Thelio - The first PC designed by System 76

in #technology5 years ago

Thelio Side

As of November 1st System76 started taking pre-orders for their Thelio line of Desktop PCs. With over 3 years of development, these machines were designed with performance in mind, but still retain an elegance that sets the line apart from other PC manufactures. However, before I continue it is worth noting that I have worked with System76 in the past, and was a part of the second "Super Fan" contest. I count many of the people at System76 as friends, and know them all to be amazingly passionate people, that have always made me feel welcomed and a part of their family. So though I really had nothing to do with the creation of the Thelio, or with the company beyond that personal connection with its people I feel a special connection with this computer and its release.


The Company

System76 is an American tech company based in Denver Colorado that make computers "born to run Linux." Having been in operations for nearly 13 years they source all their components with Linux compatibility in mind, but the dedication to Linux goes beyond the pragmatic, and the FOSS mindset permeates every part of their company.

Though small, System76 computers have been spotted in then hands of bloggers, developers, even in a video about Pixar's rendering pipeline (not in the audience, it was the machine the developer was using). Last year they released Pop!_OS a Linux distribution, based on Ubuntu, designed with creators in mind.

Until now System76, like most small computer companies, relied on outsourced components to create they're machines. This is cost effective to be sure, but one of the most glaring issues faced by any company is brand recognition. If Pop!_OS was a step in the right direction, the Thelio is a leap. One that puts them in the ring with companies much larger than the 20 or so people behind System76.

Thelios

The Thelio

Every aspect of the design was taken into account when creating the Thelio. From the bevel to the exhaust the case "oozes with love" -- @wipgirl and every aspect was considered in its design. Speaking of exhaust, lets take a close look at the main exhaust fan guard. How many companies do you know would take the time to make an exhaust port something you WANT to look at?

exhaust

Since we're on the subject, thermal flow was one of the major design considerations that System76 put into when making the Thelio. From the intake fan nestled in the bottom of the case to the placement of the processor and its heat sink, the case is designed actively vent the heat from the system as efficiently as possible, and because the company understands our need to have the BIGGEST video card we can slam into our computers they even considered the possible implications of having cross current from the video card\s.

But its not all bevels, hot air, and nice back sides. The Thelio is designed, and manufactured in Colorado here is a statement from their site.

US-sourced wood and aluminum are formed, finished, etched, and built by artisans in our Denver, Colorado factory. Premium components from around the world are then assembled to your final specifications. And to offset environmental impact, every Thelio sold plants a tree with the National Forest Foundation.

Along with an awesome case, and a ethical company ethos, System 76 introduced something even more unique to the Thelio; the Thelio IO daughter board. Its purpose, to take proprietary functionality from the main board (which aren't made or designed by System76) and controlling it through opensource interfaces. This may not have obvious benefits to those that don't know or care, but they sum up some of the benefits in the quote below.

Moving chassis and thermal control to Thelio Io enables far more granular performance optimization. Motherboard data, fan speed, and GPU and OS data are used to coordinate optimal airflow.

Its important to note that on the larger Thelios (there are 3 variations on the system) there is even more functionality on the daughter board all designed by System76

This is also the first System76 machine (that I am aware of) to offer AMD processors and GPU's as options. This is most likely due to the price per performance ratio that AMD provides, but it is worth noting that AMD has am open source gpu driver which means that for those that care about such things System76 now supports them.

Its also worth noting that the plans for the Thelio, Thelio IO daughter board, and all the drivers and such are released under the open hardware license and can be downloaded, for free, for anyone to build the case and circuit board themselves.

Who is it for?

With the base price of over a thousand dollars (USD) the Thelio my be out of the running when considering your next computer purchase. Though I would argue (and plan to) that we don't buy PCs like we buy phones, tablets, or even laptops. A PC is an extendable, upgrade-able piece of ones digital life. Its not meant to be a yearly purchase, or even a 3 year purchase. Consider the PC as something that should be replaced every 5 to 6 years. Even then, the hardware is most likely still in working condition so the PC can be passed down to a family member or donated. So, if you are to consider the life span of the product, the life time support that it comes with, and the fact that System76 doesn't have the mass market supply chain of other companies, the price tag is more than reasonable. Pop!_OS is fast,user friendly, comes with free updates, and has its own software store, but System76 doesn't lock individuals in to any one OS you could install any number of Linux distributions or even Windows if you choose. They understand that it is YOUR computer and though they might have to draw the line at supporting some esoteric distro or every Windows issue rest assured they will help any user at any level of experience to the best of their ability. (I've seen it first hand)

So if you're in the market for a new machine, love the idea of a company that is actually trying to push envelops or at least change the status quo in some way go have a look at System76. Tell them Ben sent you, if they increase the price on you, I'm sorry I have that effect on people.

Links

Thelio Ad campaign (worth a look)

System76 home:

All, images were sourced from System76's website, they are all linked to the original source and not copied or modified in anyway.

Follow up

I hope to spend sometime at their new factory soon, and give a more in depth review. I was hoping to make it for their 13th birthday bash, but as I'll be visiting family around Thanksgiving I'll have to wait till then.

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Very well written and fun to read review! I had never heard of Thelio, so this was a good introduction for me.

Thank you,

And yeah System 76 is a really cool company if you're looking for a new machine. I usually build mine, but the Thelio is making me rethink things.

The older I get the more I'm realizing that my computer use has changed pretty dramatically. It seems like everything I do these days is web-based and I have no need for a real computer.

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