What Happened to Ubuntu Netbooks?

[gregsim]

I am interested in purchasing a netbook with ubuntu preinstalled. They seem to have disappeared from the market in the US. I would prefer not to pay the Microsoft tax, but the primary reason that I want a stock unit is to ensure hardware compatibility. In the past, I have put ubuntu on any number of laptops and desktops and almost always have something that doesn't work. I don't think I am stupid, but I sure feel like it when trying to get the wifi working or some other little piece of hardware.

Asus announced three new ubuntu netbook models this past June, but Microsoft evidently threatened all the retailers and they are not available anywhere. What a shame!

I bought a netbook from ZaReason a couple years ago, but the mouse bar was a toy and I didn't like that. Otherwise, it worked fine. Most of the ZaReason models are large laptops. I would really like a Toshiba NB305-N600, but I am afraid to buy the Microsoft version then deal with reinstalling Ubuntu and having it not work.

My primary computer is my 11" MacBookAir. Apart from a storage limitation (120 GB SSD), it is a fantastic machine. Very light and portable. Great keyboard. Great screen. Camera works great with Skype. I can run Microsoft Office and otherwise, whatever software I need from the Mac world. I use this machine to earn my living and I am very satisfied with it. It is worth every penny of the $1500 I paid for it.

I would like to be able to develop a similarly functional open source machine. If I am going to pay $1000, I will buy another Apple. They just work and their support is excellent (if you live near an Apple store). I hope that there is an ubuntu notebook in the $500 or less range that also works reasonably well. Is that too much to ask?

[coffeecat]

Not a Forum Feedback thread.

Thread moved to The Community Cafe.

[kurt18947]

Toshiba has a pretty decent rep for Ubuntu compatibility though I have no personal experience. I have 2 older Thinkpads that are perfectly compatible. Looking at it pragmatically, If I thought I might need Windows, it makes better sense to buy a machine that has Windows included in the purchase then add the free O.S. rather than buying a machine with an O.S. which can be obtained for no cost then having to pay for a retail Windows license. The risk of course is getting a machine that has hardware compatibility issues e.g. dual video output with imperfect functionality or a new unsupported WiFi card. The only solution I know is to be aware of what hardware is problematic and avoid it in new machines.

[LowSky]

http://www.ohava.com/index.php?Itemid=115&option=com_tienda&view=products&layout=view&id=1&task=view

[Roasted]

http://www.ohava.com/index.php?Itemid=115&option=com_tienda&view=products&layout=view&id=1&task=view

Never heard of Ohava... that actually looks kind of snazzy.

[gregsim]

Looking at it pragmatically, If I thought I might need Windows, it makes better sense to buy a machine that has Windows included in the purchase then add the free O.S. rather than buying a machine with an O.S. which can be obtained for no cost then having to pay for a retail Windows license.

Good point about the cheap MS license. I wonder if I could use the license to run Windows in a VM under linux. I would probably fumble that transition.

[gregsim]

http://www.ohava.com/index.php?Itemid=115&option=com_tienda&view=products&layout=view&id=1&task=view

Yeah - that does look interesting. I wonder why I have never heard of these folks. I will research it a bit and maybe get that netbook.

[eriktheblu]

Good point about the cheap MS license. I wonder if I could use the license to run Windows in a VM under linux. I would probably fumble that transition.

Every time I've tried this it failed. OEM installs seem to be limited to that equipment set.

[ugm6hr]

For UK and Australian users, kogan are pretty good. I got a 12" netbook with Ubuntu for £240 (now £280).
I'm still impressed how good it is, considering how little it cost.

[Lucradia]

Yeah - that does look interesting. I wonder why I have never heard of these folks. I will research it a bit and maybe get that netbook.

So http://www.system76.com is down for you? They used to have netbooks, but not anymore. Probably because unity's too big for the small 480p interface. I know I wouldn't even use it for 1280x720.

[koleoptero]

@Lucradia: They still do have laptops.

[Eldera]

System 76 is still selling laptops, but have discontinued their Starling netbooks.

http://ubuntuforums.org/showpost.php?p=11307916&postcount=5

[Copper Bezel]

For UK and Australian users, kogan are pretty good. I got a 12" netbook with Ubuntu for £240 (now £280).
Those are surprisingly pretty. I love the barrel-style hinges. I felt like the Asus Eee line lost something special when they switched to the same little swingarms everyone else is using.

[gregsim]

So http://www.system76.com is down for you? They used to have netbooks, but not anymore. Probably because unity's too big for the small 480p interface. I know I wouldn't even use it for 1280x720.

I picked up a 15.6" Toshiba laptop and it seems enormous to me after working with my 11" MacBook Air. The smallest laptop I see at System76 is 14.1" That still sounds rather large. I didn't even like the 13" MacBook Air. I like the 11" size. Even the 10.1" Toshiba NB305 N600 is rather handy.

I didn't realize that the netbooks won't support the graphics on the new version of ubuntu. I understood that ubuntu eliminated the netbook version because the new version is supposed to automatically adapt. Questions like these are why I want to buy a stock unit. My poor brain can't handle all these variables!:(

I am still considering that Ohava netbook.

[Copper Bezel]

The resolution's not really 480p. It's 1024 * 600, same as every other netbook, which is really the resolution Unity was designed for. With that said, a lot of users feel that Unity, Compiz, or Gnome is too heavy for a netbook's limited performance. My experience has been that with a 1.6 Ghz processor, you can get by with the stock one-gig memory in most netbooks and still run Gnome, but you probably won't enjoy it. = ) (With the RAM upgraded, though, I have no complaints.)

[CryptAck]

I have a almost 2 year old HP Mini, and it works great with Ubuntu. The only downside, which the new models appear not to have, is the left/right side of the trackpad is supposed to represent the buttons. Unfortunately, this doesn't always work as expected, but it didn't work right in Windows 7 Starter either...

[Erik1984]

So http://www.system76.com is down for you? They used to have netbooks, but not anymore. Probably because unity's too big for the small 480p interface. I know I wouldn't even use it for 1280x720.

Unity should be quite nice for screens with less pixels in the vertical dimension. You can shrink the icons with CCSM so the launcher's not that big. Unity also preserves vertical space with the global menu.