UPDATE: After about a year of use, the keyboard paint on the M-6827 starts wearing off. Both the silver and the letters. The most common buttons, like enter, spacebar, s, e and shift are worn off to the extent that the letters are not visible any more. So if you hate cosmetic defect, here’s one.
A couple of days ago there was this awesome deal on the Gateway M-6827 laptop. It was sold for $549 instead of the regular price of $699 (at Office Depot). If you haven’t seen the pattern in most of the things I reviewed, it’s the fact that I like good deals. So what makes this laptop awesome? Let’s start with the spec (I promise you, it gets way more interesting):
- 15.4″-diagonal widescreen WXGA (1280 x 800) UltraBright™ LCD screen
- Intel Core 2 Duo processor T5750 operating at 2.0GHz 2MB L2 cach
- 3GB of PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM memory (2GB + 1GB)
- 160GB 5400-rpm Serial ATA (SATA) hard drive
- Multiformat DVD drive with Double Layer support (reads/writes DVD±R/RW, DVD-RAM, DVD±R Double Layer, CD-R/RW); supports disc labeling on Labelflash media
- Intel Pro/Wireless 3945ABG (802.11a/b/g) wireless LAN
- Integrated 1.3-megapixel webcam, for live video chat and still photos
- 5-in-1 memory card reader: reads SD, MMC, xD, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro
- Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X3100 with up to 384MB shared memory
And on top of that, it has a pretty slick and new design. Which leads me to wonder why it was so cheap.
The Design and functionality.
The design of the laptop is composed of glossy plastic, normal plastic and some brushed metal around the keyboard. Like you all know the glossiness will attract fingerprint. But beside that, I love the design. On top of the keyboard there is a power button, a quick launch button (to launch media center) an array of media button and a volume slider. All of them are tactile except for the volume slider. And on both of side of the buttons are speakers. Which are pretty good and loud for a laptop.
The quick launch button and 2 of the media button (a music player and a dvd player symbol) can also be used to turn on the computer. The difference with it is that it automatically launches the respective media player after launching windows. On another note, I think it’s pretty weird that there are 3 buttons which basically takes you to the same place. Beside these buttons are your usual play, stop, rewind and fast forward button. The technical design of these buttons are pretty cool. There is a little slit in the shape of a zig zag between the buttons which allows you to press the button down. But like I said, the build is sturdy enough and it won’t feel like you’re going to break it. It basically feels like the buttons on a razr. Not very complicated but it’s unique none the less.
To the right of the media buttons are the volume slider. Which as I mention are touch sensitive. Although it’s not very sensitive. I had to really push it down to use it. And it’s also weird because the only indication of your changes are at the end in the + and – signs. So although the touch is a slider, sometimes it feels like it’s not working. And you have to slide it pretty slow to make sure it captures your movements.
The keyboard feels pretty comfortable. It doesn’t feel cramped at all. Not as good as a real keyboard but it should be fine. Like every laptop keyboard it has an array of “fn” buttons. they’re all pretty useful such as a shortcut to turn off some of the led lighting on the laptop (no, the keyboard does not have a led backlight, but the power, wireless, caps lock, activity indicators and etc. does), one to turn of wireless (although there’s also a physical slider on the side of the laptop), a sleep button and another button which I haven’t figured out what it does. There is also a bluetooth button, which does nothing apparently. There is also a button to switch the laptops brightness from 2 setting (bright and dark) and another array of media button along with the usual brightness, volume and etc. controller.
The touchpad is your basic one with 2 buttons, a “Y axis” scroller and optionally a fingerprint reader which I do not have. And it works like any other touchpad as well.
