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I already did a quick comparison for a "Mac Tax" article and it didn't come out well for the Apple. It was more on the Mac Mini because integrated monitors are something I would avoid like the plague, but it was still "Apple versus other brands".

Still rings true, a Macbook 13" is A$2500 while a competing Asus with twice the amount of Ram, a newer Processor and better video card is A$2275. Add to that that the Mac is in Sydney (store pays less freight) and the Asus is in Perth (store pays more for freight) and the gap widens. Comparing the cheapest Macbook to the most expensive Dell Vostro, the Mac is A$1619 and the Vostro is A$1299 and the Vostro has a larger HDD, 3x the amount of RAM, dedicated video while the mac has a slightly faster processor (.1 GHz).

Now moving up to the Mac book Pro, the MBP is A$3150 for the cheapest model while an Asus is A$2199 with a larger HDD and twice the RAM. meanwhile the Dell Vostro with similar spec's comes out to A$1400 with an older graphics card or even the Dell Latitude comes to A$2900, that's with a NVidia Quadro card and 3 year warranty (the only laptop i've mentioned to have either of these two components).

So realistically there is a Minimum saving of A$250 no matter which way you put it. Personally I don't consider the Macbook Pro and Dell Latitude series to be in the same league as the MBP is a consumer machine and the Latitudes are aimed at businesses.

Now to the manufacturing, I find it ironic that Apple and Dell use the same off the shelf components and the same manufacturer Foxconn, which are renown for their crappy construction. But I'm sure a fanboy will find a way to twist this into apples favour or just flat out complain about the lack of aesthetics (which will be trumped by price for the overwhelming majority of people) but I believe in giving credit where credit is due, the Apple fanboys are nothing if not creative and Apple itself boasts the worlds greatest marketing/hype machine.

I already did a quick comparison for a "Mac Tax" article and it didn't come out well for the Apple. It was more on the Mac Mini because integrated monitors are something I would avoid like the plague, but it was still "Apple versus other brands".

Still rings true, a Macbook 13" is A$2500 while a competing Asus with twice the amount of Ram, a newer Processor and better video card is A$2275. Add to that that the Mac is in Sydney (store pays less freight) and the Asus is in Perth (store pays more for freight) and the gap widens. Comparing the cheapest Macbook to the most expensive Dell Vostro, the Mac is A$1619 and the Vostro is A$1299 and the Vostro has a larger HDD, 3x the amount of RAM, dedicated video while the mac has a slightly faster processor (.1 GHz).

Now moving up to the Mac book Pro, the MBP is A$3150 for the cheapest model while an Asus is A$2199 with a larger HDD and twice the RAM. meanwhile the Dell Vostro with similar spec's comes out to A$1400 with an older graphics card or even the Dell Latitude comes to A$2900, that's with a NVidia Quadro card and 3 year warranty (the only laptop i've mentioned to have either of these two components).

So realistically there is a Minimum saving of A$250 no matter which way you put it. Personally I don't consider the Macbook Pro and Dell Latitude series to be in the same league as the MBP is a consumer machine and the Latitudes are aimed at businesses.

Now to the manufacturing, I find it ironic that Apple and Dell use the same off the shelf components and the same manufacturer Foxconn, which are renown for their crappy construction. But I'm sure a fanboy will find a way to twist this into apples favour or just flat out complain about the lack of aesthetics (which will be trumped by price for the overwhelming majority of people) but I believe in giving credit where credit is due, the Apple fanboys are nothing if not creative and Apple itself boasts the worlds greatest marketing/hype machine.

I already did a quick comparison for a "Mac Tax" article and it didn't come out well for the Apple. It was more on the Mac Mini because integrated monitors are something I would avoid like the plague, but it was still "Apple versus other brands".

Still rings true, a Macbook 13" is A$2500 while a competing Asus with twice the amount of Ram, a newer Processor and better video card is A$2275. Add to that that the Mac is in Sydney (store pays less freight) and the Asus is in Perth (store pays more for freight) and the gap widens. Comparing the cheapest Macbook to the most expensive Dell Vostro, the Mac is A$1619 and the Vostro is A$1299 and the Vostro has a larger HDD, 3x the amount of RAM, dedicated video while the mac has a slightly faster processor (.1 GHz).

