I love my Gateway! (Gateway Essential)

Member Name: mneedham

Product:	Gateway Essential
Date:	11/01/01 (465 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Excellent service

Disadvantages: None

I bought my Gateway Essential 450 in November 1998 for well over £2,000. It was the top of the range at that time, but obviously went out of fashion pretty soon. Before this, I am sorry to say I only had a 486 from Dan, with a meagre 400 MB hard drive. Can you imagine how small that is? I mean my son?s football games were talking up the entire computer?s memory. I realised that it was time to get a new up to date PC, and having researched the topic thoroughly, I went for the Gateway 450. The spec I got is shown below:

Speed: Pentium II 450 MHz
Video Clock Frequency; 200 MHz
RAM: 128 MB (Upgradeable to 384 MB)
Hard Drive: 9 GB
Speakers: Boston BA 635
Monitor: 19 inch VX 900
Operating System: Windows 98
DVD Drive: 4 speed
CD Copier: 48 speed
Modem: 56k Telepath Internet
Internet: Internet Explorer 4, Outlook ?97, Outlook 4
Virus Checker: McAfee VShield
Extras: The PC came with Lotus Office, with all the various programs, such as spreadsheets, word processor, presentation package etc., the Microsoft Office Package (which I am sorry to say is not much use at all), some GCSE CD ROM?s with various information to help the kids with their work, Greetings Workshop (a program for designing posters, birthday cards etc.), Microsoft Autoroute (which is not much use to me, but I suppose it could be if I were to drive into Europe for a holiday, and needed directions).

However, what I really wanted was Microsoft Office, and was forced to buy this separately for about £180. Obviously a printer was also needed, and this again set me back by £100, for a very basic Hewlett Packard. So, although it looked a super deal compared to all the rest, it did not actually give me the essentials, and these were an additional cost to me. As always, the system is probably only worth about £400 now, which means the value has fallen by 5 times, disappointing to say the least. However, I am not thinking of
buying a new one as yet, because it still serves its purpose, and can just about handle the boys? latest games- although this is mainly due to the high RAM specification I asked for.

I basically have no complaints with Gateway. The computer was delivered to my door, at exactly the time they said it was, the assembly instructions were spot on, and their helpline is very useful whenever you have a problem. Overall, it is a superb system, and I would certainly consider using them again when I purchase a new computer.

Windows 98

This was superb for all my family?s needs. It is easy to navigate, even for a complete beginner, and everything is clearly laid out. Although I have heard that it had some bugs to start with, (touch wood) I have been all right so far, and Windows 98 is much better than Windows 3.1 (which I had on my previous computer) or Windows 95 (on my work computer). The user interface is much better than previously and everything is explained very clearly, as well as error messages coming up if you make a mistake. Basically, with Windows they have tried to make it as easy for you as possible, which was excellent for me as I had previously not used computers very frequently. The menus are easily navigated, and your whole computer is clearly laid out for you in the My Computer area. If something goes wrong, the help screen normally comes up, and most of the time will try and fix it for you, or at least take you to the place where you can solve the problem. It has still got the DOS function, which I hear they are going to get rid of soon, and this was useful for playing some of the older DOS based games my sons? had. It also enabled me to fix the computer when Windows completely froze.

The Computer itself

The 450 MHz speed was well suited to my needs, and probably still is (although I am always pestered to get a new computer by my kids!!!) It can run all the latest games, although it is struggling a bit w
ith the power of CM 2001/01. I don?t know how long this will continue though, as it often slows down when I am Multi Tasking (Having several programs running at once). The memory is still superb, although would have to be upgraded to 256 MB if I get Windows 2000, as there are so many more features than in 98. The spec is still well above the minimum needed for most applications, although I am steadily eating away at my 9 GB hard drive, which looked big at the time, but is rapidly diminishing. What with all these games installed its not surprising! The graphics card has been great for our needs, and unless your PC is primarily a Gaming one, I would suggest that anything better than the one you get is not worth your time and money. The speakers are of a very high quality, and I would say comparable to my hi-fi, Yes the quality is that good, and I can also play any songs on my computer, which is useful. They are very small, but extremely effective. It has an in built CD and MP3 player, which I thought was excellent and it had an Internet connection with Gateway already to log on. This was excellent for me, as previously I had never used the Internet, but now it consumes a large chunk of my time.

Overall

Gateway is a superb company to purchase your computer from, and they can certainly be relied upon. The help line is extremely useful, and basically you are guided through a series of questions, and from your answers they try and solve the problem. There is also free technical support via the web site, although the main help line costs a pricey £1 a minute (no doubt I won?t be using that). It is very simple for a beginner to use, although advanced features are available for the experts. Now, I am no computer expert but I know a good deal when I see one!!!

Summary: