Back in November when we launched Sputnik 3, we also announced its “unofficial big brother,” the Dell M3800 Precision workstation and the Dell XPS 15. This announcement was based on the after-hours work that Dell Linux engineer Jared Dominguez did to test and document the system.
Quite a few developers have referenced Jared’s work, taken the plunge and installed Ubuntu on these beefier systems.
M3800 Precision workstation
Here is a video that Rudy Vissers from Belgium created last month. Rudy walks us through his new M3800 Precision including touchscreen and graphics.
XPS 15 laptop
Web developer Matt Woodward, who is a Principal IT Specialist for the US Senate and one of the original Project Sputnik beta cosmonauts, decided on upgrading to the XPS 15. He shared his experience running Ubuntu on the XPS 15 on his blog earlier this month. Here is an excerpt:
…Once Ubuntu is installed everything works out of the box. The screen runs at the full, mind-blowing 3200×1800 resolution, and even the touch screen works. No issues with sound card, WiFi, or anything else. Awesome…
If you need something a bit bigger and beefier than the XPS 13 developer edition, you just may want to check out either the M3800 or XPS 15.
If you’d like to see these as official products that come with Ubuntu pre-installed add your voice here: Gathering interest on official Ubuntu support for Precision M3800 No promises but who knows!
Extra-credit reading
- Ubuntu on the Precision M3800 – DellTechCenter
- Ubuntu on XPS 15 (8947-sLV) – Matt Woodward’s Blog
Pau for now…
Barton's Blog 
I mentioned this on one of your other posts, but an M3800 with Ubuntu pre-installed would pretty much be an instant purchase for me. One of the higher-end XPS 15s would work for me too, preferably with 16GB RAM, dedicated graphics, SSD.
Has official support moved any closer to becoming a reality? Were sales of the XPS 13 Dev Edition strong enough to make Dell want to expand the program?
Either way, thanks for the work you’ve done on this. Project Sputnik really is a great project.
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Thanks Tarek! We’re discussing expanding support to other models right now. No promises but keep your fingers crossed 🙂
Barton
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Thanks for the project sputnik work. I pre-ordered a generation 1, when sputnik 4 launches ill probably upgrade, i love the entire system.
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[…] Barton’s blog Developers share experiences running Ubuntu on Dell M3800 and XPS 15 […]
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I’ve just asked my boss to buy me the M3800 Precision Workstation. Hope he agrees to it. The T440 I’m using at the moment is just too small. The only thing I’m a little concerned about is the M3800 only comes with the 4th gen Intel CPU. The 5th gen Intel CPU has demonstrated significant improvements in battery life.
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[…] George (Dell); Developers share experiences running Ubuntu on Dell M3800 and XPS 15; In His Blog; […]
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Hello Barton,
I’m amazed by the last XPS 13 DE : a 13′ screen in a 11′ frame, with ubuntu pre-installed.
Is there any chance to do the same with the XPS 15 : a 15′ screen in a 13′ frame?
That would be awesome, as 11′ frame is a bit small (IMHO) and 15′ frame a bit too large (IMHO too).
Thank you for your work,
Arnaud
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Hello Barton,
I’m amazed by the last XPS 13 DE : a 13′ screen in a 11′ frame, with ubuntu pre-installed.
Is there any chance to do the same with the XPS 15 : a 15′ screen in a 13′ frame?
That would be awesome, as 11′ frame is a bit small (IMHO) and 15′ frame a bit too large (IMHO too).
Thank you for your work,
Arno
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