Gateway UC7807u Notebook Review
Gateway has long been a budget staple in the computer industry for notebooks and desktops, and introduced their first 13.3-inch notebook at CES in January. At only $800, it's affordable in this economy but is it worth it?
The UC7807u manages to pack in a 2.0GHz Core 2 Duo processor, 3GB of DDR2 memory, a 250GB hard drive, and a dual layer DVD burner, plus all the bells and whistles like a 1.3 megapixel webcam, a 4-in-1 card reader, and HDMI out. HDMI out with a standard-definition DVD player? No Blu-Ray?
One downside it also manages to pack in is 5.3 pounds worth of heft, the 13.3-inch Apple MacBook only weighs 4.5 pounds and the smallest HP Pavilion notebook weighs 4.3 pounds.
Productivity performance wasn't an issue, thanks to the fast Intel processor, but gaming didn't fair too well, blame that on the GMA 4500MHD graphics card. We tried running Spore on the system, and it was excruciating looking at the choppy graphics.
The notebook has a sexy aluminum finish which can't be found on any so-called "budget" notebook we've seen, but the circular trackpad is where Gateway dropped the ball on design and the mouse buttons were quite stiff.
We were anxious to see how the UC7807u performed in our lab tests but they weren't the greatest results we've seen for a budget model. In our PCMark Vantage tests, the UC7807u received a score of 2754 and in our CINEBENCH R10 tests, returned a score of 4019. You'll want to be near a power outlet at all times when traveling, since we only managed to squeeze out 3 hours and 10 minutes of battery life.
If you're only doing web surfing, email, and other basic computing tasks, the Gateway UC7807u should do just fine. You can grab the notebook from Amazon.com for just under $700 bucks, a recession-friendly deal that won't break the bank.
Pros
- Sleek aluminum finish and design.
- Super affordable.
- HDMI out.
Cons
- Heavy for a 13.3-inch notebook.
- Small trackpad and mouse buttons.
- Middle-of-the-road performance and battery life.
- No Blu-Ray option available.
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