It’s been close to a month since I’ve starting using Linux on the M1. I had heard pretty good things, but it’s been quite solid for the most part.
Over the past couple years I’ve used Linux on 4 different devices, so it’s allows me to experience a range of hardware. That included an almost identical intel macbook, and couple of linux friendly Lenovo and Dell laptops. I have to say the M1 has felt like the smoothest and most enjoyable to use. I’ve been using this form factor for work for a long time, so there is a certain familiarity.
The dell’s build quality was OK but left something to be desired. The intel macbook had more linux quirks. The dell was mostly OK but did feel like it starting more issues as I used it more. To be fair, I thought all installs were really smooth and reliable when I first installed, but after about 6 months or so, they started feeling a bit more sluggish. Maybe that’s a Fedora issue. Let’s see if that happens with the M1 too.
A slightly larger screen would probably be nice. But I have the 16” for work. Not sure if I want to deal with that big all the time. 15” is the nice size.
Back to the daily driving. There are still a few things that will probably give me issues. Most likely specific apps. Not everything has ARM support.
There’s also the situation of transitioning from setting up a device to actually using it. With a new device, more time is going into getting it up and working. Once it’s running stable, switching to actual usage, such as photo and video, you start getting a real feel of what it’s like using the device, such as how much time it takes to render. Are there are specific bugs.
But at this point the plan is to keep using Asahi Linux on the M1 as the daily driver. Was a little surprised it was pretty easy to get up and running and that it’s been this smooth and pleasant to use so far.