Dude, you’re getting a Dell–with Ubuntu!

It seems as though Dell is the first big corporation to really take Linux seriously. Dell is now offering a variety of its PCs with Ubuntu 8.04 pre-installed. However, the customer can only choose the Ubuntu as the option on Dell’s XPS 1330 and Inspiron 1525 PC’s. Sure, this won’t necessarily give Linux any large holding in the market share, but hey, it’s a start right?

Dell says it will begin launching the PC’s this August. Although one would expect the cost of these models to be cheaper, it actually turns out being just as expensive. Why? The cost to take the PC’s off the factory lines and install our faithful Hardy Heron racks up some charges in itself, thereby eliminating one of the major advantages of having a free Linux distro. You can expect to pick up one of these systems for $949 and $549 for the XPS and Inspiron, respectively.

Read [Dell]