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The Slimbook Essential is a new affordable Linux laptop line with two models

By - | Views: 17,301

When a lot of companies reveal their new Linux hardware, it often ends up being towards the high end. Slimbook have come along to help remedy that with their Slimbook Essential line.

Slimbook said in an email to us today: "A new computer that may establish a milestone in our trademark history, not for being the best Linux ultrabook, because some already claim that the PRO X holds that title, but for being the most affordable Linux ultrabook for everyone.

During our 5 years of service, we have released several high performance ultrabooks targeting professional environments with relatively moderate / high prices, but never as low as 499€ like the new Essential. With this new addition, we aim to widen our client base and reach customers that look for the best price / quality ratio."

Here's some specs for you to save you a click:

Model

ESSENTIAL 14"

ESSENTIAL 15"
CPU

Intel i3-1005G1
Intel i5-1035G1
Intel i7-1065G7

Intel i3-10110
Intel i5-10210
Intel i7-10510
Screen

14 inch, 1920x1080
FullHD with matte finish

15 inch, 1920x1080
FullHD with matte finish

Keyboard

White backlighting
Spanish, available with most European keyboard layouts

RGB backlighting. Numeric keypad.
Spanish, available with most European keyboard layouts
RAM

2 DDR4 2666Mhz slots up to 32GB

HDD

Fast NVMe drives
250GB, 500GB, 1TB o 2TB

Graphic card

Intel Iris Plus

Intel UHD
USB

1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 port (Type A)
1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 port (Type C)
1 x USB 2.0 (Type A)

1 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 port (Type A)
1 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 port (Type C)
2 x USB 2.0 (Type A) 
Video outputs

1x HDMI (with HDCP)

Warranty

2 years premium warranty in Spain

OS

Windows, Linux or both

Outer material

Aluminum & ABS in titanium gray finish

Wireless LAN

Intel 9560AC
Intel AX200

Bluetooth

Bluetooth 5.0

RJ45 network

10/100/1000Mb Base-TX

SIM 4G LTE

Not available

Optional SIM module available

Webcam

HD 720p (1280 x 960)

Audio

Stereo speakers, internal MIC, 3.5mm headphone&mic combo jack, 5.1 channels audio through HDMI.

Weight

1.34~ Kg

 1.63~ Kg
Battery

49 Whr Li-Ion Battery
Up to 7 hours of battery life.

Card reader

Micro SD reader

Size

324.9mm x 219.5mm x 18.95mm

 360.4mm x 239.3mm x 19.7mm
Charger

100~240V, 50~60Hz, DC output 19V 2.1A, 40W

CD-ROM/DVD

Optional External DVD/RW Recorder

Box content

1 Laptop, 1 AC Charger.

For both models you can pick between: no operating system, Ubuntu, Kubuntu, KDE Neon, Ubuntu MATE, Debian, elementary OS, Linux Mint, Manjaro, Windows and a dual boot. They offer up some pretty good options to get all types of users going. 

The pricing seems quite reasonable too with the Slimbook Essential 14" starting at €499 and the 15" model at €549. Hopefully it will do well, so we can see more reasonably priced machines come out from Slimbook and other vendors with Linux properly tested and supported like this.

You can check out the Slimbook Essential here.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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About the author -
author picture
I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly came back to check on the progress of Linux until Ubuntu appeared on the scene and it helped me to really love it. You can reach me easily by emailing GamingOnLinux directly. Find me on Mastodon.
See more from me
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10 comments

Eike Sep 16, 2020
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That's nice! I wouldn't ever have considered one of those > 1000 € notebooks, but this is something to take into account. I also like that they offer dualboot installations. Of course, AMD CPUs would have been nice as well. But I'll remember this when my wife wants her next notebook.

... and Windows installation is an additional > 100 bucks! 👍


Last edited by Eike on 16 September 2020 at 10:35 am UTC
Philadelphus Sep 16, 2020
With my PhD hopefully finishing in the next six months, and thus being able to get away from my university-provided MacBook Pro, I'm probably going to want to start looking for a good Linux laptop soon…


Last edited by Philadelphus on 19 September 2020 at 12:49 am UTC
mahagr Sep 16, 2020
Not using AMD CPU.. I am so happy with my upgraded AMD powered desktop that I'm not going back to Intel until they have something to offer...
no_information_here Sep 16, 2020
Wow. Great price!

Unfortunately it looks like I lose the warranty if I try to import it to Canada.

I hope they sell lots of them in Spain, though.
BielFPs Sep 16, 2020
Quoteaffordable

Eike Sep 16, 2020
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Quoting: BielFPs
Quoteaffordable


I guess if that's not affordable for you, you should look for used ones...
hummer010 Sep 16, 2020
Quoting: mahagrNot using AMD CPU.. I am so happy with my upgraded AMD powered desktop that I'm not going back to Intel until they have something to offer...

Ditto. I've got a Ryzen 2500u based notebook that's a few years old, and there's nothing from Intel that's very compelling over it.
Avehicle7887 Sep 16, 2020
Very nice design, price and features, it's much better than some mainstream brands found locally. Except for that horrible Intel CPU lineup which I wouldn't want to touch with a barge pole.
kneekoo Sep 17, 2020
That's a pretty decent offer. My two big issues:
- They only have Intel CPUs;
- They don't offer Samsung 970 Pro or a "no storage" option, so I can add my own. Clearly, I don't want to pay for something I don't want to use. And I noticed this issue with other PCs on their website, so that's a no go for me. (not exclusive to them, System76 does the same )

Also, on their "Buy" pages the 15" model doesn't list the Intel AX200 WiFi, but only the AC model, and the 14" model doesn't list any WiFi adapter. Weird. These, plus the 404 link I got when I wanted to see their cookies policy made me think their website is a messy hack-job that wastes everyone's time with getting properly informed, decide if you really want to buy, ask questions, get answers, and then support, should you decide to buy anything. And then they have various usability issues and lacking translations here and there.

I know they're not very new to the market, which is why I expect better. I hope someone from them will read my message and set the necessary wheels in motion to fix and improve stuff. We're IT people, we're supposed to set an example for other industries.
Cloversheen Sep 17, 2020
Wow! Unlike the more premium brands this actually offers a slew of keyboard layouts!

Not being able to get a Nordic layout have been a complete no-go for me when considering the next laptop and the price puts it in the right range as well. Hmm... maybe a Yule present?
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