Presto, the pre-OS that we reported on about a month ago has lost the beta tag and is now selling the first official release, version 1.0. As we mentioned back in the article about the beta, Presto is a quick booting Linux operating system that is easily installed with a simple download and run of the installer right inside Windows.
Presto said that after the beta period the pre-OS was downloaded by some 50,000 people and that they have incorporated improvements into 1.0 based on feedback:
- Improved installation
- Faster boot-up and shut down
- Expanded hardware support
- Bookmark import tool
- Improved user interface
- International keyboard layout support
- Application switcher
- RealPlayer with support for Windows Media Format
I downloaded the 15 day trial of Presto 1.0 to see how the performance has changed and it seems to have gotten a decent boost. Boot times from selecting Presto from the BIOS OS selector until the OS is booted around 10 seconds on my Vaio UX (takes a bit more time for WiFi to connect). Shutdown is even faster, almost instant in-fact. Hitting the power button turned the screen off immediately and the LEDs on my UX180 turned off not 2 seconds later.
If you happened to download the beta version last month, you should have received an email with a code to receive 30% off of the $19.99 retail price, it is only good until April 30th so be quick if you are planning on taking advantage of the offer.
April 26th, 2009 at 9:46 pm
New article: Presto goes gold, brings increased performance and support http://cli.gs/atpWH0
April 27th, 2009 at 1:05 am
RealPlayer? :S
I hope they have a free evaluation. There were many issues while I evaluated on my U810.
It crashed often, needing a reboot, the startup was not as fast as claimed comparing to any other free linux distro. The store was just some dodgy web app. The only thing special about this was that it was a breeze to install and uninstall. They need a pat on the back for that.
I like the concept, can anyone advice on an alternative?
April 27th, 2009 at 8:33 am
Checked the Presto forums and it doesn’t support any touch screens on a default install. The support tech in the forums suggested a Debian package that would give that ability, but then what am I paying for? Something that can boot 10-15 seconds faster than XP? I’ll stick with XP and try to be a little more patient.
September 21st, 2009 at 2:43 pm
It’s a good article, thanks