Key takeaways

• The System76 Thelio r3 is available now, starting at$1,300.00.
• It's sleek, beautiful, powerful, and can handle anything you throw at it.
• Some might find it pricey but the longevity, performance, and attention to detail of these System76 machines is worth every penny.

I've been a big fan of System76 for years. They've been champions of Linux machines for a long time and every time I get a chance to work with one of their new computers, they never fail to impress me on every level that counts.

I purchased my first system from the company (a Leopard Extreme) back in 2013. That machine served me for six years, at which point I upgraded to their latest offering, theThelio . That was back in 2019, and it performed like a champ until just recently, when the On/Off button stopped working and one of the HDMI ports ceased to send a signal.

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Although the second machine didn't last nearly as long as the first, I had to remind myself that I purchased that first Thelio as soon as they were released, meaning it was a first iteration. Since then, the company has made serious changes to the Thelio line-up and improved each machine all around.

When my original Thelio hinted that it was on its last legs, I had to act fast. I spend a lot of time working at my desk, and that machine is essential to my day-to-day. So, I started configuring my new PC and quickly decided I was going to do something I'd never done: shrug off Intel. That's right, I went the AMD route with a Ryzen 9 7900X (12 cores/24 threads). The rest of the custom specs look like this:

• RAM - 32 GB DDR5 4800 MHz (1x32)
• Internal storage - 500 GB PCIe4 M.2 SSD
• GPU - 8 GB AMD Radeon RX 7600
• Top ports - 1x USB 3.2 Gen2 (Type-C), 1x USB 3.2 Gen1 (Type A), Mic, Headphone
• Rear Ports - 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 (Type-A), 3x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (Type-A), 1x 2.5Gbps LAN, USB 3.2 Gen2x2 (Type-C)
• Rear Audio - Mic, Line out, Line in
• Networking - 2.5GbE, built-in Wifi 6E (a/b/g/n/ac/ax) with Bluetooth 5.2
• Dimensions - 12.87