Now moving up to the Mac book Pro, the MBP is A$3150 for the cheapest model while an Asus is A$2199 with a larger HDD and twice the RAM. meanwhile the Dell Vostro with similar spec's comes out to A$1400 with an older graphics card or even the Dell Latitude comes to A$2900, that's with a NVidia Quadro card and 3 year warranty (the only laptop i've mentioned to have either of these two components).

So realistically there is a Minimum saving of A$250 no matter which way you put it. Personally I don't consider the Macbook Pro and Dell Latitude series to be in the same league as the MBP is a consumer machine and the Latitudes are aimed at businesses.

Now to the manufacturing, I find it ironic that Apple and Dell use the same off the shelf components and the same manufacturer Foxconn, which are renown for their crappy construction. But I'm sure a fanboy will find a way to twist this into apples favour or just flat out complain about the lack of aesthetics (which will be trumped by price for the overwhelming majority of people) but I believe in giving credit where credit is due, the Apple fanboys are nothing if not creative and Apple itself boasts the worlds greatest marketing/hype machine.

OK, Dell has Windows vs. [hidden on the back page behind a sign reading "beware of the penguin"], but you get the idea).

Check Dell's site again. (allow dell.com through noscript) Over there on the side... among the checkboxes.

The more relevant question is, are they priced competitively for their performance?

Well, you can get a Dell XPS M1730 that'll give you double the 3dmark score for about $2000 less than the new macbook pro.

But I'm sure the Apple faithful will be along to correct me shortly - there's no Apple tax right guys?

In Australia, Dell do not offer Ubuntu. http://www1.ap.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/laptop-inspiron-9?c=au&cs=audhs1&l=en&s=dhs

Go to http://linux.dell.com/ and it has links to all of it's Linux offerings and news and so on.

Wait a minute...Dell (and HP, and Lenovo, and Toshiba, ad infinitum) already tell me what software I can run on my new computer. And that's always Windows.

• Dell - Ubuntu and FreeDOS (they also offer Solaris, Red Hat and SUSE on their servers)
• HP - various Linux distributions
• Lenovo said they would offer SUSE preloaded on their Thinkpads, though I can't find one now.
• Toshiba provides support for Linux on their systems.

That's just with ten minutes of googling. I'm sure you could do better with more time.

I wish I had saved my chat log. I had an very frustrating chat with a Dell sales associate. The price shown online was $99 for a Mini9 (at this site). Too good to be true, I know, but there it was. The site wouldn't let me check out so I opened a chat window. The person helping me couldn't confirm or deny the price and promised to call or email soon. This is what I got:

we apologize for the misinformation we are currently having error on the website. but ill make sure to let someone call you if things clear up. just log backin online to check if its still the price but i will be callig you when this is already cleared.

No further attempts to contact me. Good to see a professional interface with the customer, huh?

http://www.dell.com/content/topics/global.aspx/vectors/en/2004_pciexpress?c=us&l=en&s=corp Formerly known as 3GIO, PCI Express is the open standards- based successor to PCI and its variants for server- and client-system I/O interconnects. Unlike PCI and PCI-X, which are based on 32- and 64-bit parallel buses, PCI Express uses high-speed serial link technology similar to that found in Gigabit1 Ethernet, Serial ATA (SATA), and Serial-Attached SCSI (SAS). PCI Express reflects an industry trend to replace legacy shared parallel buses with high-speed point-to-point serial buses.

This is only "phase 1" of BD+. It gets worse.

BD+ is designed to be deployed in three phases. The first phase is the Media Transform function described here. Phases 2 and 3 are countermeasures for compromised playback environments. If a player is known to be compromised, BD+ can be used to deploy code that can counteract the compromise. This capability is referred to as renewability. It is not necessary to revoke the compromised player; it can simply be updated to renew its content protection environment.

Phase 2 of BD+ deployment is called a basic countermeasure. Once a compromised player is identified and studied, it may be possible to develop content-specific code, with the cooperation of the player manufacturer, that subverts the hack. This content code is player-specific and can be deployed on the BD-ROM disc. If the compromised player is detected during the discovery process, the player-specific content code can be run in the VM to subvert the hack and allow the compromised player to play back the content. On all other playback platforms, the normal content-specific code described previously is run. Player-specific content code is also non-persistent.

Phase 3 countermeasures may be deployed when Phase 2 countermeasures are unsuccessful. Native code developed specifically for the compromised player environment can be developed and deployed via BD+. This native code runs as part of the player's native operating environment and is developed with the cooperation of the player manufacturer. If the compromised player environment is detected by BD+ at playback, and native code is available, it can be used to update the playback environment, rendering the hack ineffective.

