Linux is a Sellout Hit at Wal-Mart
Just before Halloween, Wal-Mart announced that it would be stocking Everex’s Ubuntu Linux-powered TC2502 gPC for a list price of $200. Now, just two short weeks later, the Wal-Mart site reports the gPC is sold out.
According to DesktopLinux, Wal-Mart only bought an initial trial run stock of 10,000 units and there may be a few sitting on the back shelves of your local Wal-Mart, but clearly the company failed to anticipate how popular a cheap Linux computer would be.
By contrast, the next step up in the Everex line, which cost $100 more and features Windows Vista Home Basic, still lists plenty of units available.
Clearly the people care less about operating systems and more about price.
And while the gPC is underpowered by most people’s standards, for those that just want to do the basics — send some e-mail, do a bit of chatting, login to Facebook, etc — it gets the job done at a price that’s tough to beat. Heck it’s the same price as the much ballyhooed OLPC laptop.
But never fear, there’s more on the way. Paul Kim, Everex’s director of marketing, tells DesktopLinux that while WalMart.com sold out within 48 hours, a second round of gPCs, originally slated for release after Black Friday, will be pushed up “because of the high demand.”
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