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Wal-Mart's $200 Linux PC Sells Out
hankmt writes "About a week ago Wal-Mart began selling a $200 Linux machine running on a 1.5 ghz VIA C7 processor and 512 MB of RAM. While the specs are useless for Vista, it works blazingly fast on Ubuntu with the Enlightenment Window Manager. The machine is now officially sold out of their online warehouses (it may still be available in some stores). And the product sales page at wal-mart.com is full of glowing reviews from new and old Linux users alike."
In the community around me, I've seen a lot of growth in the use of Linux on the desktop just in the last year. But probably the most interesting trend is that I've seen a bunch of new Ubuntu users among the mechanical engineering students, who in general aren't particularly computer-nerdy, and even more amazingly, are actually dependent on Windows-only software for some of their CAD tools (i.e. Solidworks).
I think the Walmart results might be indicative of a growing trend where people are just about ready to make the leap themselves... particularly when it comes preinstalled like it does here. Another step in the right direction.
What I'd love to see, though, is how much previous computer experience all of those Walmart reviewers had -- for some, it seems like quite a bit.
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Electronics kits for the digital generation.
Remember, these are typical Walmart customers here.
That is important, they are not like Slasdot readers. Unlike business users or college students, M$ has done no favors for these people and they have zero loyalty.
How many of them are going to return these things when that AOL CD they have doesn't work automagically?
I don't know. The EEE has an AOL button, no CD is required. I know it's hard to believe but AOL would be happy to spam users of other OS.
How many of these people are expected to have DSL or Cable instead of dial-up?
None. Why should they?
How many are going to be returned because they don't have MS Office pre-installed on them?
None. Open Office is more than enough for the average school paper. Very few people actually NEED M$ Office for work and even they hate it. The rest of the world considers M$'s ever changing, secret file formats an expensive ass pain. They are right.
Anyone who actually needs M$ Office will have their boss pay for it or pirate the junk. If M$ makes the second option impossible, the first option will have to happen or the boss will learn to use free software. M$ is not going to be able to get everyone to pony up $400 every couple of years for a text editor and that's where they system breaks down. Sooner or later, all of those smart business users and college graduates will figure out that they don't need M$ either.
DMCA, Hollings, Palladium. What might have sounded like paranoia is now common sense.
I am very happy to hear this news and pointed a number of people at this machine. But it would be a lot more meaningful if we knew how many they sold out of. 10? Big whoop. 10,000? More impressive.
Or they could have gone to Wal*Mart exclusively for this item. The Ubuntu forums have exploded over this, and there are several people who have bought the product for friends or family. The torrent for gOS had quite a few seeders when I downloaded it (didn't like it). Took less than 45 minutes, more like 30.
I don't believe a lot of buyers were typical wal-mart customers. These PC's have been blasted all over every tech site for the last several days and each site has been covered in comments about people who want to get one. There are comments on this slashdot article by people who have bought them.
I think a load of these were bought by linux fans wanting to support linux on a retail box. for a low price.
Gone!
Wow, are you ever an elitist prick. I guarantee you almost everyone on Slashdot shops at Wal-Mart, because almost everyone on Slashdot is "plain" and normal in almost every respect. If the PC is sold out, 85% of it is because of dorks like you and me. The other 15% is people that didn't know what they were buying.
Agreed. "Hate" might be too strong a word.
However, tell a small business client that they've got to buy a separate license for EACH station for MS-Office. While you might not get "hate", you're sure not going to get any "sweet sweet lovin' ", either. Typically, they next ask for workarounds to install one copy on multiple machines.
Personally, that's my big gripe with Office and Vista. MS marketing aside, I can't see the value in paying $400 for a software package that does what its parent company wants. Heck, I have installed an OS that didn't cost a dime and uses an office suite of the same cost... and it does what *I* want.
....and I donate to support those. THAT is value.
Don't tell me to get a life. I'm a gamer; I have LOTS of lives!
Or on the other hand, if you had no knowledge of computers and walked into a store only to see a machine for $200 and right next to it the same machine for $500-$700 which would you buy? OS choice really isn't as important as some on /. would make it out to be to the average Joe. All they are looking for is will it do what they want it to do for the cheapest price. Here is where Linux can fall flat on its face if someone doesn't make retail versions of software as available and ubiquitous as Windows software. Put a boxed set of Open Office next to that Microsoft Office suite and then we can talk. You see, there is the problem with this thing. Everything you need is included with the distro making this kind of visibility moot. The problem is that the same time Joe Average is picking out that computer they are also looking at the software shelf loaded with Microsoft centric crap. The moment they pick up that shareware disk for $5.00 and ask, "will this work on that box I'm buying?" will be the kiss of death on that sale. Add in the fact that sales people at WalMart aren't the pick of the crop and mess up even Windows technical issues and it is a recipe for a PR disaster.