(Source: http://www.dell.com/downloads/global/vectors/brcp.pdf)

In other words, future discs will attempt to detect the "hacked" VMs and will actively fight back. A "Phase 3" disc would be able to run arbitrary code on the host machine... think Sony rootkit.

Knowing this, I personally would never trust anything other than a fully free-software player. They will still have bugs, though, and the disc manufacturers will be doing their best to exploit them.

I haven't seen any with Ubuntu.

I am typing this on Ubuntu here, but Slashdotters who install their own OS are very much in the minority.

Uhh, Dell?
Oh, and they now have Ubuntu (and FreeDOS) right there in the side bar!

...the new Dell Mini 12

Dell will sell you a ton of laptops with Ubuntu pre-installed.

Refer to:
http://www.dell.com/ubuntu

All your software is managed an upgraded using a single GUI interface, some distros can even do major version upgrade with a few mouse clicks - try upgrading from XP to Vista that way!

Ehm.. FYI: to do a mayor OS upgrade with just a few mouse clicks, works just fine, even in Windows. The only difference is with Windows, those few mouse clicks are a hell-uv-a-lot more expensive.

the average user should be able to accomplish everything they need to do using a 700-800 MHz low-power processor with 256 MB of RAM. they'd not only save on their electric bill, but we'd be creating a more sustainable society.

I don't think a separate line of lower-powered desktop machines is all that practical.

First, you can buy a very capable modern computer for under $500 right now. Most of the cost at this point is going to costs that won't be mitigated by creating a lower powered machine (shipping, manufacturing, the monitor and other bulky hardware, etc).

Second, modern machines can go into low-power sleep mode when not being used. Or, you can just turn the thing off when you're not using it.

Which he'll get, if he buys something like an Ubuntu computer from Dell:

http://www.dell.com/ubuntu

I bought an Ubuntu laptop from Dell and I'm very pleased.

You get support, a restore disk, "legal" DVD playback support and some very nice equipment.

It's actually easier than Windows, IMHO. It boots into Ubuntu without asking a single question, so you can decide if you like it. If you do, double-click "Install" on the desktop, answer the same type of questions as you would on Windows, and while it loads onto the hard drive, you can continue using it.

Or, if you prefer, stick the disk into a computer running Windows, click "Install", and it will install as if it were a Windows application. After installation, when you reboot, you get the usual grub menu to select either Ubuntu or Windows. If you later decide you don't like it, boot Windows and select Ubuntu and Uninstall from Add / Remove Programs, and it uninstalls.

I really can't imagine anything easier. Well, other than buying it pre-installed. :-)

caitsith01:You will also get some brands of Windows laptop much cheaper by shopping around. In fact, Dell is one of the only companies who don't fall into this category.

Not to mention that the review picks Lenovo and Sony, two of the most expensive brands. Where is Asus, for instance?

Honestly, I spent about two months looking for something with comparable specs earlier this summer, and nothing could be had for under $900, and the Lenovo I found that was pretty close to this was $1200. Dell's still starting their lines with ATi and Nvidia video cards at $899 and selling suckers more expensive "XPS" laptops, pitching them for gaming and "entertainment" use with Intel GPUs, much like Apple did up until a week or two ago.

$999 is a fair price for something with a real video card - The whole point of this article is that, by including a real video card for once, the $999 price point becomes fair. Before that, the MacBooks were $200-300 more than like-spec'ed Windows laptops. When we get down to a hundred dollars or less, that is no longer anywhere near significant enough to have their competition be considered "much cheaper."

Good luck finding even a previous generation Penryn proc and Nvidia card for less than $900. I still can't. That Newegg link shows every Penryn and Wolfdale-powered laptop they sell with ATi and Nvidia GPUs. Not a one can be had for less than $949 ($200 cheaper than the cheapest ASUS), and the one that can is a Lenovo - Hardly one "of the most expensive brands." If you dropped the new Macbook into Newegg's search results it would be the third cheapest new laptop in its class.

Here's the 'Dell Linux Wiki' on the subject:
http://linux.dell.com/wiki/index.php/Wiki_Main_Page

Here's a list of the issues had with 7.04:
http://linux.dell.com/wiki/index.php/Ubuntu_7.04

I only had the Grub Error 17 issue - which was a quick 5-minute fix. Well-documented, too.

