Zorin OS Finds a Home on Rotatable Notebook

An email arrived earlier today announcing the new Zorin PC. Just as it sounds, it's a computer shipping with Zorin OS. Kyrill Zorin said, "Zorin OS is our Linux distro that aims to be the gateway to Linux for Windows users to grow the popularity of Linux. We have recently launched the Zorin PC's website and are now taking pre-orders."

Zorin OS didn't receive rave reviews here, but others hold a different view. Jim Lynch recently said, "I'm pleased to report that I didn't encounter any noticeable problems running Zorin OS 4. Everything seemed pretty fast and stable while using it. I had no problems updating my system, or adding or removing applications. Zorin OS 4 was a pretty enjoyable experience overall."

Chema Martín of The Linux Experience said, "I would definitely encourage everybody to leave any kind of prejudices behind and give Zorin (a name that sounds like a God from Norse mythology) a spin. As a matter of fact, I would recommend Zorin to any kind of Linux user, but specially for those who are taking their first steps in the Penguin Universe."

Jesse Smith at Distrowatch.com said, "After the first wave of issues, using Zorin became a pleasant experience. With the regular GNOME theme in place, the desktop behaved properly, I encountered no further problems or warnings from the update tool, my second trial with PlayOnLinux worked fairly well and I found that Zorin came with a solid collection of tools for a desktop machine."

Dedoimedo said Zorin OS 3 was a "great distro for newbies" and Jeff Hoogland (of Bodhi Linux fame) said, "Zorin is a fantastic distro and I think many Windows converts will feel at home using it."

With all that on their side, surely a preloaded PC would be successful. The Zorin PC is actually a notebook with a 10 inch rotatable touchscreen. It comes with a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom processor, 2 GBs of RAM and a 160 GB hard drive. Zorin adds, "We have tailored both the hardware and software to work 100% with Linux." Currently, it comes with a dual boot Zorin OS and Windows 7 Ultimate. Customers also have a choice of software configurations in Home, Education, and Business editions, each with a healthy software stack. Single boot Zorin OS systems are coming soon.

The (approximate) 650 USD price is said to be an introductory special, but that seems a little pricey for the modest hardware especially with the 86 USD shipping fee. Perhaps the single boot will see a lower price. But in any case, like in answer to the "too many distributions" argument: the more the merrier and Zorin PC gives consumers another Linux PC choice - and that's always good.

See the Zorin PC Website for more details or to pre-order yours.