Gateway SX2850-01 Desktop PC comes with these specs: Intel Core i3-540 Processor 3.0GHz with Intel Hyper-Threading Technology, Windows 7 Home Premium, Intel H57 Express Chipset, 4096MB DDR3 Memory, Integrated Intel HD Graphics, 1TB SATA Hard Drive (Green Product - variable RPM), Multi-in-1 Digital Media Card Reader, High-Definition Audio Support with 5.1-channel Audio Support, 11 - USB 2.0, Keyboard and Mouse, 12.0 lbs. | 5.4 kg (system unit only), 1 Year Parts and Labor Limited Warranty with Toll-Free Tech Support, Registration/ Limited Warranty Card, Norton Internet Security Suite 2009 Trial
- Smart performance starts with the new Intel Core i3 processor. Serving as the perfect threshold for a fast and responsive PC experience, it features 4-way multitasking processor power to work on four tasks simultaneously.
- Integrated Intel graphics make the most of your visual experience with stunning visuals, beautiful video playback, and excellent mainstream gaming performance. Plus, the SX2850 offers high-def 5.1-channel audio support.
- Store games, movies, videos, music and more! Huge 1TB Hard Drive provides generous storage for work and entertainment along with the speed to quickly access them.
- Windows 7 Home Premium makes it easy to create a home network and share all of your favorite photos, videos and music. Get the best entertainment experience on your PC!
Technical Details
- Unleash your creative side with the Gateway SX2850 Desktop featuring powerful Intel Core i3 performance, 4GB DDR3 Memory and an expansive 1TB Hard Drive packed in a sleek compact design that takes up very little desk space.- Smart performance starts with the new Intel Core i3 processor. Serving as the perfect threshold for a fast and responsive PC experience, it features 4-way multitasking processor power to work on four tasks simultaneously.
- Integrated Intel graphics make the most of your visual experience with stunning visuals, beautiful video playback, and excellent mainstream gaming performance. Plus, the SX2850 offers high-def 5.1-channel audio support.
- Store games, movies, videos, music and more! Huge 1TB Hard Drive provides generous storage for work and entertainment along with the speed to quickly access them.
- Windows 7 Home Premium makes it easy to create a home network and share all of your favorite photos, videos and music. Get the best entertainment experience on your PC!
2010-08-27By J. Reed
My 2003 entry-level DELL had been giving me trouble for the last couple of years. It got to the point where I was having to reformat it every single week, and even after doing so, simple things like typing in the address bar would lag about a full minute behind my inputs, even from fresh boot-ups (which took about 5 minutes just to get to desktop itself)Forget about multi-tasking in several windows, I could barely "run" one, and I use the term loosely.Youtube videos? Forget 720/1080 resolutions, my system stuttered and would often lock up running 360p. I was sick and tired of my ancient DELL as well as the dinosaur known as Windows XP, I literally couldn't do any of the simple things I wanted.
WIth a few of my college classes requiring online software, and that I would need to type reports with Word, and not trusting my junky Dell, I got with the times and ordered this Gateway model. Startup/shutdown is lightning quick. Web pages load almost instantly. The built-in WIFI is MUCH quicker AND reliable. Windows 7 seems to be a great product, at least compared to my experiences with XP. Youtube videos can be viewed in full 1080 HD, with no stuttering and no need to pause and let the stream "catch up" to my WIFI DL speeds. Big thanks to Amazon for the college student PRIME offer. It gave me free 2 day shipping, which was a lifesaver in keeping me from falling behind in my classes.
The form-factor wasn't a big issue with me choosing this PC, bet it IS nice to have a unit nearly 1/3 of the size of my old Dell. The Gateway is much less of a "tower" than the old unit. It is roughly the size of an XBOX 360, making it a fine choice if you are hooking it up to a living room LCD bigscreen. It even has HDMI, making it even more tempting to do this.
My only two very minor complaints are the WIFI antenna doesn't just plug into the back like I expected. It does connect there, but the wire runs to a suction cup antenna that sits on top of the PC. It dosen't match the sleekness of the PC itself, and the the cup looses grip often. The other issue is the bundled VGA cord is way too short (about half the length of my Dell's) I guess they expect you to either make due or use your old cable.
This is a great PC that is perfect for those like me that have squeezed every drop of usage from their old computers. The price is very reasonable for the power it packs, and I would estimate that I will save 6 hours or so per week thanks to the quick startups, lack of crashes, and from not having to reformat on a weekly basis. A+
2010-08-22By K. Kim (Folsom, CA United States)
As soon as the unit was connected to the (surge protected) power strip, the blue light at the power button (switch) lit up (which looked odd since I was expecting to push the button by myself to turn it on like any other computers or electronic devices). Afterward, nothing happened and the monitor indicated no input from VGA. And, I turned off the power switch (button) and the blue light went out as expected. A subsequent numerous retrying to push the button resulted in no power (no blue light). And, as a last resort, turned off & on the power strip and that triggered the power turned on momently (observed the fan ran a few seconds and died). At this point, the only consolation was that I bought it from Amazon.com and I quickly arranged it to return with no hassle as usual and they are going to ship another unit with one day delivery service next week. With this kind of catastrophic problem (which I never encountered before), I am a concerned with whether I am going to run into the same problem right away again or not too distant future, and then I would have no luxury of returning the unit for replacement or refund except tedious & time consuming warranty service) or what other problems I would encounter with Gateway. I hope I could update the rating at higher level once I try the replacement unit.
