First Look: Gateway Solo 600 Stands Out
Just two years ago, 2,500 bucks would buy a pretty good multimedia PC that, while powerful, was little more than a computing ball and chain. It was great fun for use in that one room in the house or apartment. But a new generation of Pentium 4 notebook computer has changed all that, delivering better performance for the same or less money and, with wireless networking technology, true desktop performance on the road or around the dwelling.
Notebooks of this class had, before the recent introduction of Pentium 4 processors, only a 133MHz front-side bus and 133MHz SDRAM. Pentium 4 models sport a 400MHz front-side bus and 266MHz memory. In simple terms: The faster the bus and/or memory, the faster data moves among some system components. The move to 400MHz and Pentium 4 means blazingly fast notebooks that, while not yet as fast as some of their desktop counterparts, are worthy desktop replacements for more than 90 percent of tasks--and that includes intense gaming or digital content creation.
Gateway's Solo 600 notebook is one of the standout performers in this new class of Pentium 4 portables. Sporting a sleek new design--a rounded-edge silver case packing virtually every feature found on the desktop--the Solo 600 rivals some of the best desktops PCs available on the market today.
The high-end model's features say it all: 1.8GHz Pentium 4 mobile processor, 15.7-inch SXGA display, 256MB of 266MHz DDR SRAM, ATI Radeon 7500 graphics accelerator with 64MB of DDR memory, 40GB hard drive, 8X CD-RW/DVD combo drive and second slot for another optical drive, integrated IEEE 1394 (FireWire), USB, S-Video, 10/100 networking and 56kbps modem and Windows XP Professional. The price: A sweet $2,599 (Gateway raised the price from $2,558 after the Memorial Day holiday and boosted the processor from 1.7Ghz. No other Pentium 4 portable from a reputable manufacturer offers more power and performance for this low a price.
The Solo 600 stands out from the pack for three reasons: Style, features and value.
On the design side, Gateway was wise to shed the boxy look of the Solo 600's predecessor, the Solo 9550. The new model is enclosed in a tasteful silver case with rounded edges that meet a dark gray center, as viewed sideways. The color is reminiscent of Apple's PowerBook G4. But Gateway's case is no Titanium, in terms of sturdiness. Niceties abound: The two-tone gray--one shade for the base and another for the keyboard--is refreshing; that keyboard has excellent touch and responsiveness. In another improvement over the Solo 9500, the CD controls on the front of the portable are accessible but less obvious, contributing to the functional yet appealing styling. The FireWire port and headphone and microphone jacks are located conveniently near the front of the Solo 600 on the left side. Many other portables push them further back. The two USB ports are on the right side near the back of the Solo 600, where they are accessible but not in the way when unused. The two drive bays, for optical and other removable storage, flank both sides of the notebook midway down the exterior.
The Solo 600 may look good, but it's no light weight--and I'm not yet referring to the great performance. The midrange and high-end models weigh in at a hefty 8.5 pounds fully loaded (kudos to Gateway for giving the full weight in the Web site promotional material rather than the more traditional citation without the battery and/or optical drives). The entry-level model comes in at a less-arm-wrenching 8 pounds. The two more expensive models measure 13.86 inches x 11.44 inches x 1.77 inches; the other is 13.86 inches x 11.44 inches x 1.69 inches. People looking for a lightweight notebook should shop elsewhere. But for those interested in a desktop replacement model, Gateway's Solo 600 is a winner. Only the Sony Vaio GRX notebook has a larger display--16.1 inches--and no other portable offers better graphics for the money.
Without a doubt, display and graphics really distinguish the Solo 600 from other portables and raise it to the level of full desktop replacement, either for the serious gamer or digital content creator.
While not as bright as desktop flat-panel monitors, the Solo's crisp SXGA display delivers a resolution of up to 1600 x 1200. That's comparable to a very good 17-inch tube or 19-inch flat-panel monitor. The display's large size on the two higher-end models is comparable to using a 17-inch tube monitor, which would have a viewable area of about 15.9 inches. That, coupled with 64MB of video memory, outdoes the graphics and display performance of many midrange and even some high-end PCs. For gaming, computer automated design (CAD) or even creating digital content, such as movies from digital camcorders, graphics of this caliber challenge some of the best desktop PCs available for comparable price. In casual testing, the Solo 600XL delivered stunning graphics, whether video editing, DVD movie watching or game playing.
Other Pentium 4 portables pour on the graphics power, but not at this price. Consider the entry-level Solo 600, which delivers 64MB of video memory for a cool $1,899 (Gateway raised the price from $1,858 and boosted the processor to 1.6GHz from 1.4Ghz, right after the Memorial Day holiday). Most other Pentium 4 portables in this price range or even around $2,500 pack half the video memory using comparable graphics accelerators.
Hard drive space is generous on the high-end model, but could be better on the other two 600s. All three are 802.11b wireless networking ready, and the high-end model has the feature built-in. This means that in some coffee shops, airports, hotels and other places with wireless networks, the Solo 600 can connect to the Internet without the need of cables. It's a great feature for home users, too. Linksys and Agere Systems are among a number of reputable companies making wireless networking hubs for homes and small businesses. Portables enabled with 802.11b wireless can connect to the network or Internet at speeds up to 11 megabits per second (Mbps).
