Some of the stuff I would do if my system was held together by more than literally just hopes and dreams.

If you’re running an Nvidia gpu, then Linux Mint is great for not needing to deal with setup issues.

If you’re going with an AMD gpu or no gpu at all, then i actually recommend Garuda Linux. It’s Arch-based so you may need to keep up with the updates more often. But you’ll get access to the AUR, a centralized* repository for just about every program you’ll need to install. I personally find it and pacman easier to use than apt.

What spec of laptop are you thinking of getting?