A total non-techie might've been confused by it, but once I found the info I had no problems running it.

So yeah, Dell did a pretty good job. (Thats why I ordered the Ubuntu-loaded - to throw my weight behind it, and that's what was going to go on this box anyway, the old laptop's LCD was starting to go)

Here's the 'Dell Linux Wiki' on the subject:
http://linux.dell.com/wiki/index.php/Wiki_Main_Page

Here's a list of the issues had with 7.04:
http://linux.dell.com/wiki/index.php/Ubuntu_7.04

I only had the Grub Error 17 issue - which was a quick 5-minute fix. Well-documented, too.

A total non-techie might've been confused by it, but once I found the info I had no problems running it.

So yeah, Dell did a pretty good job. (Thats why I ordered the Ubuntu-loaded - to throw my weight behind it, and that's what was going to go on this box anyway, the old laptop's LCD was starting to go)

Meh, I'd never really thought about it before. Try this Dell link. Notebooks, subnotebooks etc are still all just subcategories of 'laptop', and a desktop is still a desktop even if it goes under your desk :p Some other poster pointed out that some manufacturers may be scared of lawsuits about burned laps and such so that's why the term laptop isn't used as often. Perhaps for the Dell US site they avoid the term completely, but people in the UK still haven't given in to the sue-happy culture quite yet (though we will still complain a lot :) ).

I was just joking with my original post btw.

Definitely agree on the Precision. Much nicer, no tacky lights, etc. Though my wife loves being able to change the light color by software control panel. Me, I'm waiting for my Precision M4400 to arrive.

The extremely-high-end Pro

Dell XPS

the tiny Mini

Dell Studio Hybrid
Asus EeeBox

the sleek, integrated iMac.

Dell XPS One
HP Touchsmart

The extremely-high-end Pro

Dell XPS

the tiny Mini

Dell Studio Hybrid
Asus EeeBox

the sleek, integrated iMac.

Dell XPS One
HP Touchsmart

The extremely-high-end Pro

Dell XPS

the tiny Mini

Dell Studio Hybrid
Asus EeeBox

the sleek, integrated iMac.

Dell XPS One
HP Touchsmart

MS lost both marketshare and mindshare with Vista. Everyone, from the kid down the street to the sysadmin to the 50 year old knows that Vista sucks. There is no denying it.

Really? In my experience the number of laptops I've seen where the user is running Vista seems to be growing.

If Vista is so popular then why do OEMs still install or offer XP? And why has MS extended service and support for XP? For instance Dell is still selling PCs preloaded with XP. Of those laptops you see with Vista I wonder how many came with it preinstalled vs how many installed Vista on the laptop. I haven't looked to see what OS the laptops I see are running but I've been seeing more and more MacBook/ MacBook Pros (which is growing in market share), the glowing apple is easy to spot but I know of no way to tell what version of Windows is running without looking at the OS.

Falcon

I like the bit where he complains about the crapware and payments:

He assailed OEM system builders for including bad, buggy, or just plain useless apps on their machines in exchange for a few bucks on the back end.

I've worked in one of the vendor companies. Why do you think that places like Fujitsu Siemens, Dell and the like have the tag lines that say "[Insert company] recommends Windows Vista® [pick a version]"? It's because Microsoft give them kickbacks and payments for it!

Where's the difference between saying "Yes, use Windows Vista [version] because we get paid" and saying "Yes, have this 'useful' bit of junk on your machine because we get paid (a proportionally smaller amount, because it's a smaller app)"?

If P4/2GHz/1GB/GPU notebooks with 1080p (1920x1200) screens 15" or bigger were $500 each, I'd buy a bunch of them to leave in my usual haunts, instead of schlepping them around.

Don't know if you're still reading replies, but the cheapest I've seen is Dell's Vostro 1510 in Dell's Small Business section. Right now, $599 (free shipping) gets you the base configuration ($499) plus WUXGA upgrade (+$150) minus "Save $50 when priced $599 or more" promotion (-$50).

