14 DAY TRIAL // Alienware, a manufacturer that produces custom high-performance PC gaming laptops and desktop computers, has announced that Ubuntu is now part of its lineup.
Until the release of Steam on Linux, there weren't any PC manufacturers that would consider putting together a high-end desktop system based on Linux. The arrival of so many games on the Linux platform, and especially on Ubuntu, has changed this perspective and Alienware wants to be amongst the first to ride the wave.
To be fair, Alienware is not the first company to build a high-performance PC, with an Ubuntu operating system. System76 is doing it for some time, even if their products are not quite on par with Alienware.
“Ubuntu’s stylish, intuitive interface provides a clean and streamlined experience that is easy to use. Ubuntu works with music, videos, photos and files that you use on your current PC. Its open-source operating system allows users to experience Ubuntu in a flexible manner that is unique to their preferences and its flexible interface can be customized to suit the user’s needs,” reads the Alienware website.
As expected, the major selling point for this line of products is Steam for Linux. They boast with the fact that there are over 25 games and more are being added every day. This information is partially incorrect, as Steam for Linux now holds over 50 titles. The guys from Alienware are only counting the games with Steam’s Big Picture Mode support.
As it stands right now, there's only one system up for sale, Alienware X51, but with four different configurations.
The “lowest” configuration features and Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual Core processor, 6GB DDR3 at 1600MHz (2 DIMMS) RAM memory, a 1GB GDDR5 NVIDIA GeForce GTX 645 graphics card, and 1TB SATA 3Gb/s 7200RPM hard-driver.
The highest configuration has an Intel Core i7-3770 3.4GHz Quad Core processor, 8GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz (2 DIMMS) RAM memory, a 1.5GB Nvidia GeForce GTX 660 graphics card, and 1TB SATA 3Gb/s 7200RPM hard disk.
More detail about the various PC system configurations can be found on the official website.