Dell to ramp up Linux PCs

 

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By Reuters

Posted on 27 Jul 2007 at 09:53

Dell is about to extend the range of PCs that come pre-installed with Linux, according to Ubuntu founder Mark Shuttleworth.

Shuttleworth claims Dell is happy with the demand it has seen for Linux PCs that were introduced in the US in May. Dell currently offers three consumer PCs that run Ubuntu Linux.

"What's been announced to date is not the full extent of what we will see over the next couple of weeks and months," Shuttleworth claims. "There are additional offerings in the pipeline."

A Dell spokeswoman declined to comment, saying the company does not discuss products in the pipeline.

She adds that Dell was pleased with customer response to its Linux PCs. She claims Dell believes the bulk of the machines have been sold to open-source software enthusiasts, while some first-time Linux users have purchased them as well.

Shuttleworth says sales of the three Dell Ubuntu PC models were on track to meet the sales projections of Dell and Canonical, the company established to provide support for Ubuntu.

Shuttleworth says his company is not in discussions with HP or the other top five PC makers to introduce machines equipped with Ubuntu.