How to Install Ubuntu on an Old HP Laptop From USB (and Why I Left Windows)

123myIT Guide 2 months ago

Opis

In this video I show you how to install Ubuntu on an old HP 430 G3 laptop using a USB thumb drive, and explain why I decided to move away from Windows on older hardware.

Ubuntu download: https://ubuntu.com/download/desktop
Rufus: https://rufus.ie/en/
USB thumb drive: https://amzn.to/4taAIQe
HP laptop: https://amzn.to/4ehD4Js
Balena etcher: https://etcher.balena.io/
https://www.123myit.com/2026/05/install-ubuntu-old-hp-laptop-from-usb-why-i-left-windows/

For me, the reasons are simple. Older laptops eventually lose proper Windows update support, which becomes a security risk over time. I also prefer the privacy and control that Linux gives compared with Windows data collection. On top of that, I want to use this HP 430 laptop as a host for an OpenClaw AI agent, and Ubuntu is a great fit for that.

I also wanted reliable remote desktop access, and I found the remote desktop experience on Ubuntu much less janky than some other Linux flavors I tried.

In this video I cover:

• why I left Windows on this old laptop
• how to create a bootable Ubuntu USB
• how to boot from the USB drive
• how to install Ubuntu step by step
• first impressions of Ubuntu on older hardware
• why Ubuntu made the most sense for this setup
• why I plan to use this laptop for OpenClaw next

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