For connectivity you have an Ethernet port, 2 usb port, a 5 in 1 memory card reader, an ExpressCard slot and a wireless slider on the left. On the right you have another usb port and a DVD RW with Label Flash (an alternative to light scribe). On the back you have a vga port, a modem port, and a Kensington lock slot. On the front you have a headphone, microphone jack and 2 indicator lights. One which indicates whether the laptop is on or not, which also pulsates when it’s in sleep mode. The other which indicates whether the computer is charged or not. Which also turns pink when it is charging. So depending on your preference, this may rock or not.
Did I mention there is a 1.3 Megapixel camera on the screen? The only other thing on the screen are a blue light that indicated whether the camera is active or not and a pinhole microphone.
On the technical end, the laptop seems nice and sturdy with no cheap feeling in it. All the button seems nice and sturdy and it doesn’t wiggle. Thumbs up for their construction.
The Cons
So far I haven’t found anything really faulty yet. The only really weird thing I notice is that when I unplugged the AC adapter there was a tiny but unusual sound coming out. It’s not really noticeable unless you’re in a pretty quiet enviroment. But it turns out it came from the fan. So I’m guessing it’s the fan working harder to keep the batter from overheating and burning your lap. Or even worse, blowing up!
The other thing I didn’t like was the ExpressCard and memory card reader slot cover. Both of them are completely detached from the laptop which means you can lose it easily. And it was a pretty tight fit which means it’s not very easy to put back in. On the other hand this will make sure it doesn’t fall out or let dirt get in. Of course, it’s not a deal breaker or anything. So if you’re clumsy, you might want to be careful.
The Conclusion
The Gateway M-6827 Notebook is a good overall notebook which I would reccomend. I give it an 8/10. You could see more pictures at my flickr set
Did you buy this laptop? What do you think.
Popularity: 34% [?]
August 18th, 2008 at 1:22 pm
Looks like a pretty slick computer! Congrats on the steal.
August 20th, 2008 at 1:16 am
Man you get lucky on these deals all the time! You need to share with us your secret
August 21st, 2008 at 12:21 pm
Thanks guys. Yeah, I keep getting lucky. You should try creating a new email for subscribing to online ads like officedepot, compusa, newegg etc. So When you have the time you can check the latest deals
August 22nd, 2008 at 12:39 pm
Nice review! Very thorough.
August 29th, 2008 at 2:18 am
I have this computer too. Do you have any problems with it not reading certain discs?? I’ve been burning files on my previous computer onto cds that the laptop will not read! I’m getting frustrated!
August 29th, 2008 at 7:14 pm
Thankfully no, at least not yet. Did you make sure the discs are written correctly? Try putting it in another computer, if it does work you should get that checked out. I hope you still have the warranty.
Oh and may I add, you should try using an external hard disk for file transfer? And afterward you can use it to back up files as you go
And as a last resort you can use your windows network to share your files. Best of luck!
August 30th, 2008 at 10:05 am
I bought this laptop! So far its been pretty good. I mean its perfect for doing homework, listening to music and watching videos. no lag or choppyness.
But i think there is a problem with the Video Card.
I installed a few games to see how much the Gateway could handle. IT handles games really smoothly until there is action, the games frame rate drops about 60% whenever there is alot of movement.
I also installed Google Sketch 6 for some designing. The sketch up works well until i start adding textures which basically makes the program really hard to use.
but other than that i think its a pretty good deal also.
August 31st, 2008 at 12:08 am
Nice!
Well frame rate drop is not really a “problem” per se. It will always drop under heavy use no matter what video card you have. Some just can handle more “action” than others. Same thing with Google sketch.
Try using some ram optimizing software like FreeRAM XP Pro, GameXP (haven’t tried it with vista yet though), and ending all program first (like firefox etc.), and of course, turning of aero. It should help a bit.
But maybe I’m wrong and there is a problem, but I don’t recommend you getting a check up at bestbuy etc. because they will probably overcharge you for something that’s not really a problem.
Thanks for your input! Have fun playing games and designing on your gateway
September 19th, 2008 at 3:32 pm
I bought this slick computer for my wife as a replacement of an old dell laptop. Great deal from office depot.
