Linked by Thom Holwerda on Tue 17th Mar 2009 16:00 UTC
During these financially dire times, it's always interesting to keep en eye on the sales figures of computes, to see if the downward trend is still running. Sales figures from February analysed by NPD indicate that while Mac sales went down, sales of Windows PCs went up. Mind, though, that these figures are US-only.
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Member since:2005-11-10
Member since:2007-02-17
fretinator:
I just bought a netbook - Asus 1000HE with Windows XP. I will actually be running Ubuntu. It's a shame that I contributed to the Windows sales statistic for March. Unfortunately, the 1000HE gave me the most bang for the buck. For $399 at Amazon, I got 2GB ram, 160GB hard drive, a 9 1/2 hour battery and an Atom N280 chipset with a 667mhz frontside bus. I noticed the price just went up $25 at Amazon after I bought it. Also, it's shiny blue!
There were several places that sold a Liux version (Asus 1000), but it had a shorter battery life (5-6 hours), an N270 chipset and a 40GB SSD which was actually an 8GB primary and a slower 32GB secondary disk. Also, it would be about $50 more (zareason.com, amazon, newegg).
There were several places that sold a Liux version (Asus 1000), but it had a shorter battery life (5-6 hours), an N270 chipset and a 40GB SSD which was actually an 8GB primary and a slower 32GB secondary disk. Also, it would be about $50 more (zareason.com, amazon, newegg).
DevL:
Same here. Just got my ASUS S101 delivered and it runs Ubuntu. I never once booted Windows on it but it'll still count as a "sure" sign that everybody wants Windows on their NetBooks. :-(
Kroc:
*You* have the ability to do that. Regular users don’t. Regular users buy appliances, not DIY-kits.
This problem of having to buy a Windows XP Home netbook, because that was all that was offered, when one really wanted Linux, has been up until now a vexing problem here in Australia. Typically, if a Linux option was offered at all, it was only offered on the low-end machines without a hard disk.
Happily a local supplier has just announced a way for Australian consumers to get what they want (as established by Kogan via a user poll) without (necessarily) being counted as yet another statistic for Microsoft sales.
Obligatory supporting links:
http://www.kogan.com.au/shop/kogan-agora-netbook-pro/
http://www.itwire.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=238...
http://www.pcauthority.com.au/Review/139701,first-look-kogan-agora-...
It looks quite nice. The Linux option is touted to be the cheapest 10-inch netbook available in Australia. It seems to be unique in the world of 10-inch netbooks with a HDD (160GB) in that Linux gOS is the pre-installed OS offered, and Windows XP Home is only available by special request for extra cost.
Edited 2009-03-18 02:37 UTC
Member since:2005-12-15
Member since:2005-07-06
Apple need to increase driver development for more hardware. It doesn't really matter that much that they use commodity hardware. If there's no driver support it's as good as proprietary hardware to me.
What isn't supported? do you mean more USB and Firewire devices? I agree that there is a serious lack in the number of third parties providing solutions for Mac's, but that is up to the established individual companies to decide whether entering the Mac market is worth their while.
It also isn't Apple's responsibility support hardware from vendors who flat out refuse to allow Apple access to hardware specifications. How can Apple assure an end user a consistent experience and claimed support if their understanding and support of a given component of hardware is based on reverse engineering and a lot of hacking around? it can't be done. You may be happy with Linux device driver writers claiming support but reality is that only the very small subset of the device is fully supported - but Apple customers expect more, so if there is a claim of support by Apple, they want it properly and fully supported and not a buggy mess of pain and misery.
Member since:
2006-07-16
I know people have heard this complaint about Macs before but it bears repeating: They're too damn expensive for what they are. I can go to tigerdirect and snag a tricked out PC with pretty much every feature present on the Mac for a fourth to a sixth the price. Of course I wouldn't get OS-X but I could even add that myself through various questionable means. And I have the ability to swap out components in the future as upgrades become available. Now that Apple is using commodity hardware, they need to lower their prices already.
Edited 2009-03-17 20:06 UTC