2010-08-09By Jeffrey Ornstein (Brooklyn, NY United States)
I was looking to replace my 7-year old Dell Dimension which simply could not handle HD video. And XP was an aging operating system. Therefore, upgrading made sense.
I've had the computer for a week, and so far, so good. Set up was easy and simple. At the same time I bought this computer, I also ordered a 22" 1080p LG monitor. Both products work flawlessly together. Graphics are beautiful, and I'm impressed with the updated Intel HD graphics. I'm not a gamer, but for everything else, it's quite impressive. Plays hi-def videos very well. So no problem there.
One issue with the hardware is the power button. It takes a considerable amount of pressure to turn on. Similar issue with the DVD button. The DVD button issue was a problem with the 2840, and unfortunately, is probably carried over to the 2850 as well.
One disappointment is the lack of a variety of ports from last year's model. The 2850 has no optical out (already discussed in other reviews), and it doesn't have firewire or eSATA. I don't know if I'll use optical or eSATA, but it would be good to have just in case. I have an older canon mini-DV tape video camera which I use from time to time. I'll need to download to my laptop and transfer via sd card if I want to edit on the Gateway. But to the 2850's credit, it does have 11 - yes - 11, USB ports. Which is quite handy. I'm already using 7 of them.
Another let-down is the reduction in RAM. The 2850 does have faster RAM than the 2840. And slightly faster processor. But 6 gigs of ram would have been nice.
I guess a plus of this model is the addition of wireless. But I'm hard-wired, so it's not much of a feature for me.
So, it's a nice computer that I hope lasts a few years. Great graphics with a 1080p monitor, 11 usb ports and fast and quiet operation makes it a good value choice. The glossy finishes are also attractive and the small form factor is somewhat a plus as well.
Keyboard and mouse are ok - I'm using them with no problem.
But bring your own speakers - they're not included.....
2010-08-03By Paul Silverstein
This is a perfect PC for booting satellite or cable bills out the door. I had DirecTV and was tired of paying $86 a month to watch 10-15 channels at most. The PC performs perfectly with the included Windows 7. WiFi is excellent and I have no issues with streaming Netflix or web-based movies/shows. While you can play games on it, I would not recommend this as a gaming platform. This is perfect for surfing the web on a big-screen HDTV, watching movies on disc or streaming video from the internet.
The only thing I would have loved to see is an included wireless keyboard and wireless mouse. The wired stuff has to go.
2010-08-01By Captain1k
I wanted to purchase a small PC for my home theater system and was initially leaning toward the e-machines "Mini-e." However, I saw that it had issues with flash and Hulu. I then came across the Gateway SX2840 which got rave reviews from cnet and the like. It seemed to have everything I wanted except for a wireless card. I figured hey, I can just buy one and stick it in the machine, but then I came across the SX2850 and voila! It had one in it. The system itself works great. It's fast and handles anything thrown at it, very quiet too. I have it hooked up to a Panasonic 1080p G25 plasma via HDMI and looks great. Much better watching Hulu on a large TV than a small monitor. I also have it connected to my Windows Home Group and stream movies and content from my Desktop to this PC wirelessly and have no issues (I have a Dual Band "N" router). I would have given this 5 stars if it wasn't for one small flaw.
They chinced on the onboard sound. At first glance the sx2840 and sx2850 looked identical (2850 had a slight upgrade in the processor, downgrade in RAM). So I ordered the 2850. Didn't realize until I got it that it doesn't have an Optical Out (toslink/spdif), the 2840 does. I can't fathom why they would have omitted it. Oh well, my oversight I guess. So I had to hook up analog cables to the Multi Channel Input of my receiver. Speakers test fine in Windows 7 but, the sound is horrible with absolutely no bass when playing video/audio files. I found out later that the LFE connection to the subwoofer doesn't really like analog. I tried increasing the gain in Windows and my receiver as well as the physical knob on the sub and nothing worked. The problem with increasing the gain in the receiver is it will blow out my sub when I switch over to Cable or PS3 (both using optical). So not a good solution. Moral of the story, if you want to use this for home theater and want the best sound you'll probably need to buy a low-profile sound card with optical out. Unless you can figure out how to make it work. If you do, feel free to drop a comment and let me know. Thanks!
***UPDATE: 15 Aug 10***
I purchased the ASUS Xonar DX 7.1 Channels PCI Express Interface Sound Card for the optical out and threw it in this machine. Once I got it working the sound is great. Now I get true surround sound and deep bass watching digital movies and internet content. There are a few things to note when ordering this sound card. First, it doesn't come with a manual. It comes with a bare bones installation guide which is not that helpful. Second, it also requires external power and they provide an old Molex style connector. The Gateway SX2850 HDD and DVD drive run off SATA power connections and the power supply has no spare power cables. You have to buy a SATA extension with extra Molex connector from NewEgg (Radio Shack and Best Buy do not carry them). To cut a long story short, the card is not PnP and does not auto-detect which ports you're using. You have to use the interface software that comes with the card to make adjustments (Windows 7 is futile). I spent a few hours before I figured out you have to check mark the s/pdif box in the packaged software.
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