I found a website that sells Linux computers. From what I could understand, they are very good, but I could be wrong. Is the price good for the hardware?

http://www.system76.com

Short version: Nope.


Long version: As with every pre-built/custom-built desktop, it's overpriced. I'd also be willing to bet that the PSUs in their desktops are generic junk, and generic PSU = gg $1000 investment.

You will always get the best value for your money if you build the computer yourself, no questions asked.

But I can't really give a good assessment of value without knowing the specifics of each component, so unless you can find out exactly what model each part is, I wouldn't recommend buying anything from this site.

I'm not sure if you checked the site or not, but if you look at any of the computers they are proposing, you can see all their parts (And you can upgrade to better ones if you want.). Also, you don't have to pay for the OS, so that could be a plus.

It doesn't tell you the brand or anything. It just says stuff like, "2 x 2 gb DDR3 RAM 1333 MHz."

Ratel Ultra
- Operating System Ubuntu 11.04 64-bit
- Processor Intel Pentium G6950 2.80 GHz L2 3 MB DMI 2.5 GTs - 2 Cores
- Memory 2 GB - 2 x 1 GB - DDR3 - 1333 MHz
- Hard Drive 500 GB SATA II 300 Mbps 32 MB Cache
- Optical Drive CD-RW / DVD-RW
- Wireless PCI Express Xtreme 802.11 bgn
- LCD Monitor 27" Full HD SuperThin Widescreen LED Display (1920 x 1080)
- Speakers no speakers
- Keyboard and Mouse Logitech Desktop MK200
- Portable Flash Drive 4 GB flash drive
- Hardware Warranty 1 Yr. Ltd. Warranty and 1 Yr. Technical Support
- Recycle Your Old Computer no, thank you
The only real brand I see is the Intel Pentium and OS. All the others are specs, but from what brand?

That's a good point. I wonder if they would add it if I contacted them.

>GT 210
>$650
lolno.

If you're smart enough to use linux, you're smart enough to build your own for $30% less.

Thanks for the replies. I discovered that website today and wanted to know if it was any good. I thought that since it came with a Linux distribution, it would bring the overall cost down, but it looks like it is not the case.

They're probably just trying to cater to the market that is "under-informed teenagers with too much money that think it is trendy to be anti-microsoft and use linux".

Not having to pay a windows license obviously makes the computer cheaper, but Dell etc have economies of scale in their favour making it difficult for small players to compete on price.

God knows, the under-informed teenager with too much money that think it is trendy to be anti-microsoft and use linux market is soooo lucrative, right? More likely, they're trying to compete with Dell/HP/etc which do not have much in the way of systems without Windows (or operating systems, for that matter.) Theoretically, without licensing fees, they can cut prices a bit to stay competitive. As mention previously, their size and sales prevent them from cutting too much. Dell/HP/etc also can cut licensing fees significantly by bundling loads of crapware onto systems, so the differences in price between System76 systems and Dell/HP/etc. systems end up being little or nothing.

I hear decent things about their laptops, which I assume is where most of their sales come from. On top of that, I believe anything they are selling is most likely 100% guaranteed to be compatible/have drivers for Linux, which I suppose isn't too big of a problem now a days, although the problem of incompatibility pops up every now and then.

And then, as far as brands go, the idea is that the brand is System76. The same reason you don't see Dell/HP/etc. advertising the brand of the RAM or HDD they use (since they don't produce RAM or HDDs, etc.). It doesn't make much of a difference though - you guys sweat the details such as brand and insignificant specs too much - as long as it works, it works, and you won't be able to tell the difference between a system running DDR3 1333 or DDR3 1600 anyway.

But you will be able to tell the difference between a quality PSU and a generic one when your generic one lights on fire.

The reason we (or at least I) "sweat the details" so much is because it really does make a difference. Quality parts not only tend to have better performance, they also tend to last longer.

It's also a matter of price. If you're going to pay $400 for some part, would you rather get a good quality one or an average quality one?

Now, the average quality one might be perfectly fine for your needs, in which case you should be spending $250.

Right. Or you might be stuck with the 50$ one that's going to explode. As is the case with most pre-builts. RAM and mobos with no heat spreaders or sinks, PSUs that can't keep within specifications on just about any rail. This is why we build things ourselves. If companies gave us the choice to use at least decent components (IE ones that are properly cooled and don't have an affinity for catching fire or overvolting components), we wouldn't be so up in arms about keeping people away from them.

And for anyone who thinks spending even more money on a pre-built promises you anything, I've had several friends buy Gateways costing over 1200$, one of which had an X58 board with less cooling than my 650i SLI, and the PSU killed his whole system in less than 2 years. That was after the HDD failed. Another one got a GPU with inadequate cooling which needed to be replaced within 9 months.

Its not just the bargain basement 350$ office machines you need to worry about.

I'm not sure what types of experiences you guys have had with pre-builts, but I call total bullshit. I've had a computer for over 6 years and the only hardware problem I've ever had with it is a broken CD drive. Of course building your own computer is better, but shit doesn't just catch on fire as easily as you guys make it seem.

Even my fairly limited experiences with prebuilts and PCs catching fire is contrary to your statement. It's REALLY EASY to make PCs melt or catch on fire.

Funny, because the only computer problem I've ever had is with the one that I built. The graphics card died in under a month.

Was it a card that someone like Ex or rockz recommended here? Also, how did it die? The only time I've ever had a graphics card die is when I let it overheat, but I blame myself for that rather than the company or the card.

Ex recommended it, and one day it just decided to fuck me over. My screen went black, and then when I restarted my computer, I had red pixels all over the bios screen and the screen returned to black after I logged into my account. The only way I could see anything is if I ran my computer in safe mode and then disabled the graphics card drivers.

You either had too low of a budget or got unlucky. Sorry kiddo.

Edit: Went back and looked. Too low of a budget. I said when I gave it to you we were already cutting corners I didn't want to cut in the name of better specs.

Post has been edited 1 time(s), last time on Sep 21 2011, 11:19 pm by Excalibur.

I've heard stories that Gateway tended to just buy up components en-masse and stick them in machines with whatever they had in stock at the moment. So you could get 2 machines that were sold with the same specs but have wildly different hardware underneath. That, is of course, screaming out for problems.

I don't believe Dell and HP do that on the other hand. Also big businesses have contracts to buy thousands of desktop PCs from OEM vendors and clearly if they had things melting or frying all over the place (at too high a rate) they'd switch vendors. Having said that, the OEMs will be putting in more effort to guarantee quality when selling to businesses for this very reason.

But acting like "if you buy pre-built you can expect it to fail" is a bit moronic. Really all we can say for certain is that if you buy pre-built you can expect it to cost more than if you'd built it yourself, it'll come with shovel-ware and may not be easily upgraded in future.