Local LLMs 203: Choosing a Model Without Guessing

Sat, 30 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Local model choice can turn into name collecting very quickly. Llama, Qwen, Gemma, Mistral, DeepSeek, Phi, gpt-oss, coder models, reasoning models, small models, giant models, quantized models, preview models: it is a lot.

The goal is not to memorize every release. The goal is to choose a model with a reason.

Mental model: model choice is task fit plus hardware fit

A useful model is the intersection of three things:

Model Selection on Mohammad Movahedi

Local LLMs 203: Choosing a Model Without Guessing

Mental model: model choice is task fit plus hardware fit