> The "problem" with System76's approach is what if (like me) you have an aversion to Debian (alikes)?
Of course. And you're still free to buy ZaReason instead.
The hardware still seems solid. I've booted Fedora off my old laptop's drive and it ran just fine, though it was in an external enclosure so I can't speak to its use as a full laptop.
Of course, ZaReason will support your Fedora or SuSE install if you'd prefer to go that route instead.