Intel® Celeron M® 550 (2.0GHz, 1M L2 Cache, 533MHz FSB)
Windows Vista® Home Basic, Service Pack 1
15.4 in UltraSharp(TM) Widescreen WUXGA LCD Display w/TrueLife(TM)
1GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz, 2 DIMM
Intel® Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator X3100
24X CD Burner/DVD Combo Drive with Roxio Creator
Dell Wireless 1395 802.11g Wi-Fi Internal Card
6-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
1 Year Basic Limited Warranty plus 1 Year Mail-in Service

Note that the Celeron M 550 is based on the original notebook Core 2 Duo, so it's way better than a P4. Also, Vostros don't come with crapware. Unfortunately, I don't know where the heck you'd be able to see and feel one before you buy. Some retail stores and kiosks have Dells on display, but they're Dell's "Home & Home Office" models, not their "Small Business" models, AFAIK.

But if I want to jump to the next higher resolution now, 1920x1200 (1080p), I've still got to spend well over $2500.

A Dell Latitude E6500 with a 1920x1200 15.4" screen costs about US$1048

Likewise on the UK site there's no Ubuntu option, only Windows XP.

Link

It also seems that they won't be releasing the Linux version in Australia: http://www1.ap.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/laptop-inspiron-9?c=au&cs=audhs1&l=en&s=dhs
so far no netbook released in aus has come in with the Linux version... I almost found an MSI Wind the other day, but they said there were "delays" in getting the Linux version. I want choice dammit!

I suggest you check out:

http://www1.ca.dell.com/content/topics/segtopic.aspx/linux_3x?c=ca&cs=cadhs1&l=fr&s=dhs

It's on dell.co.uk. Only one model listed, the XP SP3 1 Gb ram 16 Gb SSD version, for £299 ($530 equivalent).

I think we've also hit on one of the reasons Apple computers cost more than similar machines from Dell, HP, Lenovo, et al:

Have you compared prices of Macs to Windows PC in the last few years? The price of Macs are pretty comparable to the price of PC with comparable configurations. Unfortunately you can't start with a PC and configure a Mac to the same specs though, you have to start with a Mac then configure the PC. I did that before I got the Macbook Pro I'm typing this on. I tried out a few PC OEMs and a Dell with similar specs cost $200 more and an HP cost about the same. I don't recall the other prices but they were about the same or more. Another unfortunate thing is that you won't find a low priced Mac that is expandable. The only Macs that are expandable are the Mac Pros and the XServers. Even their prices are comparable though.

Mac Pro

• Two 2.8GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon
• 2GB (2x1GB) RAM
• 320GB 7200-rpm Serial ATA 3Gb/s
• ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT 256MB
• One 16x SuperDrive
• Apple Mighty Mouse
• Apple Keyboard + User's Guide
• Mac OS X Server (10-Client)

Price = $3,298.00

Dell Prescision T7400

• 2 Quad Core Intel® Xeon® Processor E5440 (2.83GHz,2X6M L2,1333)
• 2GB, DDR2 SDRAM FBD Memory, 667MHz, ECC (2 DIMMS)
• 320GB SATA 3.0Gb/s,7200 RPM Hard Drive with 8MB DataBurst Cache
• 256MB PCIe x16 nVidia NVS 290, Dual Monitor DVI Capable
• 16X DVD+/-RW
• Dell USB 2-Button Mechanical Mouse with Scroll
• USB Entry Quietkey, No Hot Keys
• Genuine Windows Vista® Business Bonus-Windows® XP Professional loaded

Price = $4,173 (with $150 instant savings)

The Dell cost almost $1000 more, and the Mac comes with a 10 client OS whereas I don't see a server OS available for the Dell, unless that version of Vista is a server version. Everything else I got as close to being comparable as I could.

Falcon

Pricewatch:
$180 for CORE2 1.86GHz mobo+CPU+RAM
$ 40 for a mid-tower case w/600w
$ 45 for a decent but very small HD
$ 25 for a DVD-combo drive
---
$290 - This is from Pricewatch, four vendors involved.

Dell
$279 for a Inspirion 530, dumbed down with a Celeron 2GHz pre-infected with Vista, but with a bigger HD and double the RAM (2GB).

Apple
I'll get running OSX on a $230 AppleTV, or Linux for that matter, out of the way first. Only brought up because we're talking about doing it the geek way and breaking though the fear of doing so. This is almost a no-OS situation like with Pricewatch, but the box is at least useful as an AppleTV when you get it.

For the "normal" comparison, their bottom-end machine is the $600 Mac mini. Core2 1.83GHz, 1GB RAM, and a decent small HD. OS X comes with it. As does iLife*.

---
So, all that to point out that $290, $280 and $230 are not very far apart and all come with significant limitations or hassles, especially if something goes wrong later where vendor support is required. If that's your cup of tea it is all well and good.

