Linux on Lenovo devices is nothing new, but offering them for general sale is. In the past Lenovo has only offered Linux machines to enterprise customers. Lenovo is now extending its device certification program to include machines aimed directly at the general public. A further 27 models of desktop and laptop computers will come with Ubuntu pre-installed (via arstechnica).
- ThinkPad T14 (Intel and AMD)
- ThinkPad T14s (Intel and AMD)
- ThinkPad T15p
- ThinkPad T15
- ThinkPad X13 (Intel and AMD)
- ThinkPad X13 Yoga
- ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3
- ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 8
- ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 5
- ThinkPad L14
- ThinkPad L15
- ThinkPad P15s
- ThinkPad P15v
- ThinkPad P15
- ThinkPad P17
- ThinkPad P14s
- ThinkPad P1 Gen 3
- ThinkStation P340
- ThinkStation P340 Tiny
- ThinkStation P520c
- ThinkStation P520
- ThinkStation P720
- ThinkStation P920
- ThinkStation P620
All of the announced machines will be available to the general public and run Ubuntu, a popular fork of the Debian operating system. The majority of these machines will come with Ubuntu 20.04 which is the current release and offers Long Term Support (LTS) until April 2025. The ThinkPad L series will come with Ubuntu 18.04, released in 2018 and also an LTS but with only three years of support left. The importance of certified machines is that they will "just work" with all of the drivers and hardware tested and certified as working.
“Lenovo’s vision of enabling smarter technology for all really does mean ‘for all’. Our announcement of device certification in June was a step in the right direction to enable customers to more easily install Linux on their own. Our goal is to remove the complexity and provide the Linux community with the premium experience that our customers know us for. This is why we have taken this next step to offer Linux-ready devices right out of the box,” said Igor Bergman, Vice President of PCSD Software & Cloud at Lenovo.
A phased roll out starting in September 2020 and going through to 2021 will see all of the machines released. But the selection and availability of machines will depend on your location.
Offering OEM machines to the general public could see more mainstream adoption of Linux. Ubuntu has been a popular choice for data science and software development thanks to its relative ease of use and large support base.
By providing these devices preloaded with the OEM version of Ubuntu, Lenovo is removing complexity for Linux users and introducing end-to-end web and phone support for platform-related Linux issues.
Lenovo Press Release