Assuming that at least some of those sales of this box was to Joe Average, this can be a boon or bust moment all dependant on the support they get from WalMart. If WalMart washes their hands after sale (i.e. "All sales are final. Take it up with the manufacturer or Ubuntu") then this could be doomed after all the geeks have gotten theirs.
Personally, I wish WalMart success on this venture. There is nothing more healthy to a monopoly than competition.
This is a sig. This is only a sig. Had this been an actual sig you would have been informed where to tune for more sigs.
I hope these machines are good. I used to buy the $200 Fry's Great Quality machines, but Fry's is no longer selling those
Me too. Well the architecture is pretty similar (cyrix CPU) but it looks like the software is a factor better, many of those GQ machines didn't have adequate drivers to support the on-board video so you were stuck at 640x480 or whatever. Though installing Mandrake (back then) usually took care of that.
The thing that really burns me is all the "Good for Light Word Processing"crap these power-system zealots keep spewing - and I ma not discriminating here, all of the platforms, Windows, Mac and Linux are full of em. I can tell you that machine (512MB RAM/80GB HDD) is probably capable of some great DTP (Scribus) could be great for illustration (Inkscape) and really serious office work (OOo). It may not be fast at doing such things, but we should never say it is not capable.
As a Classic computerist I know of authors who write books and other published works still on Commodore 64s, (heck some have never left their typewriter behind). To them they get familiar with something and stick to it they don't upgrade because they are to busy being productive with what they have (the hard part is finding replacement parts for their daisy wheel printers). Same reason why the XO will be a hit with kids, they will not see those laptops as underpowered or slow, but the draw is they have access and the speed isn't really a factor when you are starting out (as they get better and outgrow it, then that's another matter; it took me years to outgrow the VIC-20).
"Enjoy what you're doing! If it becomes drudgery, you're doing it wrong!" - Jim Butterfield
How many AOL users even know what an OS is ??
Browsers shouldn't have a back button!! It's all about going forward...
It's nice to see a non-Intel / non-AMD x86... Way to go VIA / Centaur Technology!
Then perhaps you'd like to address the issues he raises instead.
I've listed them below for your convenience.
- These are typical Walmart customers who have zero loyalty to either Microsoft or Linux.
- No CD is required for AOL. It is easy for an ISP to be platform-agnostic.
- DSL and Cable are platform-agnostic, but dial-up users can purchase a modem for less than the cost of a Windows license, let alone Office, antivirus, spyware removers etc.
- Nobody will return a $200 computer because it doesn't have Office installed on it. OpenOffice does the job nicely, and M$ Office is never installed free on budget Windows computers. Moreover, M$'s ever changing, secret file formats are an expensive ass pain.
- It won't take long before anyone with a clue realises ponying up $400 in monopoly rent every couple of years for a document writer is pointless when there's another option for half the price and better longevity.
I'm looking forward to your reasoned response..."I've got more toys than Teruhisa Kitahara."
Well, actually, it looks like all the people who are buying it online and writing reviews know that it isn't Windows.
I never disliked Walmart. Although I am aware of the reasons many people do not like Walmart. (No, I don't need them reiterated here, thank you.)
One thing I've suspected for awhile, is that the "Linux Revolution" (Linux taking off as a desktop alternative) would NOT happen at businesses or with high-end users. It will happen much like the "Windows Revolution" happened back in the 90's. It will start with the "Walmart buyer". Ordinary people making ordinary FINANCIAL decisions to buy a cheap PC.
This is the regular, ordinary, joe-sixpack, "what's a right-click?" kind of person. The kind of people scorned by many of the elitists in the OS and PC fields. The people looked down upon by many many many here at Slashdot as backward, ignorant rubes living in "flyover country". The kind of people that voted for GW Bush, that fly American flags from their porches, that have communities with 4th of July parties that everyone in town attends. Small-town middle American traditional people.
THEY are the ones that will start the Linux revolution. Not because they "did the research" or "grok FOSS" or any of that elitist crap. But because it makes financial sense to buy a $200 US PC that can do everything they need it to do. They will get introduced to Linux for the first time, perhaps as their first PC EVER, and will love it. They will stick with this machine for at least 5 years, as it will be able to handle all the basic tasks they need it for, and when it dies or they need another, they will look for another LINUX PC to replace it with.
The Linux revolution begins... In Iowa, at Walmart.
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