$199 Linux PC Now Available at Sears.com

Jan. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Linspire, Inc., developer of the commercial Linspire and Freespire community desktop Linux operating systems, and developer of CNR.com, a one-click digital software delivery service for desktop Linux users, along with Mirus Innovations, a leading North America PC manufacturer that brings innovative digital lifestyle products to consumer and small business customers with a focus on high-value and low-cost, today announced the immediate availability of a $199 Linux PC, after $100 mail-in rebate, through Sears.com (www.linspire.com/sears).

"Our system builders have been forging new ground in the low-end Linux PC market for over 5 years now," said Larry Kettler, President and CEO of Linspire, Inc. "This latest system from Mirus Innovations is the most robust hardware and software configuration, and offers the best value for under $200 to date."

As the market for Linux desktop and laptop personal computers continues to grow and develop, "low-end" or "value-priced" PCs are one segment where desktop Linux continues to gain traction with hobbyists, enthusiasts and the general consumer interested in trying Linux for the first time. The $199 PC is also the first Linux PC pre-installed with the newly released beta CNR Client. Launched in December, CNR.com is a free one-click software delivery service requiring no registration to use. CNR.com users can search for applications by title, popularity, user rating, category, and function. An open source client for each supported distribution is then used to add the one-click installation as well as auto-updating functionality.

"Mirus Innovations is excited to offer this unprecedented value," said Joe Toste, VP of Sales and Marketing. "During our 4-year partnership with Linspire, Mirus and Linspire have consistently offered some of the best computer bundles of hardware and software to consumers and businesses. Moreover, these customers show the highest satisfaction with their purchases as well -- a testimony to the quality and value of the Linspire software. We are proud to be participating in the growing success of Linux on the desktop."

A robust hardware configuration for under $200 and Freespire 2.0 pre-installed, the Mirus $199 PC provides improved out-of-the-box file type and multimedia support, such as MP3, Windows Media, Real Networks, Java, Flash, ATI, nVidia, WiFi, and many more. Freespire 2.0 also adds legally licensed proprietary drivers, codecs, and applications in its core distribution, to provide a better overall user experience. Freespire is a community-influenced, Ubuntu-based Linux distribution that is designed to be powerful enough for sophisticated Linux users and developers, yet easy enough for someone new to Linux. Freespire was created specifically for use on desktop and notebook computers and designed to offer a new level of polish, attention to detail, and ease-of-use in a free Linux distribution.

The $199 Linux PC is one of many Mirus desktop Linux configurations available through Sears.com (www.linspire.com/sears).

Mirus Innovations -- $199 desktop PC Configuration:

• Intel Celeron 420 1.6GHz processor
  
• 1GB Memory
  
• 80GB Hard Drive
  
• Card Reader
  
• Modem
  
• CDRW
  
• Keyboard, Speakers, and Mouse
  
• Freespire 2.0 CNR Basic Service -- providing one-click access to free and commercial Linux software