I don’t have any experience with any brand other than AMD on Linux, but my understanding is that anything other than AMD dGPUs are a crapshoot if you’re wanting any more than display out.
Arc looks great, but the drivers are barely okay at Windows. I doubt 3D works acceptably in Linux.
Given Arc’s relative performance, for Linux grab a 6600-6600XT-6650XT-7600-6700-6700XT and call it a day. Don’t think too hard about it.
I spent about a year arguing with C-levels that our fleet running 8GB was slowing down productivity, with evidence to prove it. It was like pulling teeth to procure some SODIMMs.
I’d still say this article is coming at things from the wrong perspective. That $700 Walmart M1 MBA is more than adequate for most kids doing school work, and/or grandparents farting around on FB. If you have a family and had to grab a few identical laptops, and you aren’t able/willing to be tech support, it really makes a lot of sense financially.