Gateway GM5478 Desktop Personal Computer System

The Bottom Line
Gateway tried to pack a lot of features into the Gateway GM5478 and it succeeds for the most part. It certainly will provide an excellent experience for those working on digital video or heavily multitasking, but it is a bit definicient in terms of its graphics or for those that don't multitask.

Pros

* Quad Core Processor
* Large Hard Drive
* TV Tuner Included

Cons

* Fairly Underwhelming 3D Graphics Card
* Quad Core Processor Won't Benefit Single Tasked Users
* Door Covering Ports On Front Panel Quite Flimsy

Description

* Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Quad Core Desktop Processor
* 2GB PC2-5300 DDR2 Memory
* 500GB 7200rpm SATA Hard Drive
* 16x DVD+/-RW Dual Layer Burner
* NVIDIA GeForce 8500 GT Graphics Wiht 256MB Memory
* Digital (HDTV) and Analog TV Tuner
* Intel HDA Audio With Stereo Speakers
* v.92 56Kbps Modem and 10/100 Ethernet
* Six USB 2.0, Two FireWire and 15-in-1 Card Reader
* Vista Home Premium, MS Works 8, Power2Go, McAfee Internet Security

Guide Review - Gateway GM5478 Desktop Personal Computer System

Gateway's GM5478 is the first of their retail line to use the Q6600 desktop processor. This will greatly benefit those users that doing a lot of video work or heavy multitasking. On the other hand, if the system will be used for more single tasked environments, then a different model with a faster dual core processor is probably a better choice. They have included 2GB of PC2-5300 DDR2 memory to let it run the Vista Home Premium OS smoothly.

Most mainstream desktop computers still come equipped with 250 or 320GB hard drives. Gateway includes a larger 500GB hard drive with the GM5478 because the system also comes with an HDTV tuner. This extra space provides some room for the PVR functions that can be used with the tuner. The system also has a slot on the front panel for use with the optional Gateway Portable Media Drive. Optical storage is handled by a dual layer DVD burner that can be used for recording or playback of CDs or DVDs.

While the Gateway GM5478 does feature one of the new NVIDIA GeForce 8500 GT graphics boards that support the Direct X 10 graphics engine of Vista, it still leaves much to be desired. The graphics board does support some accelerated high definition video decoding, but not to the level of those found in the ATI Radeon HD 2600 products. It also does not provide much in terms of 3D graphics acceleration for gaming beyond the most basic of casual PC games.

What the Gateway GM5478 does is put together a very solid desktop PC for those looking to do digital video or heavy multitasking. While it has a few flaws in terms of the graphics, they can easily be compensated with a few upgrades.