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Lenovo Removes Linux Option For Home Buyers

Posted by timothy on from the and-the-linux-netbook's-non-us-only dept.

billybob2 writes "Lenovo has stopped selling laptops pre-installed with Linux on its web site, only 8 months after starting the trial program. This means that home customers won't be able to buy a Thinkpad without paying the Microsoft tax. Word has it that the decision to pull the plug on Linux came down from the highest levels of the Chinese company's corporate headquarters. For those looking to buy full-sized laptops and desktops with Linux pre-loaded Dell, System76, ZaReason and Everex all still offer such products."

14 of 380 comments (clear)

  1. AC comment from TFA by Ethanol-fueled · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I suspect the decision was made because of comparatively small demand.

    Not every disappointment in life is the result of a Grand Microsoft Conspiracy. (grin)

    1. Re:AC comment from TFA by yukk · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Most likely it was a combination of low volume and pressure from Microsoft. If M/S keeps the pressure on and the sales don't make it worthwhile fighting then they drop the line.

      --
      The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win, you're still a rat." Lily Tomlin
    2. Re:AC comment from TFA by amn108 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      It does not cost them anything to pre-install Linux in the first place, any more than tweaking a copy to run on each model they have, which is not the worlds hardest job. Roll out and copy, that is it. And no need to pay royalties to MS. The decision was probably made as a result of suits taking a meeting with another group of suits that told their "friends" that their product is superior in every way and there is absolutely no reason to even consider Linux. This is the way of recent ISO-votes and it works. All you need is too much power.

      Not every disappointment is a result of a Grand Microsoft Conspiracy, but this one is, and most others that are mentioned in context are too. We are not talking about Mars Polar Lander failure.

    3. Re:AC comment from TFA by amn108 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Actually I did not say that it is a automatic process, where manufacturers just install vanilla Ubuntu. I said it is not the worlds hardest job. And if you count in the savings of royalties they otherwise pay to MS, it is is very cheap to maintain Linux.

      I am well aware Linux does not behave nicely either, given I have a Thinkpad T61, half of which functionality I had to tweak to work properly.

      Still, even in the short run Linux does pay off. Also, people can choose Windows still, nobody forces them to run Linux like they are currently forced to run Windows.

      In Windows even after all the tweaking and custom drivers, stuff breaks and issues arise. And in these cases its all finger pointing.

    4. Re:AC comment from TFA by Darundal · · Score: 3, Insightful

      That is because their Linux option was to offer SuSE on their T series laptops. It is now popular to hate SuSE because of the MS deal. I am surprised that there weren't pictures/videos of the SuSE lizard being burned in effigy after the deal.

  2. What about driver support etcetera? by argent · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The Microsoft tax isn't that big a deal, at least not in the Thinkpad price range. Were their Linux-based laptops any cheaper? I know some other companies that offer Linux don't offer any discount for it.

    A bigger concern is whether they're providing driver support for Linux installation or not.

    1. Re:What about driver support etcetera? by cybrthng · · Score: 3, Insightful

      So let me get this straight. There was no MS tax on these, NO one was apparently buying them, so they're dropping the line and we still have to rattle on and on about a MS tax?

      If i buy an apple, how do i get rid of the OSX/Apple tax?

      If I buy a ford, how do i put a Mazda engine it it from the getgo and not pay the Ford tax?

    2. Re:What about driver support etcetera? by snl2587 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      If i buy an apple, how do i get rid of the OSX/Apple tax? If I buy a ford, how do i put a Mazda engine it it from the getgo and not pay the Ford tax?

      Apple makes the computers. Ford makes the cars. So there really isn't a way to not pay them in some way (unless you stole their products...but that's beside the point)

      Microsoft, on the other hand, does not manufacture the computers. So if I want to buy a computer I shouldn't have to pay them as well if I don't want their product to come with it.

  3. Re:Maybe the word actually came from consumers? by e2d2 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Yeah All kinds of possibilities can lead to this.

    I think as *nix advocates (at least some of us), we need to realize that it's not all about being altruistic to these guys. It's about money, and if it's doesn't make money then why would they do it? But why speculate on motivations. It's just a fact and we can accept it, make Linux better where we can, and move forward.

  4. Re:Maybe they shouldn't have used Suse by CogDissident · · Score: 3, Insightful

    And that is why Linux is a bad idea for them. Every linux nerd that wants a pre install, wants their favorite "flavor" of pre install. And gets pissy when their favorite brand name isn't in first place. And half the time people buy linux machines for their computer-illiterate relatives, making them take up huge amounts of phone-support time.

    Easier to pitch it and say "eh, we have windows. Enjoy."

  5. Re:Maybe the word actually came from consumers? by schwaang · · Score: 3, Insightful

    BTW, when will Apple get rid of the Apple Tax? :)

    Maybe when Microsoft starts selling PCs, so that your comparison is really an apples-to-Apples one? ;)

  6. Re:Maybe they shouldn't have used Suse by Lobster+Quadrille · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Precisely. I bought one of the Lenovo Suse lappys, but never even booted it into Suse. I had an Ubuntu disc sitting on my counter before the UPS guy showed up.

    I bought the Suse one for two reasons- known linux-supported hardware, and not paying MS.

    The laptop, by the way, is fantastic. Durable, high-performance, and with a docking station, replaced both my desktops.

    --
    "The cup is in turn designed for holding hot or cold liquids, and has an open rim and closed base." --US Patent #5425497
  7. Re:Well up-theirs by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    After 4 months of getting tired of it telling me "Use *our* antivirus of choice!" in windows I just gave up and installed linux.

    Let me be sure I understand this clearly to confirm you aren't trolling.... you were annoyed by Windows Security Center telling you to install Anti-Virus software? You were not able to simply turn this off? Did you believe you MUST have Anti-Virus software to use the computer rather than rely on common sense practices? Something doesn't quite add up here.

  8. Re:Communist Plot Against Linux? by moderatorrater · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Ironically, it's also close to the ideals of a free market. There's no friction, no real barrier to entry, and competition is very pure and open. Supply is limitless, thus cost goes to $0, which isn't happening elsewhere in the software industry. In a way, free market economics says that the ease of reproducing software would drive the cost to zero, which has happened in a lot of ways.

    Morally speaking, while most people would argue that there's nothing wrong with charging money for software, almost everyone will agree that the community that's sprung up around open source is very right. It's heart warming, really.