I don't own a Gateway but if I were you I'd be darn sure about that ram upgradability. If you are gonna use it for serious designing, a gig or more of ram is really recommended nowadays.

PrintDriver is a large format digital print dude. His advice/opinions may not apply to the 4color/offset/web world of printing

Gateways website should be able to tell you the limit on ram for any system...when you look up the system it should be in the system specs right?!

Boobie Island or Bust!

I wouldn't buy a Gateway. They are notorious for being crappy.



'Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former.'
- Albert Einstein

I do have to agree with Ryan there.

Boobie Island or Bust!

Thanks for the help everyone. I found the RAM and complete system info on the Gateway site like D-Zine advised. It was not easy to find but after a number of clicks I found out that their systems with standard 512MB could be expanaded to 4GB. Yes, I hate to go with Gateway again (second time) I really wanted a custom system with the AMD 64 FX-53, 1GB RAM, 250GB HD, and a good video card, but the cash isn't there right now so I have to settle for what I can.I can't understand why Gateway would tell me the RAM couldn't be doubled. Maybe they meant that they couldn't double it, but I could, by shopping aftermarket. Anyway, it looks like 512MB will be good enough for me to do what I need right now: graphics and video editing. Then I'll upgrade later. Thanks again everyone.

You probobly got someone on the phone or in the store who didn't know right off hand and didn't bother to look it up for you which is pure laziness but that's the way it is unfortunately sometimes ;o)

I know what you mean about going with Gateway bc money-wise its just about your only option! That's me right now.l..if I wanna get a new PC soon...AND I DO..lol...I have to Dell (credit). I like Dell tho so I'm cool with that I guess. Just can't decide now if I want a laptop or desktop. I have an HP desktop, about 4 years old but she's a great computer. Just needs a lil more ram and she would be fine! So..leaning towards the laptop. But..still not sure!

Boobie Island or Bust!

Actually it was on an e-chat, had threedifferent chatsyesterday. I don't know what Gateway is up to. They also told me that they couldn't add a DVD-ROM to a particular system, but when I looked at the specs on the site there were detailed instructions on how to install a second optical drive. Like I said before, maybe they were saying that they couldn't install it, but I would have to do it. If that's the case, they should clarify that with me, because when they say no RAM can be added, or no DVD-ROM, I'm thinking it can't be done period so I go on to a more expensive system that has what I want.I almost chose a system way out of my price range just to get what I wanted. Anyway, starting out with 512MB and knowing it can be expanded to 4GB is a good feeling. Yes D-Zine, Gateway does have nice prices, I feel that they rip you off with they're $269.00 warranties though. Plus on 90% of their systems you can only customize the monitor and warranty-nothing else! I'm going with a 19in CRT, I've heard that flat panels sometimes struggle with extreme graphics, is this true?

If you want inexpensive, check tigerdirect.com. They sell refurbished computers for cheap.



'Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former.'
- Albert Einstein

Ryan - is tigerdirect ok? I was looking at a used Mac on there and was wondering if they were any good?

PrintDriver is a large format digital print dude. His advice/opinions may not apply to the 4color/offset/web world of printing

They are good. That's where I got my PC. I didn't realize they had Macs.



'Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former.'
- Albert Einstein

Ok...so not to hijack yer thread there DeZiner...but I am contemplating ordering a laptop as I mentioned before and I need to decide this week. So...who all is working from a laptop?? Its not like I won't have a desktop to work on...I still have my loyal HP and might upgrade her monitor while I am at it ;o) LOL! Just was curious on what everyone else thought about working on laptops. Here's the specs on this one

Dell Inspirion 9100
2.8ghz Pentium 4
512 mb ram (I KNOW I need 1gig but not sure I can swing it)
64mb ATI Radeon 9700
24X CD-R/DVD combo

thanks P

Boobie Island or Bust!