I’ve had a problem. Not 1 week after we purchased it, the screen cracked in the bottom right corner. If you notice the angle that is slanted down from on the base from the keyboard, you’ll see where this happened. She picked it up on the side and just enough space between the screen and the base it cracked. Any ideas out there what I should do as far as replacing or do you think there is any hope in getting help from gateway. This will end up being a nightmare for them as more people crack their screen because of this design flaw.
September 19th, 2008 at 10:42 pm
Dang that sucks! If I were you I would try consulting either (or both) office depot or Gateway first before trying to get a 3rd party replacement. Although it is unfortunate it happened, the bright side is you should still be under the warranty (glass is half full
). I’m pretty sure the warranty will cover it.
But if that doesn’t work out, getting a lcd replacement shouldn’t be too hard, although it might be a bit expensive. You’re looking at about $250-$300. Here’s a starting point (although I can’t vouch for it as I never tried it)
http://www.screentekinc.com/Gateway-notebook-screens.shtml
But if you would like an easier way you can also try
http://techrestore.com/laptop/
Here’s a review on the company from stammy:
http://paulstamatiou.com/2008/08/11/review-techrestore-mac-repair
Good luck!
September 21st, 2008 at 1:51 pm
Nice site. I want to buy this laptop, but I’m concerned about the screen. If I get it, I’ll add 2 more cents
September 21st, 2008 at 8:15 pm
Thank you! Cool, hopefully the screen isn’t a widespread problem and a fixable one by warranty. Thankfully mine is still working fine. Then again I don’t open and close that much so far. Looking forward to your 2 cents!
September 26th, 2008 at 10:41 pm
I just bought the computer 9/26 and of course am reading reviews AFTERWARDS! $599 at Office Depot after $50 in store discount and before $100 mail in rebate. Survived the drop test- about 3 minutes after I took it out of the box my leg caught on the power cord and yanked it off the coffee table onto a carpeted 2nd floor, with no apparent damage. Glad it wasn’t concrete or higher. Seems fast and display and keyboard seem good. Am very happy so far.
September 27th, 2008 at 10:35 am
I read this review after i bought the computer and i am scared to death about the screen thing. Can you explain in more detail how this happened?
September 27th, 2008 at 9:30 pm
@Robert, That must have gave you a brief heart attack! I know it would for me. Glad to hear it’s pretty sturdy and survived a drop test. This is when you wish all your laptop has a mag safe plug
.
@Anton, It personally hadn’t happened to me but I’ll try to explain. The sides of the bottom part of the laptop (the keyboard part) is bent a bit downward while the sides of the screen is bent upward which leaves a gap in between the 2 parts. Basically if the laptop is shown in a front view and incredibly simplified manner, it would look like this “>—-< " (although it is not as extreme) So if you held the laptop at those (">” or “<“) location there’s a chance you might break something because of the tension that will be present when you hold the laptop around those gap. Why they did that I don’t really have a clue. Although if I had to take a stab in the dark I think it’s to allow a place for your finger to open the lid/screen.
As long as you’re careful it is not that a big of a deal. Although I can imagine how scary that would be.
September 28th, 2008 at 8:56 pm
I just bought this laptop and so far haven’t had any issues. I love the look and the feel of it. The keyboard isn’t uncomfortable and easy to get use to. The volume slider on the top is a bit tricky (which is how I found this website, trying to figure out how to use it, thanks for the advice), but the Fn volume buttons on the side work just fine. I’m really glad I bought it and have had so much fun discovering things about it.
September 30th, 2008 at 12:55 am
Congratulation on the buy! Glad I could help.
September 30th, 2008 at 10:29 am
Hello,
I am interested in purchasing this laptop and was wondering how much battery time it has.
