New Computer Compatibilty Question

[kev3124]

I have a dell laptop with 9.10 and it runs great.

I am looking to purchase an inexpensive desktop (<300). I found a Dell desktop that would work price wise, but I would like to get something that has hardware that ubuntu "likes". I tried searching for a list of preferred ubuntu hardware but couldnt find anything.

Any ideas on what to go with? The desktop will be mainly used for business (internet, word processing), as well as watching movies and light photo editing via gimp.

[Julita]

You can always look at the list tuxmobil.org There are lists of laptops that work (or don't) with Linux, and you can get info on how a particular model works, many examples with Ubuntu.

[undecim]

Aside from a few graphics cards, I am not aware of any desktop hardware that doesn't play well with Linux. If you are only paying $300 for a desktop, chances are it has an intel card, which usually works wonderfully.

Could you post a model number or link to the computer you are planning on buying? I can do a little research on it, and let you know if I think it will work.

[mk1w86]

As far as I know most new Dell hardware should work fine with Ubuntu, but don't take my word for it.

Which specific Dell desktop model are you looking at?

[kev3124]

The one I was looking at was the
Dell Inspiron 546 MT

Inspiron 546 MT Inspiron 546 Minitower w/ Black Bezel
Operating System Genuine Windows Vista® Home Basic SP1, 32-Bit
Processors AMD Sempron™ LE-1300 (2.3GHz, 800MHz, 512KB)
Memory 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz- 2 DIMMs
Video Cards Integrated ATI Radeon HD3200 Graphics
Hard Drives 320GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache™

[undecim]

The one I was looking at was the
Dell Inspiron 546 MT

Inspiron 546 MT Inspiron 546 Minitower w/ Black Bezel
Operating System Genuine Windows Vista® Home Basic SP1, 32-Bit
Processors AMD Sempron™ LE-1300 (2.3GHz, 800MHz, 512KB)
Memory 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz- 2 DIMMs
Video Cards Integrated ATI Radeon HD3200 Graphics
Hard Drives 320GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache™

Looks good to me. The video card is the same one that is in my HP laptop, and it runs fine with the proprietary drivers.

Also, don't forget to get that Windows rebate if you plan on wiping Windows Vista from it. Also search for info on any other software that comes with it and ask for a rebate for that, too. http://www.linux.com/archive/feed/59381. From what I've heard, Dell is a real pain to get rebates from, but it can be done.

[kev3124]

Looks good to me. The video card is the same one that is in my HP laptop, and it runs fine with the proprietary drivers.

Also, don't forget to get that Windows rebate if you plan on wiping Windows Vista from it. Also search for info on any other software that comes with it and ask for a rebate for that, too. http://www.linux.com/archive/feed/59381. From what I've heard, Dell is a real pain to get rebates from, but it can be done.

Windows rebate? Whats that all about? And how do I go about getting one?

EDIT: Nevermind, I clicked the link. Thank you for your help.

[kev3124]

Decided to build my own:

WD Caviar 320GB SATA-3G HD 7200/16MB/SATA-3G
Intel D945GCLF2 Atom Motherboard
Intel Atom N330 1.60GHz Dual Core CPU,
GMA 950 Graphics
Apex MI-100 Mini ITX Black Case /w 250w psu
Kingston 2048MB PC5400 DDR2 667MHz CL5
Lite ON 18X DVDROM SATA OEM

I dont need anything too fancy, out the door for $200.