Ryan, you're the first person I've heard that had something good to say about tigerdirect. I've had two people complain to me about how they got ripped off by tiger. I was gonna buy a system from them too, but when I asked around, I got bad replies from their personal experiences. Obviously that's not the case for you though, so I guess it 's up to the individual experience.

Let me insert my experiences here on Gateway, Dell and TigerDirect...

TigerDirect: TERRIBLE SERVICE. Often good parts w/ good prices. I have, however, BEGGED people to stay away from their REFURBISHED computers and printers. To wit: one client had ordered an HP OfficeJet G85 from them, refurbed. It was cheap, like half the original price, so he couldn't help but buy it. It came out of the box not able to get connection to the computer he hooked it up to (we followed the installer directions explicitly, too, installed the software before hooking it up). Called for service (NOTE: I did this, as he was too frazzled) and it took 40 minutes of talking with someone who barely had a grasp of english to finally get another unit in-shipment and get an RMA for the bad one. We shipped it out the next morning, and didn't receive a replacement for TWO WEEKS (using business days)! After a bit over two months of use (light, at that, about 150 prints per month and maybe 20 scans per month), then printhead decided to crash to the left side and never move again. Same thing, took forever to make them accept that it was faulty (it had a 90-day refurb warranty through them) and took THREE WEEKS to get a new one. Failed inside of two WEEKS this time, and they finally gave him his money back, which he then took and bought a Canon Multipass All-in-one from OfficeMax. No problems for over a year now, and ink is cheaper.

Gateway: Actually, I've had really good dealings with their service department, by chat as well as phone. Their driver support for older machines is commendable, much better than HP/Compaq, Dell or Sony. The machines are on the cheap side quality-wise, though. Just like e-machines (who the just bought, BTW), lots of power supply issues. They use a mix of Western Digital and Maxtor for hard drives; if at all possible, buy one with a Maxtor. I've thrown away more Western Digital drives in the past year than all the others combined over two!

Dell: I have repeatedly had terrible service support from those morons since they switched from internally supported on-site techs to using Unisys. Their phone support is subpar, but not as bad as HP's. I've done hardware replacements in three Dell machines in the past month (two Dimension 4300s for HD and bad RAM chip, one Dimension 2300 for a bad video card); I'm not impressed with their hardware any longer.

So, who's actually good?

NOTEBOOKS: My recommendation for a great notebook with the most bang for the buck and good support is Toshiba. Stay away from their low-end, though, or anyone's for that matter. The fact that you're buying a computer that gets moved around frequently and holds heat longer and runs on both low-voltage battery and high-voltage AC power should be a hint to get the most durable parts you can find. The PCs in the $1400-1900 price range will often have those better-quality parts. IBM Thinkpads, while pricey and boxey-looking, are durable and have excellent support.

If mobility is the most important factor, buy lightweight (sub-6#) and get a model with the longest battery life you can find. Currently this means a notebook with the Intel Pentium-M CPU (packaged with wireless capabilities as 'Centrino'), NOT the Pentium 4-M, a totally different CPU. Although the clockspeed (megahertz, or MHz) for the Pentium-M is usually MUCH lower than that of the Pentium 4-M or AMD Athlon XP or 64, the processor is a complete rebuild, done by Intel's Israeli team to be used solely as a mobile processor. It is the main reason Intel now uses 'model numbers' instead of clockspeeds to differentiate their CPUs. It's an absolute screamer; a 1.5GHz Pentium-M (Centrino, if you must) is often faster than Intel's own Pentium 4-M at 2.4GHz! It's just a much better design, built for the needs of mobile users. A Centrino-based PC will also run on battery approx. 30% longer than others.

TOWERS: For BUILD quality, I like the Sony PCs, but their telephone tech service is not good. Gateway, I like the service but the PCs are questionable as to durability. Dells are just iffy all-around, but people still buy them, and I'm telling you this as an affilliate! If I were buying a system (instead of building my own) I would probably put my hard-earned cash on a Sony or Alienware. I like Alienware because they are using higher-quality parts (Seagate hard drives, seperate video cards from nVidia or ATI, your choice, Antec power supplies, etc) and have good service. A little pricey, but it's my hard-earned money we're talking about!