September 30th, 2008 at 10:49 am
First of all, Thanks for such nice review. I have 2 questions regarding the VGA output. Did any user try to connect it to a TV and see the quality of the Videos? When you connect to a TV or monitor, can the video card handle two displays mode, or it can only show 1 screen on both displays? Thanks again.
September 30th, 2008 at 8:52 pm
@Julie Mondie, at full charge and no tweaks (just the default battery settings), window says that the battery will run for 2 hour and 30 minutes. Although I never actually tested this so your mileage may vary.
@Overeat, You’re very welcome. Unfortunately I have not tried to connect it to another monitor or screen. But according to the windows display properties, it can support another monitor. Hope that helps.
October 1st, 2008 at 4:10 pm
Bought this from Office Depot online. Ordered on Monday, arrived on Wednesday. Love the design and the colorful screen. The keyboard has good tactile feel (better than my HP) and is not cramped. The only complaint I have is the excessive fan noise. Don’t know if there is a 3rd party replacement fan for this baby?
October 1st, 2008 at 6:06 pm
@Chris, That’s odd, I don’t really hear any excessive noise from my fan. Try getting a laptop stand it might help by providing a second fan and more room for air. Also try going to a store and checking the same models and see if it’s as loud. Maybe it’s just the laptop you have, which in that case, you might want to get another
. Good luck!
November 14th, 2008 at 9:52 pm
I like this laptop. Bought at Office Depot on 10/2/08 when the $100 rebate was still on. Tried to install Windows XP and did not succeed (temporary setback – I expect to solve this problem – Gateway has the XP drivers on the support site). Ordered the recovery CDs from Gateway to see if they are any different than the ones you can make yourself using the Gateway recovery utilities on the laptop, and lo and behold, the ones they sent me are different for sure: they allow you to recover everything, including the recovery partition contents and functionality. Awesome! Gateway support via e-mail was fine; I was patient and polite, and after minimal back and forth they got the disks sent to me promptly. Went over to the public library with this laptop to use free Wi-Fi last night and did a bunch of surfing and downloads at excellent speeds while running on battery power for over 2 hours. Have tried installing Office 2000 and Norton System Works 2003, but Vista won’t let me (thanks a bunch, Microsoft), which is main reason I still want to install XP. I have used the optical drive (Optiarc DVD RW AD-7563A) for burning DVD +R media and it works great. Hitachi 160 GB hard drive, USB ports, power adapter and charging, built in dial-up modem – all work great. Overall, I’m very pleased with the hardware and Gateway at this point. Removed the software I didn’t need or want, and turned off some really annoying Vista features. Mailed in the rebate, and Office Depot has already mailed me the check. While this laptop is probably not built for rough handling, it seems to be fine for what it is.November 14th, 2008 at 9:53 pm
I like this laptop. Bought at Office Depot on 10/2/08 when the $100 rebate was still on. Tried to install Windows XP and did not succeed (temporary setback – I expect to solve this problem – Gateway has the XP drivers on the support site). Ordered the recovery CDs from Gateway to see if they are any different than the ones you can make yourself using the Gateway recovery utilities on the laptop, and lo and behold, the ones they sent me are different for sure: they allow you to recover everything, including the recovery partition contents and functionality. Awesome! Gateway support via e-mail was fine; I was patient and polite, and after minimal back and forth they got the disks sent to me promptly. Went over to the public library with this laptop to use free Wi-Fi last night and did a bunch of surfing and downloads at excellent speeds while running on battery power for over 2 hours. Have tried installing Office 2000 and Norton System Works 2003, but Vista won’t let me (thanks a bunch, Microsoft), which is main reason I still want to install XP. I have used the optical drive (Optiarc DVD RW AD-7563A) for burning DVD +R media and it works great. Hitachi 160 GB hard drive, USB ports, power adapter and charging, built in dial-up modem – all work great. Overall, I’m very pleased with the hardware and Gateway at this point. Removed the software I didn’t need or want, and turned off some really annoying Vista features. Mailed in the rebate, and Office Depot has already mailed me the check. While this laptop is probably not built for rough handling, it seems to be fine for what it is.
