled with Tails or Qubes? And hard-off-switches for camera, audio, internet?
https://mobile.twitter.com/snowden/status/781493632293605376?lang=en
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DancingWolf
FluffButt


Registered: 08/31/19
Posts: 797
Last seen: 30 days, 5 hours
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If you want a hyper secure laptop then you need to disassemble the hardware and check for bugs while having a detailed knowledge of what should and shouldn't be there. The NSA likely still runs it's program for intercepting consumer electronics.
As for microphones, web cameras, etc, you can pop the bezel off your laptop and physically disconnect them. Likewise you can remove the modem card from your laptop. Most good headsets come with a manual microphone switch now. The only proof of concept attack on speakers that I know of in converting them to a microphone involves REALTEK drivers. Installing a new OS is easy and I would rather do that myself than have it done by another party.
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ch0ppie


Registered: 11/18/20
Posts: 593
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Gotta agree, if it's not mandatory that you need a pre-installed OS, do it yourself, it's straight forward, you set it up how you want from the start, guarantees no additional bits of software you don't need is on there too, only whatever you add/install.
And same for the hardware switches, sure that's cool but is a very minor detail to factor above so many others. Also as Wolf cleverly suggested, there are ways to disable these devices, albeit less-elegant than a dedicated switch, but worth the slight extra hassle instead of narrowing your choices to models with the hardware-switch feature which you'll be paying for as well.
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Alan Rockefeller
Mycologist

Registered: 03/10/07
Posts: 48,266
Last seen: 11 hours, 53 minutes
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I wouldn't get a special laptop that is marketed as "secure" - it's much more likely to be backdoored than a regular laptop.
This reminds me of the "secure" phones that were sold to drug dealers a couple years ago. Interpol was able to hack all of them at once. They would have been a lot better off with normal phones and widely used security software.
How secure your computer is depends entirely what you do with it.
If you are running Windows, you are trusting all the Windows developers. If you are running Linux, you are trusting all the Linux developers. If you use any computer at all, you are trusting all the people who manufacture all of its hardware.
Who do you want the computer to be secure from? Police? CIA? Hackers? Friends who come over?
What do you want to do with it?
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Study The CNS
Anecdotal Subtext


Registered: 11/17/20
Posts: 1,588
Loc: Mexico
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------A DNM purchase for personal, medicinal use.
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Alan Rockefeller
Mycologist

Registered: 03/10/07
Posts: 48,266
Last seen: 11 hours, 53 minutes
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Quote:
Study The CNS said: ------A DNM purchase for personal, medicinal use.
You can just use your normal laptop for that, no one is going to care.
If you were a DNM seller, you'd want to be more careful, as people are actually looking for them.
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