Review: Gateway MT6825b Vista notebook

Gateway has released some impressively good value systems of late, and its latest, the MT6825b Vista notebook, doesn't buck the trend.

As far as the design goes, we're impressed – the notebook feels durable and well constructed. A brushed aluminium panel sits below the keyboard, which Gateway proudly states is aircraft quality.

While this offers little practical benefit, it makes the laptop feel more expensive than it is. The grey and black colour scheme is another classy touch.

A low-end Core 2 Duo T5200 powers the system. This runs at 1.6GHz and, although based on the Merom core with 64bit extensions, it has only 2MB of L2 cache instead of the 4MB cache in the high-end T7200, T7400 and T7600 models.

The processor also has a slower front side bus (FSB) than these processors, running at 133MHz (effective 533MHz when quad pumped) instead of 166MHz (667MHz effective). This FSB is matched to 1GB of DDR2-533MHz Ram.

The Ram comes on two 512MB sticks occupying both slots. Should you want to upgrade, which we'd recommend as Vista needs 2GB Ram to run smoothly, you'll have to remove the Ram that's already in the system.

Although this is a 64bit processor, Gateway has wisely stuck with a 32bit version of Vista Home Premium. We've noticed a lack of driver support, mainly on the peripheral front, for 64bit Vista, so it’s wise to stay 32bit for now.

In Vista's performance benchmarking utility, the Windows Experience Index, the MT6825b scored a base score of 3.1. Microsoft deems this sufficient to run Aero interface at a resolution 1,200x1,024.

However it warns that if you add external monitors or use higher resolutions, the system will struggle.

In PCmark05 the notebook scored 2,993, which for comparison's sake is what a Core Duo T2400 (based on the Yonah core from a year ago) would have scored. The score of 506 in 3Dmark05 means this system is next to useless for even the most basic gaming.

The reason for this is down to the graphics being handled by an integrated Intel chip, the GMA 950, which is poor compared to other chips on the market. It has no memory and dynamically steals up to 224MB of the system's Ram when needed.

The 15.4in widescreen LCD has a resolution of 1,280x800, which is at the lower end of pixel counts, but the screen is uniformly bright and fine for watching films. In our DVD run down test the machine lasted a decent 1 hour 59 mins – just long enough to watch most movies.

Considering the low price, Gateway has done well to ship this notebook with a 100GB hard drive, although becasue it's a 5,400rpm model it doesn't perform as well as more expensive 7,200rpm versions.

Four USB2 ports line the right-hand side of the chassis, although there could have been several more as there's unused space next to them.

The headphone and microphone jacks are fitted to the front of the device, with the speakers also located on the front of the laptop, pointing forward. There are adequately loud and produce a crisp sound.

VGA and S-video monitor outputs, 4-pin Firewire and a 4-in-1 card reader complete the connectivity list. Microsoft Works 8.5 is included on the software front.
The notebook weighs 3.30kg including power supply, which is the norm for a 15.4in laptop.

The chassis is better than most and definitely in the same league as HP and Sony's cheaper offerings.

The MT6825b does nothing special and is missing some features, for example a built-in webcam, but it gets the basics right and at under £500 comes highly recommended for those wanting a basic but well-designed Vista notebook. The MT6825b can be bought direct from Tesco.

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