The answer to “why AMD” is that you get better performance (especially graphics) for the money and better mobile power efficiency than Intel at present.

I guess it depends on priorities. I prefer first to be as assured as I can that despite my 0 trust model, my machine isn't factory backdoored, or at least, is less factory backdoored than everyone else's machine.

Yeah, no, I can’t do the paranoid computing thing. That’s not for me.

- I trust AMD more than Intel, and the PSP doesn't rank high on my threat model. It is a concern, but not enough for me to avoid it. Perfectly understandable if it's a big concern for you though.

- Also, Intel iGPUs are still pretty bad at gaming, at least compared to AMD's equivalents.

- System76 did not (and still does not) offer a compact AMD laptop, they only offer a 15" one. I needed 14" or smaller for better portability and weight (I'm one of those people who actually uses a laptop on their lap).

Your model makes sense, at least for situations like yours...

I got the serval because it includes a 4070 8gb...so graphics and battery life aren't really a concern to me...I usually am plugged in. I also trust AMD more but they haven't been very forthcoming on the PSP.

Intel integrated graphics are terrible, so if you're buying a smaller laptop which will usually not have a dedicated graphics card, it's gonna poop itself if you're on a video call while some basic code compilation is happening.