A netbook with Linux? Here are six options

...he didn't repeat the claim that Windows now has 90% of the netbook market. The two "studies" I've seen claiming this were questionable at best. For example, IDC surveyed 300 IT professionals to reach this conclusion. I didn't realize corporate IT professionals were the bulk of netbook buyers. The numbers from the manufacturers don't support this claim at all.

In addition, since it seems to be so hard to actually FIND Linux-based netbooks in retail stores, I suspect a lot of us who want Linux-based netbooks end up going off and buying a "Windows" one, which ends up being wiped and replaced with a Linux install. Therefore, the proportion of "Linux netbooks" running around out there is even higher than even an accurate count based on sales figures would indicate...

Eee PC 900 with Xandros Linux, US$250 at Target. If your nearest store doesn't have it, they can easily find which others do.

> US$250 at Target...

I'm not sure how many Target's there are in South Africa. :)

My most recent purchase was, unexpectedly, from Dell. They had a brief sale on the Mini-9's, and I purchased a Mini-9 with Ubuntu 8.04, 512MB of memory, an 8GB SSD, and a 1.3 MP web camera for $224. It's supposed to arrive in about 2 weeks. I've been watching the various netbook prices, and this was the best deal I've seen. I'll try to write up a review for LXer when I have time.

jdixon... Damn, that was a good deal. I might have to get past my general dislike for Dell products (despite living about 5 minutes from their headquarters) and buy one if I could get that deal...

> Damn, that was a good deal.

I thought so. :) The normal price for that unit would have been $274, so it's still a pretty good price even without the sale, just not "have to have it" good.

With $8 shipping and $13 or so in taxes, it came out to $245 plus change.

I'm waiting for $150. I just can't get into them, but my wife keeps pointing out all the times a netbook would be nice. Read a couple of articles about how [fill in the blank] is the latest fashion, and she wants [fill in the blank]. I bet she wants Windows though.

@bigg: Make your wife read a couple of articles about how Linux is the latest fashion :-)

@jdixon: Yes, please do wrire a review.

> Make your wife read a couple of articles about how Linux is the latest fashion :-)

It's funny you mention that. She recently told me that using Linux (Ubuntu) is a sign that you are smart. She keeps finding out that people she respects use Linux, so she said that she wants to learn it. What you are saying is, mostly, true.

jdixon: I just picked up an Acer Aspire One at Incredible Connection for ZAR3000 (about $300) running Linux. So plah... I wish I wasn't such an impulse buyer... that was a good deal you got there. :)

I just posted a review the other night of my Sylvania g Netbook Meso (aka AMtek Elego outside the USA) which I am absolutely thrilled with. Currently it's at Amazon.com for US $269 and I briefly saw it as low as $249. Intel Atom N270, 1GB RAM, 80GB HDD. To me the difference between the 512MB jdixon's machine has and 1GB is huge. I thing right now the Sylvania/AMtek is the best deal out there.

Ran across an EeeeeeePC in BestBuy today, with Windows on it. Oh well.

It was cute, I'll give it that.

Some BestBuy stores have both the Windows and Linux versions. The one nearest me does. As already mentioned Target sells it and ONLY offers the Linux version.

Target will soon be offering the Windows version as well, according to the sales clerk I talked to a month ago.

Dr. D.,

You got it all wrong. I read where this grass roots outfit* determined that all purchases of machines not having a valid MS OSs were simply to get the lowest price and to load a magnificent pirated copy of MS Windows. The Chinese numbers were probed and this proved to be true, when individuals were interrogated by the CSS**.

I have the statistics for netbooks here:

Quoting: MS Vista (Enterprise and other versions) > 10% XP                                                                       99.9 Mac OS X                                                             0.1 Mac OS          (non-Intel)                                    0.0000009 Linux                                        less than          10 x -26

Total percent not matching 100% due to round off error.

See, they even are honest about their numbers.

Those figure come from a very reputable, independent statistics compiling firm. Therefore, we can have implicit assurance those figures are correct as they were gathered by primary sources.

So I think it can be concluded that Linux is dead in the netbook niche and this discussion can end.

YBT

*     ATI*** **  Chinese Special Services ***  (Astro Turf, Inc.)

> Those figure come from a very reputable, independent statistics compiling firm.

So how much did Gartner charge? :)

jd,

It was free. I think it was prepaid by a MS associated outfit that specializes in greening American (U.S.) football fields. Their name slips by my memory for the moment. [Wave some cash and I might remember.]

YBT