81–90 of 108 posts
Linux might be rare enough that they only make Windows machines and then have someone pull one out of the box put Linux on it if requested.
It’s like why alcohol free beer costs almost same in NZ - because they have to take out alcohol!
Earlier quoted context omitted.
The advantage with XPS is not the price, but the premium quality.
In my opinion XPS is about size and to an extent performance, but not better (build) quality. In my experience both the Latitude and Precision series have had fewer hardware issues despite being more prevalent, where only part of the explanation is that XPS-es are used more often by people who also travel more.
From the context it sounds like your definition of build quality is reliability and durability, which I would be surprised to hear their business grade laptops are better at.
Buy the system with the Windows OS. Back up the OS to a USB thumb drive and store it away carefully. You may need that to reinstall Windows if you want to sell the machine off a year or two later.
Wipe the hard drive completely by installing a new partition table. Install your own favorite Linux distro. Almost invariably, the Linux distro that could come with that machine, is a distro that you wouldn't normally use.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
If Norton 360 installed Folding@home, would you call F@H a "cancer"? No, you wouldn't. The true cancer here is pre-installed antivirus software such as Norton.
In this scenario, would Norton be taking a 15% cut?
That argument doesn't lead where you want it to go. It's the antivirus companies that are rubbish.
"Price Includes $250 off through Dell Small Business. Special Offer"
More than likely, because switching to Linux also drops all the "paid pre-installed windows software" (companies paying Dell to pre-install their software) then this jump in price would give a hint as to how much Dell receives in payment for pre-installing all those windows extras.
I knew a "business development" guy who specialized in these deals. Unless something has changed drastically in this space, Dell isn't going anywhere near $200 plus the cost of a Windows license on every machine they sell. I'm guessing they have higher return rates and higher support calls from people selecting the Linux option who don't fully understand what they're doing. If the Linux option reduced the price, ther…
I'm sure they might have done a bunch of testing and tweaking to ensure compatibility upon first boot as well.
Though from my standpoint I'd rather know of a distro's quirks with a particular computer than be surprised when I decide to use something different down the line.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
It’s like why alcohol free beer costs almost same in NZ - because they have to take out alcohol!
That's why I find the power of ads and marketing truly fearsome. Why buy alcohol free alcoholic beverages?