Group: Hardware/History/Laptops Comparison

Introduction

Brand and Model	Type	Required and Optional Proprietary “BIOS Replacement” Components	Required and Optional Proprietary Components for Peripherals	Compatible free BIOS Replacements	Compatible 100% Free software distributions	Availability
Lemote 8089D	Netbook	None	None	Pmon Grub2	gNewsense Parabola	Out of stock
Lemote 8101B	Netbook	None	None	Pmon Grub2	gNewsense Parabola	Last stock at Tekmote

Coreboot laptops (can be built fully libre) that are supported by Libreboot

Brand and Model	Type	Required and Optional Proprietary “BIOS Replacement” Components	Required and Optional Proprietary Components for Peripherals	Compatible free BIOS Replacements	Compatible 100% Free software distributions	Availability
Lenovo X60 / X60s / X60 Tablet	light/compact Notebook	The VGA option rom can be replaced^[1] CPU Microcode: most devices work without it^[2]	Some default Wi-Fi Card are from Intel and require non-free firmware. If you buy the laptop second hand and have an intel card, replace it. Else glugglug already ships with the good cards.	The default non-free BIOS can be replaced with libreboot, trough very dangerous and very complicated ^[3]instructions. Else glugglug laptops ship already flashed, and once the non-free BIOS has been replaced, reflashing is way easier but still dangerous.^[4]	Trisquel 5.5 and newer Parabola	Easy to find second hand, but very complicated and risky install procedure Can be bought already liberated at glugglug
Lenovo T60 (with Intel GPU)	Notebook					Easy to find second hand
Apple MacBook 2,1 / MacBook 1,1	Notebook		The default Wi-Fi card is an Atheros chipset which works fully with the Linux-libre kernel.	The default non-free EFI firmware can be replaced with libreboot, trough a dangerous ^[5]procedure		Easy to find second hand

↑
It can be replaced by:
- Coreboot code, with text mode graphics support
- SeaBIOS's option rom that gives VGA compatibility
Both are probably needed, and coreboot changes will land soon in Libreboot, at the time of writing(august 2014)
↑ Some of the impact of not updating the microcode can be found in intel's CPU erratas, like the Core solo/duo erratas. A good way to avoid the issues described there is to have a cpu that has the bus you care about fixed in hardware: The more recent batches you get, the more erratas are fixed
↑ There is a big risk of breaking the laptop: Some time ago, lots of users tried and broke it, they cound't buy the laptop already flashed, so they tried it. They broke it because the instructions to switch from the original BIOS to free BIOS replacements are complicated.
That's due to some restrictions of the original BIOS, which tries to prevent easy reflashing.
↑ Once the free BIOS replacement is flashed, reflashing is easy, but still dangerous: if the free BIOS replacement doesn't work, then the user has to disassemble the laptop and reflash with an external flash programmer to recover.
↑ If your macbook has the right flash chip, flashing it is easy, but still dangerous: if the free BIOS replacement doesn't work, then the user has to disassemble the laptop and reflash with an external flash programmer to recover.

Someone needs to write a free replacement for some parts

Brand and Model	Type	Required and Optional Proprietary “BIOS Replacement” Components	Required and Optional Proprietary Components for Peripherals	Compatible BIOS Replacements	Compatible 100 % Free software distributions	Availability
Lemote Loongson 3A notebook	Notebook	ATI VGA BIOS/Option ROM required to have graphics, someone needs to write a free replacement for that.	Probably optional ATI microcode for the GPU (no acceleration without it).	Pmon	None, gNewSense needs just a custom kernel	Out of stock
Lenovo T60 (with ATI GPU)	Notebook	With Coreboot: ATI VGA BIOS/Option ROM required to have graphics (can be used in headless mode, without graphics. Serial console and SSH). CPU microcode: usually optional, like X60	The default Wi-Fi card is from Intel and requires non-free firmware, replace that card.	The default non-free BIOS can be replaced with Coreboot v4 (complicated procedure) Probably optional ATI microcode for the GPU (no acceleration without it).	Trisquel 5.5 and newer Parabola	Easy to find second hand
Lenovo X201	Small notebook	ME.bin: runs on another CPU, the Management Engine, very hard to replace and dangerous VGA ROM: like for X60 CPU microcode?	The default Wi-Fi card is from Intel and requires non-free firmware, replace it.	The default non-free BIOS can be replaced with Coreboot v4 (warning: complicated procedure)	Trisquel 5.5 and 6.0 ? Parabola ?	Second hand

Brand and Model	Type	Required and Optional Proprietary “BIOS Replacement” Components	Required and Optional Proprietary Components for Peripherals	Compatible BIOS Replacements	Compatible 100 % Free software distributions	Availability
OLPC XO-1	Small notebook	VSA (LGPL) cannot be built with free software yet.	Internal Wi-Fi card requires non-free firmware.	Free BIOS replacement (which one?).	?
Chromebook Pixel	Thin notebook	MRC.bin: RAM controller initialization, runs on the main CPU. ME.bin: runs on another CPU, the Management Engine, very hard to replace and dangerous. Optional non-free VGA BIOS (has a free replacement in Coreboot). CPU microcode?	None	Coreboot with uboot as payload by default.	?	Available new. Available in USA, UK, and probably other countries.
Samsung Series 3 Chromebook	Thin notebook	Required BL1: proprietary and signed.	Wi-Fi needs non-free firmware (issues [1] [2] show it uses the mwifiex_sdio driver), same chip provides Bluetooth probably also requiring non-free firmware.	Coreboot? Uboot.	?	Available new… …in which countries?

This page was a featured resource in September 2014.