$600 will get you a similar system in terms of hardware, but with a much better software load, higher quality components (Consumer Reports, nearly 70,000 in the sample size), and a verifiably better user experience all around. Assuming you're looking for something in this performance range, there are no limitations and maximum flexibility with this system, as well as access to the most software.

-Matt

*If you haven't used it, OS X and iLife are a stark contrast to the bloatware on any other OEM PC....akin to waking up from a bad dream. So is K|X|Ubuntu Desktop for that matter.

I am critical not of MS so much as Toshiba, Dell and co - they are the ones who have made the key decision to support nothing but Vista. I wonder if they realise the lengths their users are going to to get around this choice?

You do realize that Dell supports Ubuntu, right?

Also, comparing an install of anything by a large system builder with a standard install of anything isn't really a fair comparison. After getting my laptop from HP the first thing I did was wipe and reinstall Vista. It was 10 times as responsive and used half as much memory. It was also otherwise impossible to remove all of HPs shit. Then I loaded Linux. If I had to pay the Microsoft Tax, I might as well dual boot.

Then again, I forgot to add windows to grub. *shrug*

I followed his instructions and got $420 difference and I selected Home Premium instead of Ultimate, the only difference between the two is the wireless adapter. Both are XPS M1330

Ubuntu Configuration Subtotal $1,029
SYSTEM COLOR Tuxedo Black
PROCESSOR Intel® Coreâ 2 Duo T5850 (2.16GHz/667Mhz FSB/2MB cache)
OPERATING SYSTEM Ubuntu 8.04 with DVD Playback
LCD AND CAMERA Standard Display with 2.0 Megapixel Webcam
MEMORY 4GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz
HARD DRIVE Speed: 320GB SATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) with Free Fall Sensor
INTERNAL OPTICAL DRIVE CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW Drive)
VIDEO CARD Intel® Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator 3100
WIRELESS CARDS Intel® 3945 802.11a/g Mini-card
BATTERY OPTIONS 37Whr Lithium Ion Battery (4 cell)
SOUND OPTIONS High Definition Audio 2.0


Vista Home Premium Configuration Sub Total $1,449.00
SYSTEM COLOR Tuxedo Black
PROCESSOR Intel® Coreâ 2 Duo T5850 (2.16GHz/667Mhz FSB/2MB cache)
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Edition SP1
LCD AND CAMERA Standard Display with 2.0 Megapixel Webcam
MEMORY 4GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz
HARD DRIVE Speed: 320GB SATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) with Free Fall Sensor
INTERNAL OPTICAL DRIVE CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW Drive)
VIDEO CARD Intel® Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator X3100
WIRELESS CARDS Dell Wireless 1395 802.11g Mini Card
BATTERY OPTIONS 37Whr Lithium Ion Battery (4 cell)
SOUND OPTIONS High Definition Audio 2.0

I followed his instructions and got $420 difference and I selected Home Premium instead of Ultimate, the only difference between the two is the wireless adapter. Both are XPS M1330

Ubuntu Configuration Subtotal $1,029
SYSTEM COLOR Tuxedo Black
PROCESSOR Intel® Coreâ 2 Duo T5850 (2.16GHz/667Mhz FSB/2MB cache)
OPERATING SYSTEM Ubuntu 8.04 with DVD Playback
LCD AND CAMERA Standard Display with 2.0 Megapixel Webcam
MEMORY 4GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz
HARD DRIVE Speed: 320GB SATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) with Free Fall Sensor
INTERNAL OPTICAL DRIVE CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW Drive)
VIDEO CARD Intel® Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator 3100
WIRELESS CARDS Intel® 3945 802.11a/g Mini-card
BATTERY OPTIONS 37Whr Lithium Ion Battery (4 cell)
SOUND OPTIONS High Definition Audio 2.0


Vista Home Premium Configuration Sub Total $1,449.00
SYSTEM COLOR Tuxedo Black
PROCESSOR Intel® Coreâ 2 Duo T5850 (2.16GHz/667Mhz FSB/2MB cache)
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Edition SP1
LCD AND CAMERA Standard Display with 2.0 Megapixel Webcam
MEMORY 4GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz
HARD DRIVE Speed: 320GB SATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) with Free Fall Sensor
INTERNAL OPTICAL DRIVE CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW Drive)
VIDEO CARD Intel® Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator X3100
WIRELESS CARDS Dell Wireless 1395 802.11g Mini Card
BATTERY OPTIONS 37Whr Lithium Ion Battery (4 cell)
SOUND OPTIONS High Definition Audio 2.0

Or you could have just bought one of the laptops Dell sells that come with Ubuntu to avoid the Microsoft tax.

