[Cdncarnut]

As someone who rode the IT wave for work, all that I can tell you is that all new laptops are ****.
Don't expect to get 15 years out your new one.
The batteries are not replaceable anymore, unless you actually open up the laptop.
The worst part is that both Windows 10 and 11 take control away from you.
The laptop will almost stop as it randomly downloads whatever updates that Microsoft is mandating.
And worse, it will just install them and force you to reboot regardless of what you are doing and how limited you are for time to finish what you are doing.

Now, having said that, I am partial to HP laptops.
They have been good to me and last a long time.
I also prefer a 17" screen for the track, as I can get by without my glasses often.

All hard drives are solid state these days, which means that they are nothing more than a very large memory stick.

Buy the fastest CPU and the most amount of memory that you can afford.

I hope this helps.