Gateway EC1430u Notebook Reviews

Thursday, November 12, 2009, 7:52
Laptops
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Portability, display, weight and price are the four factors which will ponder your mind when buying a notebook. The Gateway EC1430u proves to be one of the best contenders for the position. The EC1430 resembles the Acer’s 1810T measuring exactly at 11.2 x 8 x 1.2 inches. At a mere 3.2 pounds this notebook is now a competent foe for most netbooks in the market. The design is admirable with its matte black keyboard and a black finish in the exterior.

Functionality wise the EC1430u features 3 USB ports, HDMI and VGA output, memory card reader and jacks for headphones and microphones. The keyboard is wide and the large shift key and spacing between keys allows better dexterity while typing. Even the touchpad is large and best part about the touchpad is its multi touch feature. Options like pinch, rotate, zoom and other functions can be used on photos and documents.

The EC1430u houses an 11.6 inches screen with a 1366 x 768 display. This provides HD video compatibility is immense, the only problem being the issue of reflections due to the glossy finish. The 0.3 megapixel webcam provides a rather drab experience when video chatting. Does not provide anti motion blur and video shooting is undeniably inane. However it does not disappoint when it comes to performance. The Intel Pentium SU4100 processor running at 1.3 GHz provides average performance.

The integrated 3GB of RAM ensures a speedy performance. You can now finally use an ultraportable notebook which matches the similar functionality of most netbooks, without compromising on power and speed. The EC1430u integrates a 320GB hard disk running at 5400 RPM which ensures data transfers to be fast. Booting a Windows 7 operating system can be done in less than a minute which is very impressive.

The EC1430u also houses an a/b/g/n Intel Wi-Fi link which provides amazing connectivity at very high speeds. Even with long hours of surfing, chatting, video streaming the EC1430 can run well over eight hours with a single charge. Priced at US$549 the Gateway EC1430u ensures ultra portability and superior performance. Overall if endurance and portability is your forte than the EC1430u will definitely not disappoint.