Toshiba to Offer Linux Alternative too?

Toshiba to Offer Linux Alternative too?

By Greg McNevin

May 4, 2007: In the wake of Dell’s announcement that it will be offering Ubuntu Linux on select laptops, Toshiba is also reportedly considering hopping on the Linux train.

According to desktoplinux.com, a story published in Italy’s Il Sole newspaper claims that the company is thinking about offering a Linux alternative as an OS choice on its Tecra, Qosmio, Satellite and Portege notebooks.

The paper spoke with Toshiba’s Italian country manager Luigi Cattaneo who claims that the domestic market is dominated by HP and Acer. One way for Toshiba to capture a larger share would be to offer a pre-installed Linux alternative.

This move could give it the edge in the SMB market, where notebooks in the €500 range are able to make a splash. To bring prices down to this level though, Linux is the only choice.

“The corporation is seriously talking about this, and we are evaluating attentively the question,” Cattaneo told II Sole. “It is a potential business to which we do not want to close the door.”It is not known whether Toshiba is thinking about offering Linux at large in other countries.

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