I easily connected the high-end Solo, the 600XL, to an Apple AirPort wireless hub. But I was surprised to find software for Agere's Orinoco hub installed on the portable, since Windows XP has robust built-in wireless networking features. Windows XP made the connection at 11Mbps, which it maintained at fairly high bandwidth throughout the house. I got throughput of 6Mbps in areas where a 550MHz PowerBook G4 only topped out at 2Mbps. This would indicate Gateway well placed the antenna and radio inside the 600's case.
For those considering wireless networking, get off your butt and down to the computer store. A good wireless hub will set you back about two "C" notes, but the increased mobility easily pays for itself. (I know my wife complains less when I'm not holed up in my home office.) Just remember to turn on the wireless hub's encryption feature to keep snoops off your home network or using your connection to get free Internet access.
Like video memory, wireless networking is another good Solo 600 value. None of Dell's featured Inspiron 8200 notebooks pack wireless by default, for example. Like the Solo, the Inspiron 8200 is wireless ready, but Dell charges an extra $159 to enable the feature. Gateway only adds only $99 more to enable the feature on the entry-level and midrange Solos; Wireless networking is standard on the high-end model.
With its beefy hard drive, great graphics and 400MHz front-side bus and 266MHz DDR memory found in notebooks of this class, the Solo 600 is an easy contender to replace almost any desktop. Almost. I found the 256MB of RAM inadequate. The high end model should have shipped with 512MB, which is the maximum limit and another shortcoming. Performance, while outstanding for a portable, fell surprisingly short for a desktop. The Solo 600XL choked when doing some multiple tasks, such as copying music files to a FireWire hard drive while running tasks in Microsoft Outlook and Word. The Sony Vaio MXS20 desktop or Gateway 770XL--respectively, with 2GHz and 2.2GHz Pentium 4 processors--handled this casual test without difficulty. The slower speed of the hard drive and processor cache size could account for some of the difference. Programs opened noticeably slower on the 600XL than either desktop, as well. Still, the dings do not dent the Solo 600's role as desktop replacement.
Certainly, dirt-cheap desktops are easy finds, but it's surprising how well the low-end Solo, the 660L, stacks up to more powerful midrange PCs. For $1,858 the 660L delivers a 1.4GHz Pentium 4 mobile processor, 15-inch SXGA display, 256MB of 266MHz DDR SRAM, ATI Radeon 7500 graphics accelerator with 64MB of DDR memory, 20GB hard drive, 8X CD-RW drive and second slot for another optical drive, integrated IEEE 1394 (FireWire), USB, S-Video, 10/100 networking and 56kbps modem and Windows XP Professional. A comparably-configured Dell Dimension 8200, but with 1.8GHz processor, 17-inch tube monitor and 24X instead of 8X CD-RW, drive sells for $1,496. For about $350 you could pick up a pretty good Gateway Solo. Still, Hewlett-Packard, Sony or even Gateway sell some whopper PCs--2GHz Pentium 4 processors or 80GB hard drives--for under $1,000. Regardless, the top two Solo models offer all the features of most any desktop and, perhaps, a better display.
For value, Gateway has packed in more features for less money than almost any other desktop replacement notebook offered by reputable manufacturers.
The closest two Sony desktop replacement models in terms of price and features are the Vaio GRX 550 and 570. Both feature 1.6MHz Pentium 4 processors, twice the memory, half the video memory (also ATI Radeon 7500) and no wireless networking. The GRX 550, with 15-inch display and maximum resolution of 1024 x 768 is $2,200; the GRX 570 packs the larger 16.1-inch UXGA display, with resolution of 1600 x 1200, for $2,700.
Dell does better on price, but comes up short on value. The featured Inspiron 8200 models range from $1,549 to $2,029 to $2,809. None offers the convenience of a CD-RW/DVD combo drive or comes with wireless networking built-in. When configured nearly identically to the Solo 660XL, the Inspiron 8200 sells $3,102, or about $450 more. The Solo packs a slightly larger display and the Inspiron uses the Nvidia GeForce 4 440 graphics accelerator.
IBM comes out ahead of either Dell or Sony, at least in value matching the high-end Solo 600. The ThinkPad A31 is only slightly more expensive than the Solo 660XL at $2,674. Still, processor is 1.6MHz Pentium 4, graphics the 32MB Radeon 7500 and display 15 inches. But the ThinkPad A31's memory is expandable to 1GB, more than twice that of the Solo 600, and features an embedded security chip. Other features are nearly identical.
Even Apple's PowerBook G4 can't match the Solo's value--and that's from the company that pioneered wireless networking on portables and is renowned for delivering great graphics performance. The high-end model, with 800MHz PowerPC processor, 512MB of RAM, 40GB hard drive, CD-RW/DVD combo drive, 32MB Radeon 7500 card and wireless networking, sells for a whooping $3,200. The PowerBook's 133MHz SDRAM is only half as fast as that on the Solo--another failing. The 15.2-inch display tops out at a respectable but not exceptional resolution of 1280 x 854. Still, at 5.2 lbs, the PowerBook G4 is the lightest desktop replacement notebook available anywhere. And, as good a job as Gateway has done on style, Apple has the design edge in every way with the Titanium encased PowerBook.
Joe Wilcox has been covering technology since 1994 and now spends his days writing about Microsoft for CNET News.com. More rants and raves from Joe can be found on his Web site, joewilcox.com.