November 15th, 2008 at 1:37 am
Sounds great mate! Happy to see you able to get everything resolved. Thanks for your detailed opinion, you should try writing a review
. Good luck with everything!
November 25th, 2008 at 2:29 am
i can’t dowloads driver audio gateway m6827
November 25th, 2008 at 2:33 am
I can’t setup driver audio gateway m 6827.
help me now.
November 28th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
i just bought this laptop! i hope it doesnt bring me any troubleshootin =)
December 1st, 2008 at 11:55 pm
Just got this laptop cause my toshiba that was less then a year old had a MEGA crash after not having ONE problem, it was a bios update from toshiba, I have a a205 s5804, DONT UPGRADE THE BIOS! Aside from that, The second i got this home i replaced the 1 gig with a 2 gig to make it 4 gig, and this thing is plain nasty, Im running avira, and other things, Im an a computer geed so I configured vista’s performance, and this thing with ALL things running uses only 889mg or ram out of my 4! Knowing its only 32bit its only using 3.5gb ram, but still, this thing is the best laptop Ive EVER used. GET one WHILE YOU CAN!!!
December 2nd, 2008 at 12:18 am
Dang that sucks! I’m sorry to hear that. A good rule is to not upgrade bios unless something is broken. It’s too risky. Unless you like to live on the edge
Awesome. Glad to hear you like the laptop. Did you feel a big different upgrading to 3.5gig?
December 22nd, 2008 at 4:14 pm
The day after Thanksgiving, I bought the Gateway M-6827 from Office Depot for $549. Yesterday, I bought the Toshiba A305-S6872 from Best Buy for the same $549. Which one shall I keep for my children for Christmas. The Toshiba uses the Intel T5800 processor whereas the Gateway uses the T5750. The Toshiba harddrive is 250 GB vs the 160 GB for Gateway. Please assist me in making this decision on which is better.
December 22nd, 2008 at 5:55 pm
Based on the specs you game me, the Toshiba seems to be the better choice. I would go with the Toshiba because many of its spec is better including its wireless setup which has “N” (the current fastest wireless standard) and a harman/kardon speaker. Unless you want portability. Here Gateway is probably better with its 14″ screen. besides that I think the Toshiba is more future proof. And plus, imo, it’s the better brand.
December 28th, 2008 at 2:00 pm
Andy Darnell, I was wondering if you had any success in getting the screen fixedthrough the warranty? I just bought this laptop yesterday for my 16-year-old nephew and am very concerned about the screen cracking.(it hasn’t been opened yet, so I can still return it.)
January 5th, 2009 at 7:52 pm
One thing which is sort of a deal breaker for me is the lack of HDMI output. I plan to get an HDTV and am under the impression that HDMI is the best way to hook up the laptop to the TV.
On a side note, I’ve owned a Toshiba, a Dell and used a Gateway Tablet. Of these three, Gateway was my best choice. It had amazing battery life (even after 4 years). Toshiba and Dell batteries were a sore point. I don’t know if it speaks about the brand or maybe I just got lucky with the Gateway.
On another side note, what do you think of Lenovo laptops?
January 6th, 2009 at 6:11 pm
Interesting note there. But the thing is that this laptop isn’t a high end laptop. So I wouldn’t expect a laptop of this class to have HDMI, or am I wrong?
You sure do have all the colors of the rainbow in your arsenal. I hope that it speaks for the brand, for gateway anyway.
Unfortunately, I haven’t had a chance to own a lenovo. I have only owned a gateway, an acer, and a twinhead (a rugged laptop maker). But I think they are very interesting in terms of design. And since they have an IBM background, per se, I think they should be good in terms of quality.
January 8th, 2009 at 7:34 am
I plan on buying one of these units and installing XP Home. Any feedback as to problems in installing/running XP?
