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Discussion on: My beginner’s guide to choosing a laptop for programming

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Alex Lohr

The most important things are the interfaces which connect you with said machine. On the input side, that's keyboard and touchpad or mouse, if you rather use one. The output is usually primarily the screen.

Keyboards shouldn't be under- or oversized, have mostly even keys (uneven layouts will screw with fast typing easily), have enough resistance so you can feel the key register your actuation and don't be too noisy. I consider keyboard lights a useless feature, but each to their own.

Touchpads and mice are even more a matter of choice, so I'll continue with the display. Apple's choice to deliver glare displays with all their notebooks is a problem for everyone who works in changing settings and cannot completely avoid exposure to sunlight. Otherwise, their screens are top notch. Lenovo's higher-end models now come with very nice 4k-Displays without the annoying glare. Other brands have a mix of everything.

Everything less important was already explained by this article.