What do I look for? I'd like something powerful enough to run games, just in case I'm away from my console, but it'll mostly be used for work. Ideally I'd like it to be durable, because I'll probably have to take it on flights when Covid eventually burns out.
What's the lesser of two evils with Intel and AMD? One is run by a woman, the other talks about the future belonging to women.
I suppose I could buy used and negate that issue.
What's a good brand to get? I always had Lenovo before, except for a Surface Laptop that barely lasted a year.
For work and durable... I remember HP have Probook/EliteBook series. Lenovo had one which is good, I think it's the thinkpad series. Don't pick IdeaPad, it's not durable. You can get one of these refurbished, because these machines are costly and company loans like these machines for 3 years then change to another one. Don't buy at Wal-Mart or Best-Buy, get to a computer store.
For CPU, if you are going Intel, try to get a i5, or better if you have the money. if you are going AMD, Ryzen or A10 or A12 (if it still exists).