Thanks.
January 15th, 2009 at 4:03 pm
Damn this website is hot! No?how do you work the webcam? ive been trying to figure it out.=(
January 15th, 2009 at 8:29 pm
Just open your start menu, type in camera and pres the “camera assistance software”. From their you can do a bunch of thing, but the main one is the first icon which will start your camera. I hope that helps.
January 24th, 2009 at 3:44 pm
I like the review. I bought the very same model and love it also. Not the desktop replacement live my last laptop and is lite and easy to use. Only gripe I have is the plastic can scratch very easily. Again great review.
Damn this website is hot! No?January 25th, 2009 at 1:48 am
Thank you. Great to hear. I’d like to think, wear and tear shows that you love and care
March 8th, 2009 at 10:27 am
Where can I find a User’s Manual for this laptop? It is my first and I am not really computer literate as to all of the functions. A User’s Manual did not come with it…supposedly it is now on line only but I cannot find it.
thanks
March 8th, 2009 at 9:13 pm
@Nancy http://support.gateway.com/s/Mobile/2008/Avalon/1015672R/1015672Rnv.shtml Hope that helps!
March 24th, 2009 at 9:51 pm
This model would not burn the recovery cds, and then when I wanted to burn music, no way. It makes this loud trainwreck noise. Gateway did send a new DVD/CD rom harddrive, and Office Depot paid for me to bring it to a computer store. Well, it didn’t format/nor burn cds. . .and the same abnormal noise. I sent it in to Gateway (who then sent it to Acer). They sent it back. NOT FIXED even though they said all was fine. Had to send it back AGAIN. Same thing. To Gateway who sent it to Acer. They wrote “Updated BIOS and burned the ABBA CD on the computer. You may want to try a different brand of discs.” Nice try, but my disks are fine. Now it doesn’t play my music CDs. It did burn the ABBA soundtrack and you hear the rumbling noise. Office Depot would not take it back. Yes, it’s a sweet computer with a lot of nice features, the webcam for one. I think I have done the 3 times/ it’s a lemon. But so far Office Depot is totally uncooperative. I have gone beyond the point of frustration to being aggravated and angry, and now imagine I have to wait til the warranty is almost up & someone will replace it. Otherwise, they will not see any $ from me. The computer store said the sound is abnormal. The computer didn’t format or burn discs. I have written letters to Office Depot’s PPP (performance perfection plan) and Gateway’s corporate office in Irvine. . .and what do I get? BS. So why this is my problem I don’t understand. The computer was and is a lemon. I want an upgrade, a newer model, a better one. . .I want I want I want, but what’s my recourse? Has anyone else had this problem? Thanks you.
March 25th, 2009 at 5:49 pm
Dang that sucks. Hope you get it all fixed. Try posting on consumerist or mailing directly to their CEO. You never know who might be listening ;D
April 7th, 2009 at 12:15 pm
Damn this website is hot! No?The vertical axis touch pad is terrible! It occupies 1/3 of the touchpad. I ‘m constantly accidently scrolling. It is REALLY BAD! Other than that, which is major, it’s a good computer
April 8th, 2009 at 10:55 am
@Jay, You can fix that up real easy. Refer to my post on Synaptic: http://novus.byvolce.com/2009/01/laptop-touchpad-as-hotkey-and-scroller/
Just edit the scrolling region. Good luck!
May 7th, 2009 at 6:49 pm
I bought my M-6827 in September 2008 and I use it for school (I’m a college sophomore)as well as for personal use. The only problem I have had with it up until today is that the right speaker is giving me trouble – it acts like it is blown. Other than that, it does the job – and then some. I shine it up every so often with car wax and it looks like new, as well as helping to repel fingerprints. My computer burns and formats CDs and DVDs like nobody’s business, and the external speakers and the printer work like a charm. All in all this is a great computer – better than many PCs that I have owned.
