Last week, our editor Tim Danton went to the launch of Alex, a new Linux-based operating system that aims to make computing much simpler for novices. Tim was very impressed by the ease-of-use of the new OS, but after a little deeper investigation, the cracks in the Alex scheme are beginning to appear.

Firstly, although the makers of Alex plan to eventually release the OS as standalone software, it’s currently only available when pre-installed on a laptop. And a pretty poor value laptop, at that.

Alex offers only one option: the £400 Clevo M760T. This boasts an ageing Intel Celeron T1600 1.66GHz processor, only 1GB of RAM and a paltry 120GB hard disk. By comparison, our A-Listed value laptop, the Acer Aspire 5536 offers a 2.1GHz Athlon X2 processor, 3GB of RAM and a 500GB hard disk for only £20 more.

On top of that £400 laptop, you also have to pay a minimum of £10 per month for the operating system, which includes free support, online backup and regular software updates. The first three months of that operating system fee have to be paid up front, in addition to a £15 delivery charge, which means you’ve got to pay a bare minimum of £445 just to get going and £525 by the end of the first year (you get 11 months of the OS for the price of 12).

Then there’s the broadband offer. For £25 per month (including the OS fee) you can get a broadband connection with your new PC. What the Alex website doesn’t reveal is that the broadband connection is a pitiful 2Mbits/sec connection – a quarter of the minimum headline speed offered by most ISPs today. Andy Hudson, the chief operating officer of The Broadband Computer Company, the firm behind Alex, denies it’s a slow connection. “It’s quite enough and it’s totally reliable,” he told us. “If you buy the broadband from us, it comes pre-configured with the router. It really is plug and play.”

And what if you don’t take the broadband from your company and try and find a better deal elsewhere? “If you can get broadband for £7.99, absolutely great. But we offer you no support and no service with it,” Hudson said. And good luck trying to get support from your broadband provider, when you tell them you’re having problems connecting with a completely unheard of operating system. Some of them don’t cope with Macs, let alone Alex.

Money up front

So let’s say our computer novice doesn’t much like the idea of configuring their own router, and decides to take the plunge with broadband. The company is offering a deal where you get 12 months access for the price of 11. That means in addition to the £400 laptop, you also need to cough up £75 for the first three months broadband, and a £15 delivery charge: which is £490 up front and £715 by the end of year one.

Then another little surprise arrives when you arrive at the checkout. After the initial payment, you’re automatically enrolled to drop the £25 broadband fee into the company’s account for the next three years. Admittedly, it says the deal can be cancelled at any time, but is there really any need to tie you up in the first place?

It’s not much better if you choose to ignore the broadband and opt for the laptop alone, because the company sets up recurring annual payments of £110 for the next two years, to account for the operating system fees. “The Alex service is a monthly subscription business model; we provide an annual subscription option as a convenience to our customers,” a company spokesman explains, when challenged on the fees. “Concerns about financial commitments to an ongoing service can be alleviated by selecting the monthly subscription option.” Which, of course, is more expensive.

Sound investment?

So what happens if, having paid your £520 for laptop and year’s worth of Alex OS up front, this small start-up company goes bust? Is there any insurance or protection for customers, or will they see their money go up in smoke? “I have spoken to Jim Leslie our CEO and he has informed me that we do not have a financial insurance scheme in place as we think in the unlikely event of default it would be better for us to continue the service via third parties,” said a company spokesman.

As ever, proceed with caution. And if you are tempted by the simplicity of Alex, make sure that at the very least you pay by credit card, which ensures the credit company shares liability if things should go horribly wrong.