I've been in the market for a laptop for a little while now. I've been holding off in anticipation that Dell would start offering an Ubuntu laptop with a 17" display soon. However, the heat of summer (106° today) and lack of AC at home has been motivating me to lower my standards. Sure would be nice to just take the 'puter down to Break Espresso and get some work done there in the AC.
So, I was doing a little comparison shopping on Dell this evening and decided to configure two machines as identical as possible, one with Windows and the other with Ubuntu to see if the Microsoft Tax was still $50.
I was just a tad surprised to find that the Ubuntu machine was, in fact, more expensive than the Windows machine. How much more expensive, you ask quizzically? 225 CLAMS more expensive, I answer incredulously! The reason it appears is that the windows machine comes with 2 free upgrades (2GB Memory and a 160GB Hard Drive). The Ubuntu machine doesn't come with these sweet deals, so, WTF DELL?
For the record, here's the side by side summaries of the two machines, and their quoted prices.
| Ubuntu 1420N | Microsoft 1420 |
| My Components | My Components |
| Jet Black | Jet Black |
| Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7300 (2.0GHz/800Mhz FSB/4MB cache) | Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7300 (2.0GHz/800Mhz FSB/4MB cache) |
| Ubuntu version 7.04 | Genuine Windows® Vista Home Basic Edition |
| High Resolution, glossy widescreen 14.1 inch display (1440x900) | High Resolution, glossy widescreen 14.1 inch display (1440x900) | Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X3100 | Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X3100 |
| 2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 667MHz | FREE! 2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 667MHz |
| Speed: 160GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM) | FREE! 160GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM) |
| 8X CD/DVD Burner (DVD+/-RW) with double-layer DVD+R write capability | CD / DVD writer (DVD+/-RW Drive) |
| Intel® 3945 802.11a/g Mini-card | Intel® 3945 802.11a/g Mini-card |
| Built-in Bluetooth capability (2.0 EDR) | Built-in Bluetooth capability (2.0 EDR) |
| No Camera | No Camera |
| 85Whr Lithium Ion Battery (9 cell) | 85Whr Lithium Ion Battery (9 cell) |
| Integrated High Definition Audio | High Definition Audio 2.0 |
| My Service | My Service |
| 1Yr Ltd Warranty and Mail-In Service | 1Yr Ltd Warranty and Mail-In Service |
| No Dell On Call | |
| Free 3 GB Online Backup for 1Yr | |
| No ISP requested | |
| Also Includes | Also Includes |
| Integrated 10/100 Network Card and Modem | Integrated 10/100 Network Card and Modem |
| Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 7.0 | |
| Windows Vista™ Basic | |
| Intel Centrino Core Duo Processor | Intel Centrino Core Duo Processor |
| Inspirion 1420 | |
| 1420N Total: $1,383 | 1420 Total: $1,158 |
