[nzlug] Linux Laptop Retailers

[Mathew Carley]

Doesn't this subject come up about once a month? As un-personal as it 
might sound, perhaps NZLUG/NZOSS/xxLUG could point at some Wiki Page 
featuring a (nationwide?) list of companies that will sell laptops 
either sans-OS or with Linux.

I'm not sure if (InHouse) or whoever it is down in (Taranaki?) still 
does those OS-less Clevos but I'm sure someone can make an actual 
recommendation for who to call. (Forgive me, I'm a little rusty with my 
NZ retailers these days) but if you want a big-brand laptop, well, good 
luck.

I know in Thailand (or insert almost any Asian country here) they sell 
big-brand Windows-less laptops, but for about 200 baht you can get a 
genuine copy** of Windows with a bunch of neat extras slipstreamed on to 
the disc, with everything from Anti-Virus to MS Office.

The Keyboards are Thai, which from memory is basically US-English (same 
as NZ) but with some extra "squiggly bits" on the keys (err, by that, I 
mean the Thai alphabet for those that can't read Thai).

In Hong Kong... well, it's a bit harder but also possible to do on the 
cheap - only this time the "squiggly bits" are for constructing 
Simplified Chinese characters :D

I think ASUS do OS-less laptops in some markets - NZ probably not included.


-Mathew

P.S. Sorry about my lay-mans terminology... there's probably a name for 
these things, but I'm too lazy to think right now.
**By genuine copy, I do mean, of course, pirated... as in "Genuine Copy 
Watch" or "Genuine Copy Handbag" :) Watch this message get eaten by 
spam-filters!


Simon Bridge wrote:
> Dick Smith, apparently:
> "Computerworld looked at two portable PCs from opposite ends of the
> feature spectrum: a $1499 bare-bones laptop from Dick Smith without an
> operating system"
> http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/news/3697ACDB9231E2DFCC25723600332982
> But that was March, 2004...
>
> Barebones laptops can still be purchased, however it is usually cheaper
> to buy one bundled with windows. Then, there's always ordering from
> China?
>
>
>
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