Review: $200 Ubuntu Linux PC Now Available at Wal-Mart
Everex`s TC2502 gPC is the first mass-market $200 desktop computer, featuring a custom distribution of Ubuntu Linux and headed for selected Wal-Mart stores.
"It`s $200, with no gimmicks or subsidies," Everex spokesman David Liu said.
The gPC aims to joins a popular gang of low-end economy computers leading into the holiday season, such as Asus` $300 EeePC Laptop and VIA`s $600 Nanobook. Unlike these machines, however, Everex`s latest model is a full-size desktop, and $100 cheaper than even the slightest models from Dell or HP.
Touted as a "green" machine, it has a 1.5 Ghz VIA C7 CPU embedded in a Mini-ITX motherboard, 512MB of RAM and an 80GB hard drive. Normally, this would simply mark it as unacceptably low-end for use with modern software. By using the fast Enlightenment desktop manager (instead of heavier-duty alternatives like Gnome or KDE), the makers say it`s more responsive than Vista is, even on more powerful computers.
"It`s almost like a Google PC," Liu says, pointing to the desktop`s rack of pre-configured links to all of Google`s online applications. It is, he says, the mass-market Linux PC we`ve all been waiting for. "That`s our dream. ... we go the final step to make it work out the box, to go the whole nine yards."
The gPC also has a DVD burner and, for those not drinking the web-app cool-aid, OpenOffice and lots more local software. There`s free phone support and a regularly updated app called "Faqly" that contains the latest tech support info for folks stuck offline.
Loading Comments ...
Comments
No comments have been added for this post.
You must be logged in to make a comment.