This system is actually a bargain if you are one of those people who are not quite familiar with the internal stuff.

Obviously this does not mean that you would not be able to spot a good computer from its specifications and the key specifications of this system are as follows. The processor is, similarly to many other Gateway systems is Intel Core 2Quad(Q8200) and it has a speed of 2.33 GHz. The memory is 4GB and 640GB hard drive capacity. Optical drives of DVD and RW are also present, however there is no monitor included in the pack. The graphics is an integrated Intel GMAX4500 one and lastly it operates on Windows Vista.

With this nicely designed system Gateway has started a great battle against its competitors’ slim computers such as the Inspiron from Dell and Pavilion Slimline of HP because it provides a better performance at a price just under $500. This price does not include a monitor which has to be bought separately but still it is a great one to go for. There are so many external expanding ports available which should make it quite a useful PC. the only missing things is the 3D  feature but for those who are not going to use it for gaming this should not be a real problem. As stated earlier there is not much space for interior expansion but it is possible to add a ½ height graphics and some extra memory can be added through the RAM slots which could easily be accessed by sliding out the optical drive.

There are 5 USB ports at the front of the system and there is a FireWire and flash card slots of the most frequently used formats. At the back there are 4 more USB ports, VGA, HDMI video, audio outputs and an Ethernet port. There is also an eSATA slot which speeds the external drive up. Along with these at the front there is more expansion in a panel and it possesses 5 more USB ports along with headphone and mic jacks, Multimedia card, compact flash card and many more expansions.

This system has gone through several tests and it has managed to perform close to the top of the slim PCs and it has actually competed very well with some other great systems. Also with a price of just under $500 it is actually a great choice to go for.

Pros: this system is a compact one with a good performance and it is a quiet one with loads of external connectors.

Cons: the internal expansion is quiet limited so you cannot actually make so many improvements on the system. It has poor 3D graphics. Performance might be a put off for those who are interested in high quality 3D gaming.