The Quest for a Good AMD Ryzen Notebook With full Linux Support – Winners: Lenovo ThinkPad L14 and L15 (2023 update)
On my quest for a well-working affordable computer, runs Linux smoothly, and works with two external monitors, I am sharing my experiences in researching about, and testing AMD laptops here. I hope to save the readers some time, and also want to link to the individual online debates for the nerdier topics. Furthermore, see my previous write-up titled Lenovo ThinkPad L14 (L15) AMD Ryzen — maxing out hardware and other options.
The quest for a good AMD Ryzen Notebook with Linux support — why Lenovo?
My personal quest was to find a solid notebook that I could use as a daily driver, but which essentially should not replace my desktop PC. My job requires me to travel frequently (yes, also in lockdown times), but only between 3 places where I don’t want to have the same desktop setups installed. Since Lenovo has been announcing that they “are bringing Linux certification to ThinkPads and Think Stations” and further that they will be “launching Linux-ready ThinkPad and Think Station PCs” — for me, that meant that I want a Lenovo system. The recent benchmarks of AMD 4000 and 5000 series CPUs have been fantastic. The Linux Kernel, which has a substantial amount of AMD Radeon code (more than 10% of the Linux Kernel is from AMD) made me look for an AMD Ryzen Lenovo notebook. Waiting for quite some time, I finally received the Lenovo L15 AMD Ryzen.
Update 2023 and 2024: still a big fan of the L14 and L15, and I have set up over 40 devices since. I am still buying the Gen1, and Gen2, as the price is unbeatable.
Update 2022: Since the original writing of this article, I have also tested newer notebooks with ZEN3 architecture, and I own multiple Lenovo devices. The winner stays the ZEN2 Lenovo L15 AMD Gen1. Why not the Gen2, you might ask? It is only marginally faster, and the OS support (Ubuntu) is far worse than with the L15 AMD Gen1. Newer Linux Kernels such as 5.17 have dedicated AMD P-State patches, so if you are feeling brave, go with the L14 AMD Gen2 or the L15 AMD Gen2. For everyone else, I can only strongly suggest the Lenovo ThinkPad L15 AMD Gen1 as the most compatible and perfectly fast Ubuntu certified Linux notebook.
I have additionally also tested these
- Lenovo L15 AMD Gen2
- Lenovo L14 AMD Gen2
- Lenovo E14 AMD Gen3
To save you a lot of trouble: you can safely install BIOS version 1.21 or newer and enjoy better support with Linux Kernel 5.17 for the Lenovo ZEN3 based notebooks. Please read this Reddit post, you will find a lot of research I collected there.
Alternative notebooks I had considered
- Lenovo L14 AMD — I went with the L15 mainly because of the larger monitor, and because of the extended keyboard, which I need for data entry. Besides the screen size and the keyboard, these notebooks have identical specs.
- MSI Bravo 15 AMD — this was a close one, and especially since it features a dedicated GPU (AMD Radeon RX 5500M Mobile) as well as a 120hz screen and an AMD Ryzen 4800H, still is a favorable option. Linux's support of the MSI Bravo is heavily discussed on a dedicated Reddit thread, so you can jump in there for more info. I ended up not getting it because of the nicer keyboard of the Lenovo L15 AMD.
- Dell G5 15 SE 5505 Eclipse Black, Ryzen 7 4800H. This was also a very close one, as it even features a faster dedicated GPU — a RX 5600M. Finally, it just did not have a reasonable design, and the keyboard of the L15 is much better. Linux's support is not as good as on Lenovo notebooks, as discussed in this Reddit thread. While the maximum RAM you can order this with Dell is 32 GB, Ryzen SoCs should be able to handle 64 GB max.
Lenovo L15 — additional hardware and extensions
- RAM: there is a great read on Reddit, about which RAM you should get for your Lenovo notebook. I can recommend the Kingston Technology HyperX Impact 32 GB 3200MHz DDR4 CL20 SODIMM (Kit of 2) Memory HX432S20IBK2/32 for a total of 64 GB Ram.
- Mechanical keyboard: PFU HHKB Professional Hybrid Type-S White PD-KB800WS — The Lenovo L15 already features a quite nice keyboard, but a mechanical keyboard definitely is a must. HHKB is the most relevant brand to look out for. I am suggesting to get the doubleshot “Cyberpunk” key cap set.
- Mouse. Razer is the suggested brand for mice, as they are well-supported on Linux with OpenRazer. Personally, I got myself a Razer Basilisk v2 Wired, but I am also recommending the Razer Death Adder v2 Pro.
- ThinkPad USB-C Dock Gen 2. As AMD notebooks are not supporting Thunderbolt, there are only a few compatible docking stations, as outlined on this Reddit thread.
Crazy hacks and extensions
- Replacing the display (screen) with a UHD 4K panel: User Pascal_Belgium on Reddit reported on how he replaced the panel of his Lenovo L14 Gen1 with a 4K UHD panel. The BOE NV140QUM-N53 V3.0 is a 4K, 500 nits, 14", 40 pins eDP. Unfortunately, screen replacement does not work with AMD ThinkPads (yet), as reported by user ojolulu. The 4K UHD panel with 500 nits can be purchased for $120- $200 if you are interested in extreme modding.
- Using eGPUs with the Lenovo AMD laptops—M.2 extensions for notebooks: it is generally possible to run an eGPU even with an AMD setup. Not with Thunderbolt 3 of course, but with M.2 and long extension cables, as outlined in this post on the eGPu.io forum. You can read this particular thread on Reddit, if you want to know more.
- Lenovo Hacks: How to add a Track point to a mechanical keyboard as well as other nice Lenovo hacks can be found on hackaday. Other interesting sources can be found here at this Reddit thread titled “ThinkPad software/hardware hacks?”.
In an upcoming text, I will describe my quest for a good Linux workstation, which I recently finished selecting.
Please follow me on medium & on Twitter @audiores and let me know in the comments if you have any other feedback or additions to this write-up. You can read more of my hardware and gear suggestion on my list Tools and services for the Nomad Nerd.
