Windows 11 or Ubuntu/Pop OS on Entry Level Laptop

[Renton577]

So I'm trying to decide which to use. The main thing I'm looking for is performance. I've got a laptop with an i3-1005G1 which seems to struggle a bit with windows 11. I was wondering how much better performance would be on Ubuntu or PopOS if at all.

[Master Disaster]

Depends on which flavour you pick. Gnome & KDE both need a fairly decent system as they have a lot of compositing effects (though neither are as heavy as Windows) but you can choose something like Cinnamon or Mate that still has a lot of the visual flair but is much lighter on resources overall. Going even further XFCE will basically run on a paperclip or you can choose a Tiling Window Manager for ultimate performance at the cost of usability (at least until you learn how they work).

[RONOTHAN##]

4 minutes ago, Renton577 said:

how much better performance would be on Ubuntu or PopOS if at all.

It's enough to be noticeable. If its stuggling and all the software you have can run on Linux, it's a decent idea to try (at least the live environment and/or dual booting).

[RAGNES7]

Rollback to windows 10 and Disable Updates through manual settings

[Vishera]

8 minutes ago, Renton577 said:

So I'm trying to decide which to use. The main thing I'm looking for is performance. I've got a laptop with an i3-1005G1 which seems to struggle a bit with windows 11. I was wondering how much better performance would be on Ubuntu or PopOS if at all.

Linux should be faster,though i prefer manjaro.

[manikyath]

it's a weird mixed bag. i recently put linux on a *very* potato desktop that 'ran okay' with windows 10, but windows 10 did need notable resources of the box to run, so it was limited in what i could actually do because of that.

 

i recently tossed xubuntu on it, and the OS defenately needs less resources off the top, so i can finally run 1080p video without hitching. but on the flip side, it's very noticeable that the UI elements arent as "optimized" as they are on windows. browsing folders, doing something in the start menu, changing settings, etc. all is significiantly less smooth than on windows, boot times actually arent that great, etc.

 

as for the struggles with win11.. my work laptop is the only windows 11 device i have, and i intend to keep it that way until win11 is actually a functional operating system. it shouldnt be 'normal' that crashes are part of the daily workflow, that sleep mode is broken DEPENDING on the way you put the laptop to sleep, or that freaking notepad can just randomly hang.

[LloydLynx]

9 hours ago, Master Disaster said:

Gnome & KDE both need a fairly decent system as they have a lot of compositing effects (though neither are as heavy as Windows) but you can choose something like Cinnamon or Mate that still has a lot of the visual flair but is much lighter on resources overall. Going even further XFCE will basically run on a paperclip or you can choose a Tiling Window Manager for ultimate performance at the cost of usability

Though the i3-1005G1 is pretty low end, it's also pretty new and should have no issues running common compositing effects on Windows or Linux(CPU and iGPU). The problem is probably Windows choking on low RAM or a spinning rust hard drive, both of which Linux will help with a lot. 

[FUIT1985]

Before buying an entry level computer, check with a search engine if it has well known compatibility problems with Linux or not. Just this...

 

In any case, do not uninstall the original OS, use a dual boot or an external hard drive.

Edited April 23, 2022 by FUIT1985

[Renton577]

Thanks for all of the input everyone, I'm leaning more towards switching over to Linux since the laptop I have has a 256GB NVME SSD, 8GB DDR4 3200Mhz RAM and the i3-1005G1 I was talking about. Windows system tasks and Antimalware service seem to be the culprit of what's slowing it down and also "windows manager" whenever I try to play a game just chokes the CPU. Not to mention it seems to load up the RAM when I do the slightest thing and I have Sysmain turned off so it wont preload programs. All these issues I've seen before when I had higher end laptops and they were even noticeable then but I guess with an entry level laptop its WAY more noticeable.

 

Also rolling back to windows 10 is not an option since they laptop came with windows 11.

[Renton577]

On 4/23/2022 at 2:05 AM, Vishera said:

Linux should be faster,though i prefer manjaro.

As someone who has only used PopOS and Ubuntu, how much of a learning curve would Manjaro be since its Arch?

[Vishera]

13 hours ago, Renton577 said:

As someone who has only used PopOS and Ubuntu, how much of a learning curve would Manjaro be since its Arch?

Manjaro is easy,and the package manager is really good.

And there is lots of helpful documentation in case you need help,especially in the Arch wiki.

 

If you want you an app store you can install the Snap store or KDE Discover.

[Margo]

come back to 10 WIN

[Renton577]

On 4/26/2022 at 10:44 AM, Vishera said:

Manjaro is easy,and the package manager is really good.

And there is lots of helpful documentation in case you need help,especially in the Arch wiki.

 

If you want you an app store you can install the Snap store or KDE Discover.

I ended up going Manjaro KDE Plasma and I love it, big thing with it is I saw almost a 2x performance jump when it came to CPU intensive tasks due to the fact that windows wasn't chewing through my CPU cycles.

 

On 5/1/2022 at 1:47 PM, Margo said:

come back to 10 WIN

I thought about doing this but my system came with 11 so I don't know if the key would be interchangeable for it. Plus I'd prefer to be on a current operating system that hasn't been replaced even though windows 10 is still being supported I'd feel like I would still have it chewing through my CPU cycles just like 11 with background tasks like antimalware service and what not.