Dell XPS 410 desktop running on Ubuntu 7.04 “Feisty Fawn” Linux distribution. Dell will offer three consumer systems with Ubuntu 7.04 factory-installed starting the afternoon of May 24, 2007.ROUND ROCK, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dell (NASDAQ:DELL) today made it official, unveiling three consumer systems -- the XPS™ 410n and Dimension™ E520n desktops and the Inspiron™ E1505n notebook -- with the Ubuntu 7.04 Linux distribution factory installed.

These new Ubuntu equiped PCs go on sale after 4PM CDT on May 24, 2007. You can check them out over at Dell's site http://www.dell.com/open. These systems are a direct result of extensive customer feedback in which a vocal group of consumers told Dell that they wanted Linux as an option on new PCs. About 30,000 members of the IdeaStorm community advocated for this and a survey of over 100,000 participants helped Dell decide to go with Ubuntu.

The only potential problem (short term) is the lack of mature drivers for some new hardware. Dell has said that they will only offer hardware that is supported by mature drivers. This should only be a short term problem because once these PCs begin to sell Dell will be able to apply pressure to the hardware companies to put out Linux drivers.

Now, some in the GNU Linux community do not like closed source drivers no matter how good they are but I don't think the community as a whole feels that way. Like me, most people just want things to work. Most Linux users also do not need to go all the way down and hack source code. It's nice to know it is there but not always needed.

Recommended Configurations and Pricing

 
Inspiron E1505n Dimension E520n XPS 410n
15.4-inch TrueLife WXGA display 17-inch flat panel display 19-inch flat panel display
Intel Pentium® Dual Core T2080 Intel Core 2 Duo E4300 Intel Core 2 Duo E4300
512MB shared1 memory 1GB shared1 memory 1GB shared1 memory
80GB hard drive2 250GB hard drive2 250GB hard drive2
CDRW/DVD ROM CDRW/DVD ROM DVD+/- RW3
Intel® Media
Accelerator 950 Graphics

256MB nVidia Geforce 7300LE TurboCache4

256MB nVidia Geforce 7300LE TurboCache4

Intel PRO Wireless 3945 10/100 Ethernet 10/100 Ethernet
Starting at $599 Starting at $599 Starting at $849

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Dell, XPS, Dimension and Inspiron are trademarks of Dell Inc.

Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Edubuntu and their associated logos are all
registered trademarks of Canonical Ltd.

Dell disclaims any proprietary interest in the marks and names of
others.

Pricing, specifications, availability, and terms of offers may change
without notice. Taxes, fees, shipping, handling and any applicable
restocking charges are extra, and vary. Dell cannot be responsible for
pricing or other errors, and reserves the right to cancel orders arising
from such errors.

1 Up to 224MB of system memory may be allocated
to support integrated graphics, depending on system memory size and
other factors.

2 For hard drives, GB means 1 billion bytes and
TB equals 1 trillion bytes; actual capacity varies with preloaded
material and operating environment and will be less.

3 Discs burned with this drive may not be
compatible with some existing drives and players; using DVD+R media
provides maximum compatibility

4 The total of local and shared system memory
used by this graphics card is up to 256MB. Local on-board memory is
128MB. Up to 128MB of system memory is allocated to support graphics,
depending on system memory size and other factors.