Mid-sized Dothan Notebook Roundup: Dell, Gateway, and HP/Compaq
by Andrew Ku on September 30, 2004 1:09 AM EST- Posted in
- Laptops
Gateway M320XL: Construction - Build, Appearance, Size
Unlike the other two notebooks in this roundup, Gateway's M320XL comes with a 15.0" XGA display (read our note in our introduction). The only problem with a 15." XGA display is that you are limited to a native resolution of 1024 x 768, which is inadequate for a 15.0" display. For the majority, you may want something with a high resolution. Opening the notebook is straightforward (a single sliding clip that retracts two hooks from the notebook's base).
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The front of the system is angled down sharper than a lot of other notebooks, so the audio kind of reverberates after it bounces off the surface. The quality of the audio is similar to that of the D600, neither poor nor great, but just average. This isn't designed to function as a multimedia notebook, so we weren't expecting stupendous audio anyway.
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Left side (left to right):
- Exhaust vent
- 3 USB 2.0 ports
- 4-pin 1394 Firewire port
- PCMCIA slot
- 4 in 1 card reader (SD, MMC, MS, MS Pro)
Click to enlarge.
Back side:
- Ethernet jack
- Modem jack
- VGA-out port
- Kensington lock port
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Right side:
- Volume toggle
- Headphone port
- Microphone port
- 1 x USB 2.0 port
- Optical drive
- Power port
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The notebook measures in at 12.9" x 10.5" x 1.0" and weighs in at about 5.5 pounds (with combo optical drive and 6-cell battery). The casing of the M320XL is sturdy, but due to the slim profile, we would say that this notebook wouldn't hold up as well as the NC6000 or D600. Regarding scratch resistance, this casing is the most prone of the three, but it isn't so bad that your finger nails could scratch it.
The casing for the wrist area and around the keyboard is coated thinly with rubber, which helps give a good texture and grip for typing. However, we have found this coating to peel when you consider everyday use and wear-and-tear, and any sharp object the notebook may encounter.
Note that there is no docking bay option, which is obviously marked by the absence of a docking bay connector.
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Gholam - Saturday, October 2, 2004 - link
IBM not performance machines? X-series, yes, but find me a performance laptop that weighs just over a kilo :) T42 on the other hand, can be configured with Pentium M 745 and Mobility Radeon 9600, which should give you pretty decent gaming capability. Of course it isn't as powerful as those Mobility Radeon 9800 based models, and the price ($3000-3500, depending on other components) is somewhat uncomfortable, but it's by no means weak.Souka - Saturday, October 2, 2004 - link
Oh yes... I forgot to mention that I oversee the people who do the purchasing, repair, and I get feedback on reliablity of over 2000 units in the field and office....:)
Souka - Saturday, October 2, 2004 - link
Actually, I find these laptops between the IBM X40 and the T42.My company uses only IBM laptops both at the corporate level, the branches, and our sales force. Office workers use the T series...from the T20 on up to the T42p. (I'm typing on a T41 right now and will be using a T42 soon). The X series....from the X21 on up to the X40...are used by most of the sales-team....with some T series tossed in there.
Let me say HANDS DOWN, that IBM has proven their value to us....Period. Occasionally we evaluate Toshiba, Gateway, Dell.....they don't last the mininum 3 year life cycle....
For public use, I don't always recommend IBM...they're definetly not performance machines....Games? forget it...
Nuf Said.
Gholam - Saturday, October 2, 2004 - link
#17, I'm a technician, and I can say this: HP assembly quality _SUCKS_. Really it does. It looks like they use 10lb hammers and chisels to make the parts fit somehow, and don't give a damn what happens afterwards. Some parts rattle; others are wedged in so tight there is no way to remove them without breaking something, and it's been the case with pretty much every HP laptop that I came across in the last couple years. I'm not a big fan of Dell either, but at least they are better than HP.andyman7 - Friday, October 1, 2004 - link
why not try testing some laptops besides the big name brands?im typing this on a compal cl56
it is 6lbs, has a 1.7ghz dothan, 512mb ram, 60gb 5400rpm hd, 128mb mobility radeon 9700, 15in sxga+ screen, dvd/cd-rw, and over 4 hours of battery life when using light applications
and i got it for $1600
also what about the sager line of laptops?
most of those are definately DTRs but should definately be looked at
notebookforums.com has a lot of info on many other oem laptops too
anyway, the cl56 im using has become REALLY popular so it might be a good idea to try testing one (if you can get a review sample)
stateofbeasley - Friday, October 1, 2004 - link
Gholam - HP/Compaq is actually superior to Dell IMO when it comes to business notebooks.People sometimes say "brand X sucks," but don't realize that quality and service can vary significantly among a company's many product lines.
As for Powerbooks - they don't compete with business machines like the nc6000 and D600. It would be more appropriate to compare them with Dell's 8600/D800 line and Compaq's X1000 type (widescreen 15" multimedia platform).
Gholam - Friday, October 1, 2004 - link
#15, if there was a Thinkpad in the review, it would've been unfair, as no onther notebook vendor is even remotely close to standing up to IBM in terms of quality and engineering. I rank the top four notebook vendors in the following order: IBM, Toshiba, then Dell, and lastly HP/Compaq.Boardmonger - Friday, October 1, 2004 - link
Can we say IBM Thinkpad T42p? I would love to see it thrown in the review ;)trikster2 - Thursday, September 30, 2004 - link
One thing that struck me is how much dell just seems to ignore how important battery life is. My D800 gets about two and a half hours, miserble. My C400 is not much better.
I'm in the market for a laptop, considering everything including the macs and this review was very helpful.
just want to say, since my above post could be taken negatively:
Great review!
trikster2 - Thursday, September 30, 2004 - link
Another vote for the macs. For most business laptop use, as these are designed for they are fine subs for their pc brethern.
I find it amazing that the 17" power book is only 6.9lbs close in weight to these ugly (comparitively) PC bricks.