ubuntu-tablet team mailing list archive

[Chris Billington <billington.chris@xxxxxxxxx>]

> If you are saying you can only buy them here.. why couldn't you buy them
from the web
I might- but then I'm an enthusiast and perhaps willing to buy an unseen
product plus pay international shipping and 20% VAT, and risk having to pay
all over again if the hardware fails. Joe Average wouldn't do this. Joe
Average is Ubuntu's target market. They expect a local point of sale with
real hardware, technical support and repair service, and are willing to pay
for that.

I'm talking about selling stuff to typical consumers and getting Ubuntu
used in the wider world. Hardware plus software bundle is demonstrably what
works in the current marketplace. Google understood this, they didn't
expect users to install Android on a Nokia or Windows phone, so they worked
with the hardware makers. Installing a 'different OS' on embedded hardware
it may not fully support is non-trivial for 99% of potential users, it's
not a case of popping a CD into a drive and rebooting.

So I am saying that unless a major vendors ships a preloaded Ubuntu tablet
through their channel, or someone does the work with an OEM to develop and
market a new Ubuntu-running brand, Ubuntu tablets are going to remain a
hobbyist niche with a microscopic user base.

regards
Chris


On 20 February 2012 14:12, brian mullan <bmullan.mail@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

>
>
> On Mon, Feb 20, 2012 at 7:10 AM, Chris Billington <
> billington.chris@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
>> The tablet PCs or special purpose devices that have shipped in
>> significant numbers are those where the manufacturer controls the hardware
>> design as well as the software. For example: iPad, Nook, Kindle Color. Of
>> those, two are USA-only.
>
>
> If you are saying you can only buy them here.. why couldn't you buy them
> from the web
>
> If you are saying you can't use them outside of the US...   if we're
> talking about installing a customized ARM linux onto the device... I would
> assume that linux distro has the normal internationalization capabilities.
>
> ARM is also controlled by  http://arm.com/.
>
>
>
>