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The operating system - codenamed Gutsy Gibbon - will be available to UK customers on Dell's Inspiron 530 desktop range this week.

Dell makes no apologies for the delay in bringing the operating system - which releases a new version every six months - to its desktop range. "Why did it take a several weeks for Dell to get Ubuntu 7.10 in our factory? The answer is simple. With any operating system, we take 'gold' code and

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take the time to do extensive testing on our systems to make sure that customers have as few issues as possible," claims Daniel Judd, Dell's product group strategist, on the company's blog.

During that time, Dell has a added a few features of its own to the Linux distro. Customers will now be able to play DVDs using the pre-installed LinDVD software. The company has also pre-installed Flash, and is offering a full factory restore on the hard disk and the option to burn recovery DVDs.

Despite rumours earlier this year of disappointing sales of its Ubuntu systems, Dell insists it remains committed to expanding, not shelving, its Linux range. "Today we offer Ubuntu in the US, UK, France and Germany. For customers in other countries interested in Ubuntu, we hear you and ask you to stay tuned. As with the regular cadence of OS improvements, Dell is working on bringing Ubuntu to more markets over time," Judd claims.