July 14th, 2009 at 9:29 pm
I bought this laptop last year in August and I enjoy it heaps. I owned a Dell before and that was a nightmare. I haven’t had any problems with this one save for the fact that it overheats all the time now for no apparent reason. Even when it’s not in use the left side gets uncomfortably warm. It’s still under warranty but I don’t know if just buying a cooling fan stand to have it sit on would be better then bothering with sending it in? Also sometimes my speakers get crackly and act like they are blown out- but that goes away and doesn’t happen often enough for me to complain about.
All in all I love this computer. It’s a God send after being with my Dell!
August 11th, 2009 at 2:11 pm
Optiarc DVD RW AD-7563A ATA Device
it wont work at all, it makes some sounds like its trying to read it but then it just doing work, when I click on the device in my computer it ejects. I’ve deleted the filters, updated the driver, uninstalled it …nothing seems to work..
August 11th, 2009 at 11:54 pm
Are you still under warranty? If it is, you should consider using it. If you’re more into the DIY thing, try running safe mode and see if disk runs under safe mode. If it doesn’t work you can try running an OS install CD(like windows xp, ubuntu and etc). Of course don’t install. The point of this is just to get as close to the hardware as possible. Running an OS disk would run the disk from the BIOS (If it doesn’t go into the disk automatically while booting, press f12 when you see the gateway image thingy and choose CD). If it still doesn’t work, try going IN to the BIOS (f2 on the gateway screen I think) and see if the CD drive is enabled. I hope this helps. Good luck!
October 19th, 2009 at 11:11 am
Damn fine find. I’ve had this laptop for over a year with no probs. I’ve burned hundreds of music and video cd’s and dvd’s with no issues. It does seem to run a little warm, but has not effected performance. Wifi works great. Speakers are a little tinny, but I usually run Bose externals, so no biggy. I use wireless keyboard and mouse. About six months ago, I spilled my cocktail on the machine. I immediately powered it off, removed the battery and rear case covers, and let it dry over a space heater for a couple days. Powered right up! So…very durable. Am now pondering replacing the HD with a 500GB from Ebay.
December 1st, 2009 at 12:44 am
MY dad gave me this laptop a month ago 10-02=09 It was motherboad and harddrive was destroyed when I got it. Still under warrenty, sent it to gateway repair temple tx, They put a brand new motherboard in it and new 160 hardrive. Well, fatest surfing notebook Ive ever had, but want to sell it. still under warranty and new motherboard ha BEST COMPUTER ON THE MARKET selling for $430 inquies call (601) 850-1211 ask for mike clark
February 5th, 2010 at 11:44 pm
I have the gateway w350i notebook which is VERY close to the one here. From the pictures you would never know the difference between them unless you looked at the model# on the bottom. I enjoy this computer very much I have had very little problems with it, except for recently my Optiarc DVD RW AD-7563A ATA Drive has stopped recognizing ANY disk what so ever. It does show that it is working properly in my system properties & is enable in bios as well. I was given a new external hard drive for xmas so I copied my files on to it & did a system restore back to factory defaults & still alas NOTHING!!! please any help… I like my laptop very much but this is proving to be quite an annoyance!
February 5th, 2010 at 11:47 pm
AND I also wanted to mention my guess would be that the speakers are the same for both as well… THE SPEAKER SUCK, that would be my only real complaint of this system… they are quite loud but the sound quality is terrible!
February 6th, 2010 at 11:44 am
@Sweetievajj, unfortunately, you may be out of luck. The problem could be something scratched the lens and thus rendering the cd drive useless because if under a clean install and the right driver and it still doesn’t work, there might not be much left to do.
One more thing to try is to get a ubuntu or some kind of distro, and try to boot on it. See if its a windows problem or if it is a bios problem. If the computer can not boot from ubuntu (which boots before windows even turns on) than I’m sorry to say that the drive is probably dead.