Dell Offers New Laptops with Red Hat Enterprise Linux Loaded

Dell Computer is continuing to exapnd its support for Linux and open source platforms. We've reported on the company's work with Canonical to bring Ubuntu-based systems to both India and China, including an expansion of this effort. And, Dell just announced that it is delivering an Ubuntu laptop, part of its "Project Sputnik" effort, targeted at developers. Now, Dell is offering new laptops with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 6 pre-loaded.

As PC World notes:

"The company announced two models, the Precision M4700, which has a 15.6-inch screen, and the Precision M6700, which has a 17.3-inch screen. Dell will offer Windows 7, but is also offering Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 for specific regions. Dell did not provide information on the countries in which RHEL would be available...The new Precision laptops run on Intel's latest third-generation Core i5 and i7 processors code-named Ivy Bridge."

You can find a complete breakdown of the specs on these systems at AnandTech.  They are clearly powerful systems, not low-end offerings.

As we've reported, through an internal innovation challenge at Dell called Project Sputnik, Dell has announced that it will deliver a new, developer-focused laptop based on the Dell XPS 13 with Ubuntu 12.04LTS preloaded, available in select geographies. It's a sign of more commitment to Ubuntu from Dell, and the two companies continue to expand their Ubuntu-centric PC offerings in both India and China. 

Dell has put its toe in the water with Linux in various ways over the years, but it's now seriously expanding its support for the platform. And, it's clear the company is taking an ecumenical approach, working with Canonical, Red Hat, and--it's likely--others.

In other recent news, Dell has expanded its OpenStack cloud computing work. You can read more about that here. 

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