I don't know why you're being downvoted, you're exactly right on all points. This is one of the few situations where moving to Linux doesn't improve support for

I don't know why you're being downvoted, you're exactly right on all points. This is one of the few situations where moving to Linux doesn't improve support for a non-Windows-supported device. The PowerVR GMA500 never worked well under Linux from day one. I've had two netbooks with this CPU/GPU combo, even under Windows 7 performance was terrible and the driver was buggy.