Ten years after launching a pioneering combination of Linux pre-installed on a commercial laptop with Project Sputnik, Dell and Canonical announced that the XPS 13 Plus is the first OEM computer certified for Ubuntu 22.04 Long-Term Support (LTS) . This makes it an easy route to have a computer running without worrying about whether or not each component is ready to run Linux.
Linux-equipped Developer Edition laptop models were already available, with prices starting at $ 1,289.00, but are currently shipped with the older 20.04 LTS software. Long-term support releases offer what it says on the can, with the end of standard support for this version scheduled for 2027 and the end of its shelf life in 2032. Certified devices are lab-tested to check the compatibility of each component, which means that your device has specific drivers installed that will make all of its features work properly.
Image: Dell
This obviously applies to machines sold as out-of-the-box Linux developer editions, but it also applies if you install a new operating system on a machine that was originally shipped with Windows 11. L Marketing Executive Barton George was one of Dell’s people behind the project. Sputnik. In a 2019 interview with Forbes, he explained that the Developer Edition brand is intentional, applied to prevent people from accidentally buying a Linux laptop to save a few bucks and get an unexpected experience. These days, Dell ships Ubuntu to many other machines, and other flavors of the XPS line, including its redesigned XPS 13 standard carrier, so it seems unlikely that the certified list will stay that short forever.
The Ubuntu 22.04 LTS package was officially released on April 21 and has a long list of updates that you can read here, such as better power management, new touchpad gestures, and better support for desktop devices. Bluetooth audio.
According to Dell, if you want to have your XPS 13 Plus and its “row of capacitive touch features” configured with a hardware-optimized version of 22.04, there are a few ways to do so. One is to order a new XPS 13 Plus laptop and wait for it to ship, starting in August. Otherwise, if you’re in a hurry (and back up everything anyway), you can do a new installation and you’ll be ready. The last option is to wait until August 4 when Ubuntu 22.04.1 will be released, as it will show the upgrade path for all LTS users so you can do as little work as possible.