As we all know, the EU loves regulation, sometimes even overregulation. One area where I feel that regulation would help is computer hardware sale. When I want to buy a laptop and I visit the online retailers, normally 80% of the laptops come with Windows, 10% Linux and 10% Freedos or without any. I would very much welcome if the EU made it mandatory for manufaturers to offer the choice of OS when buying a new laptop. Just like you chose the color, how much RAM you wanted, SSD size, you could also chose what operating system you want it with. As part of that, manufacturers would be obliged to send a fix donation after every sold piece to the corresponding Linux distro team, which would help the chronic underfunding issue. Not sure how much the manufacturers pay for Windowsfor the license, but theoretically the Linux equivalent machine should be cheaper even after the donation. Any views are welcome.
A lot of places that offer both Linux and Windows (like Dell) charge the same price, because the Windows license is subsidized by crapware, spyware, and demo software that they load onto the computer.
Huh that might be new, when I bought my XPS 13 from them in 2019 it was a 200 euro difference when buying with Windows vs Ubuntu
It’s not new. Every time a computer comes with a “free trial” for a virus scanner, cloud subscription service, office software or other crap ware the manufacturer gets a cut when the user converts to the paid version after the trial.
Oh ofcourse, but there being no price difference is definitely new for dell. I needed a Windows laptop at the time, but bought the Ubuntu one because it was literally €200 cheaper.
Edit: This is CRAZY, just checked Dell website. Buying one with Ubuntu instead of W11 Home will cost you €250 MORE. That’s insane.
Lenovo apparently offers the choice on some models, with the windows license adding $140 to the price of the laptop.