Last week,
Wal-Mart began selling a $199 Linux-based PC from a little-known firm called
Everex. The machine is dubbed the gPC TC2502, and it includes a 1.5GHz VIA C7-D
processor, 512MB of DDR2 RAM, an 80GB hard drive, a customized version of Ubuntu
Linux 7.10, and no monitor. According to Wired, the gPC TC2502's dinky
hardware is enough to provide a responsive experience in Everex's Ubuntu-based
gOS. Wired calls the user interface 'unexpectedly snappy' and says the system
manages to keep up with GIMP, OpenOffice, a media player, and a multi-tab
Firefox session running simultaneously. There's nothing to report from a
stability standpoint, either, and Wired points out that users who purchase the
system won't have to worry about viruses or spyware.
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