Before anyone goes blathering on about "ufair" this and "innacurate" that, follow my test.

1. Visit Dell.com on two different browser tabs.
2. Tab #1 starts here.http://www.dell.com/content/topics/segtopic.aspx/linux_3x?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs
3. Tab #2 starts here. http://www.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/xpsnb_m1330?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19
4. Configure the Vista product with the ultimate version. That is roughly feature equivalent to Ubuntu.
5. Pay attention to the hardware options because the Linux product has fewer and generally more storage/RAM.
6. At the end, you should have a spread of about $349.

So, Vista costs the consumer $349 OEM through the consumer URL.

remind them that Dell sells computers with Linux installed on it. Here's the link:

http://www.dell.com/content/topics/segtopic.aspx/ubuntu?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs

LoB

Before Latitude ON, there was Dell MediaDirect, a Windows XP Embedded partition that booted in about 10 seconds.

The only user focused difference between the 2 that I see, is that MediaDirect is/was positioned as a way to access your files - and Latitude ON is positioned as a way to access the Internet.

Technically, the whole "embed an ARM PC into an x86 PC" may be a better idea than the convoluted MBR and partitioning schemes MediaDirect employed - but it's certainly more expensive as well.

Then, as mentioned, there's Windows Sideshow, which even Dell is prototyping. SideShow is more ambitious than Latitude ON, encompassing everything from sinlge line text displays to show system stats, to ARM based Windows Mobile devices to check email, play media files, etc. So far, it's failed to gain much traction in the marketplace - but, I think that it's still too early to call it dead.

If you take a look at some of the prototype developments in the SideShow remote computer spaces, I think you'll agree that all the functionality of Latitude ON is there - it's just a seperate device instead of being housed in the same case as a laptop.

So - it's not like Microsoft isn't aware or working on this market, Dell and Co. just decided to go their own way. Big deal - happens all the time. While MediaDirect used XP Embedded, other manafacturers were using Linux based OS's. Wake me up in 2 or 3+ years when the market has settled down, and we can declare a winner.

Slightly different thread, perhaps, but I just wanted to poin out: this is NOT the first laptop with a Core 2 Extreme CPU.

HP has one (though it's 20.1 inches - a real beast): http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/computer_can_series.do?storeName=computer_store&category=notebooks&a1

Dell has one (17"): http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?oc=dycwm90&c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&kc=category~notebooks

There are probably at least a few others. Not to say it isn't awesome, but please... a LITTLE reasearch before making such wild claims? I realize that's a lot to ask of many people here...

Bull$&*t... I just bought 9 Latitude D630 laptops and the Vista Business edition includes downgrade to XP free. Upgrade from Vista Home to Business costs $99, but Vista Business with XP is the same price as Vista Business without XP. If you want, you can complain about nobody offering Vista Home downgrade to XP Home.

http://www.dell.com/content/products/category.aspx/latit?c=us&cs=04&l=en&s=bsd

I own a Dell 1420n which came with Ubuntu pre-installed. There are a number of systems that Dell sells like this.

Let's face it, if you want to use ESX in a real production environment the cost has dropped only a little

R900 for virtualization is still $8,854 after instant savings.

did you really look by yourself?

I selected Ubuntu 8.04 with DVD Playback [Included in Price]
Ubuntu 8.04 with DVD Playback, 1 Year Standard Support [add $275 or $7/month1] and i did not selected it

go play with it, it take 3 minutes only
http://configure.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=ca&CS=cadhs1&l=en&OC=N1525PDN_UB_E

Go to the Dell site and try to find a Linux laptop. It's quite hard to find.

um, maybe try http://www.dell.com/ubuntu?

Dell are releasing BIOS upgrades for their laptops to cope with the Nvidia weak component problem (basically the fan will spin up sooner). This includes the laptop models that come with Linux preinstalled. Except there's no BIOS updater that will run under Linux; they're all Windows based (although if you have a DOS floppy knocking around you can use that)

Umm...Dell has a Linux BIOS updater in its SMBIOS library. The only downside is that you might have to install wine for the image extraction (though it says it is still doable without).