Also, give a thought to buying the parts and building it yourself! It's really not all that difficult, if you can follow directions. There are tons of great books available on walking you through the setup, and you can build a really good-quality system for only a little bit more than a low-end system from Dell! TechTV had a series of books on DIY PC building with Leo Laporte, great reads. Anandtech does, too (www.anandtech.com.

Have doubts on what my opinions are? Feel free to look around! I love using www.epinions.com, as well as reading the user comments left on reviews at PC Magazine and PC World or ZDNet, especially when they give '9.5 out of 10' scores to Lexmark printers, and the average reader score ends up being '4 out of 10'... [img]/emoticons/biggrin.gif[/img] Also, check out ResellerRatings.com for comparisons of little mom & pop shops as well as the big guys like Dell, Gateway and Alienware. Admittedly this is linked from Alienware's site, but take a look at these 'live' numbers: www.alienware.com/Sub_Pages/more_sat.aspx

Whatever PC you end up buying, HARDEN it by getting the Service Pack 2 update from someone else (don't go online to download it, as it's huge and you have a really good chance of being hacked before it finishes downloading!) and pull the network plug out until it's installed. Then get rid of any antivirus program the machine comes with UNLESS it's not a trial. Most PC OEMs give you a copy of McAfee or Norton AV in 60-day trial form; most people don't bother to upgrade to the full version, and are immediately at risk from the 61st day, as new updates are NOT going to be automatically downloaded! You've been warned! Go out to either my current favorite, avast! antivirus, and download their free (for home use only) AV app, or go to GriSoft and get the free version of AVG. Either are good, avast! is kept up to date better (on the application), but the AVG free scanner is finally being updated.

LINKS:
AVG Free: this is the new beta 7.0 version free.grisoft.com/freeweb.php/doc/16/lng/us/tpl/v5
OR
avast! Home: www.avast.com/eng/down_home.html

Ad-Aware SE Personal: www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaware/

Spybot - Search & Destroy: www.safer-networking.org/en/download/

Install all of those programs, run them, get all updates available, and religiously run the two ad-ware/spyware apps weekly to keep your system clean, updating before scanning. If you want even LESS hassle, buy the AdAware SE Plus Edition for $27, and it includes AdWatch, running in the background always looking for apps trying to install themselves. And yes, install BOTH AdAware AND Spybot! They won't remove each other, and what one misses, the other always picks up. But only run ONE of the anti-virus programs, not two. Remember to remove Norton or McAfee first, but only if you've got trial versions instead of full versions.

Good luck!
Dan

I'm a computer systems consultant and technician, but my business is very localized.
However, feel free to check out my site, which always has new and interesting
articles on using computers:
CATALYST Techworks Consulting

Thanks for all the info torque!! WOW! P

I am partial to Dell as far as PCs go bc everyone in my family has one and all my friends as well. They haven't had any problems with them. My sister got hers and her monitor was messed up like 3 months later. They had no hesitation in sending out a new one after asking her to try a few things first. They sent it out and she had it in 2 days and we sent the bad one back. I think the support you get on the phone depends on what kinda mood the service person you get anywhere is in...LOL! Seriously tho bc my friend had a Gateway and had horrible service when he needed to see about getting a new fan for it. He took it to the local Gateway store (which is now closed) and it took them forever to get it back to him and they didn't even do what they were suppose to. I think crappy service is just everywhere...unfortunately!!

What I'm looking at is a $1,600 laptop, on sale tho for $1,300 but only till Friday I think. I have talked to several people I know that build PCs to see what they say. They all think I should go for it. I guess I am really just trying to decide if I want the monthly payment ( LOL!! I really wanna know who is working on laptops doing design work so I can see what poblems, if any, they have. Speak up people!

;o)

Boobie Island or Bust!