Posted on 11/13/2007 11:19:21 AM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach
About two weeks ago, Wal-Mart began selling $200 Linux-based PC. The initial run was around 10,000 units. Now Wal-Mart is sold out. Has Linux now found a niche?
The system sold by Wal-Mart was an Everexs TC2502 gPC and is the first mass-market $200 desktop PC. The spec of the system is very low - 1.5 GHz VIA C7 CPU embedded onto a Mini-ITX motherboard, 512MB of RAM and an 80GB Maybe a more relevant question is not whether Linux has found a niche, but whether Windows has outgrown the average user?hard drive - but this doesnt matter because the system does pretty much everything that your average PC users wants. With the gPC you can surf the web, send and receive email, work with word processor and spreadsheet documents, chat with friends, keep a blog updated, edit photos and pictures, even burn DVDs thanks to the built-in DVD burner. About the only thing that your average home user wont be able to do with this PC is play games on it.
One thing that interested me about this PC is that it is shipped in a tower case when the components would fit into a much smaller case. I wondered why this was the case until I came across a write-up on Wired:
Even at the low end, however, image is everything. The gPC is built using tiny components, but put inside a full-size case because research indicates that Wal-Mart shoppers are so unsophisticated they equate physical size with capability.
That Wal-Mart shoppers are so unsophisticated bit is a tad worrying because I do wonder whether someone who equates case size with capability should be put in charge of a Linux system. The reviews seem pretty positive though. Maybe Wired have underestimate the kind of person who shops at Wal-Mart. Positive reviews far outweigh negative ones. However, the comment that stood out was this:
when you want to jazz it up, just spend 10 bucks for a new linux distro
Interesting comment, eh?
Now heres whats interesting about this PC. It doesnt have what it takes to run Windows Vista, but it has more than enough power to do pretty much everything that users want from a PC. As hardware costs have plummeted, and the power that can be squeezed from components increased, the cost of having Windows installed on such a PC becomes too high a proportion of the cost of components. For example, if you wanted to load Windows Vista Home Basic onto this system (not that Id suggest that you tried - the PC just couldnt cope with Vista), youre adding between $60 and $90 to the cost of the PC (depending on what the vendor pays for an OEM license, if you do it yourself, expect to pay the higher price in this spectrum). In fact, Wal-Mart do sell a similar system with Home Basic pre-installed (this system has an extra 512MB of RAM, a SATA 150 drive instead of an ATA 150 hard drive, and comes with a keyboard and mouse) for $298. Add Microsoft Office to that cost and the price of software doubles the price of the hardware. By installing Linux and OpenOffice, the total cost of the PC is kept as low as possible. While the price of hardware has fallen dramatically, the price of Windows hasnt. This could be Microsofts Achilles Heel. This low price point will appeal to many.
Has Linux finally found a niche in which it can compete against Windows or will the interest in these kinds of systems be limited? I think that Linux might well have found a good niche. Sure, these low-end systems will never appeal to those who want power at any cost (and who dont mind if their systems belch black smoke to achieve that power) but for people looking for a very cheap PC at a rock bottom price (this system is so cheap that I doubt you could build one for as good a price if you added shipping charges for the components into the deal), this must be a pretty irresistible deal.
Maybe a more relevant question is not whether Linux has found a niche, but whether Windows has outgrown the average user?
Thoughts?
I doubt many of them can tell the difference. They get email and a browser along with basic word processing. That’s 90% of what they do. The only thing they can’t do is run viruses.
DU goes silent for a week...................
I worked on Osbornes and Northgates in my “yout’”,, and Sperry Rand Univac too before that.. my first computer was a Mac. but a windows user for years
“Soon 9000 knuckle dragging mouth breathing slugs will return their PCs to Walmart because they dont get that linus thang
LOL... you are so right... “billy bob, get the truck started we gone go walmart and trade this linus pc for a futon”
“research indicates that Wal-Mart shoppers are so unsophisticated they equate physical size with capability.”
These folks are nuts,,,The more air circulating the cooler the machine runs..
When you look at some of today’s newest games, if you want to play them at the highest resolution and with all of the graphical goodies turned on, it’s not uncommon to see hardcore gamers spending $1,000 alone on two graphics cards for the best performance (not to mention all of the other components needed for a top-end rig).
This computer will certainly plan less taxing games, but not all of today’s latest (ignorning that it’s running Ubuntu, on which most games won’t work anyway).
Anyway, that scuba-gear. Frank sold me a Calypso J regulator...
The Everex system I bought back in 1989 had the best manual I have seen for a PC, before or since. I hope they still have good technical writers, because they are going to need them to explain Linux to WalMart shoppers.
So this was the funniest thing to happen to you since the hogs ate your sister!
That may be true in most systems, but a system with those components doesn’t run hot at all, the hottest component in most systems is the CPU, and that uses a Via C7 which is made for much smaller embedded systems, it uses lower voltages and requires minimal cooling.
So they could squeeze that into a much smaller form factor.
My 6-year old uses Ubuntu. It’s great.
My 6-year old son used only Windows XP before Ubuntu and needed no explanation at all.
And you know what? It may not run Vista...but it’ll run XP Pro, no problem. =]
No kidding, and these:
“The spec of the system is very low - 1.5 GHz VIA C7 CPU embedded onto a Mini-ITX motherboard, 512MB of RAM and an 80GB “
Are very low specs? Sheesh, 4 gb/186 mb 393 mhz runs fine for me at least, and I’ve played with Ubuntu (dapper drake) and it is very solid, even on an older box.
Heck open office runs on really old stuff as well, IMO, WalMart may have a hit on their hands if they can also watch movies etc and the “knuckle draggers” learn that you can emulate Windoze and maybe play games with the Wine program.
I may dust off the old Win 3.11 lappy out and see if the ethernet card still works...after I slug some geritol and take a nap...:)
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Everex TC2502 Green gPC w/ Via C7-D Processor
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Paid $465.50 for a 40MB hard drive from a Computer shopper vendor in 1989. Pathetic I still remember the price and the occasion. Several people on my dorm floor had to come by and behold the miracle of 40MB:)
It is still a good price for the components, but you can't throw away the case and put it in a tiny mini-ITX case.
There should be no reason to have to explain anything. Most service calls and shop visits are now for malware removal, viruses, etc..
Take those away, and the only thing left is a hardware failure. I have a few linux machines now (Debian) and there is really not a lot of thinking or understanding to do after they are set up. I just turn them on and use them. Crashlessly.
Well, of course! He's six years old!
Walmart is increasingly becoming a deciding factor of consumer buying trends solely on their pricing strategy, currently the trend of direction in the HD-DVD vs. BluRay format wars is now tipping in favor of the HD format with the sales strong of $99 HD-DVD players.
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