RSSIs Gateway's 11.6-inch netbook not a netbook?
By Tim Conneally | Published June 23, 2009, 1:17 PM
The average size of those little PCs that we love so much has been slowly increasing to include full-sized keyboards, yet they retain their usual slim profile and low power demand. These larger devices are beginning to fall somewhere between the category of Netbook and Notebook.
Today, Gateway launched its first "full keyboard netbook": the 11.6" LT3100 series, one of these in-between devices.
Now that Gateway is owned by Taiwanese PC maker Acer, one has to wonder what makes this product different from, say, the Acer Aspire One 11.6" which was announced just two months ago.
Well, Acer intends to market the products differently, as it revealed in its subsidiary branding strategy last year. The company recently said that "Gateway [has] found more affinity with a user group that looks for a reliable brand that can offer simple, easy-to-use devices, with which they can identify and acknowledge their own personality. Trends and Lifestyles are the reference segments."
But design- and price-wise, there are practically no differences between Acer's 11.6" Aspire One and the new Gateway product. In terms of internals and OS, though, they're quite different. So different, in fact, that while Gateway calls the LT3100 a netbook, it really shouldn't be considered such a device...and if you want to know the reasons, you might have to ask AMD.
![Acer Aspire One 11.6"](http://images.betanews.com/media/3479.jpg "Acer Aspire One 11.6"")
| Gateway LT3100 | Acer Aspire One 11.6" | |
| Processor | AMD Athlon 64 L110 single-core 1.2 GHz, 800 MHz memory bus, 512 KB L2 cache | Intel Atom Z520 single-core 1.22 GHz, 490 MHz FSB, 512 KB L2 cache |
| RAM | 2048 MB DDR2 SDRAM | 1024 MB DDR2 SDRAM (upgradeable to 2 GB) |
| Graphics | Integrated ATI Radeon X1270 | Integrated Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950 |
| Storage | 250 GB, 5400rpm SATA HDD | 160 GB, 5400rpm SATA HDD |
| Screen | 11.6" WXGA backlit LED (1364 x 768) | 11.6" WXGA backlit LED (1364 x 768) |
| Wireless | 802.11b/g | 802.11b/g, Bluetooth, optional 3G wireless |
| Profile | 11.26" x 7.99" x 1.03" | 11.6" x 7.79" x 1" |
Weight
| 3.14 lbs |
2.75 lbs |
|
| OS | Windows Vista SP1 | Windows XP SP3 |
| Features | multi-card reader, Webcam, multi-touch touchpad, 3 USB 2.0 slots | multi-card reader, Webcam, multi-touch touchpad, 3 USB 2.0 slots |
| Chassis Colors | Black, Red | Black, Red, Blue, White |
| Cost | $399.99 | $379.99 |
Interestingly, Gateway went with the single core Athlon 64 instead of the faster Athlon Neo which is designed specifically for "ultraportables." AMD was yet another of the many companies that did not want to touch the "netbook" form factor, so it premiered the Athlon Neo in the HP Pavilion DV2, a slightly heavier $600 non-netbook notebook which we first took a look at during CES this year.
Inclusion of a single-core Athlon 64 L110 chip in Gateway's new portable does come as a surprise, and it has certainly caught a number of reviewers off guard. This "not quite a netbook" is equipped with a marginally slower processor paired with the ATI Radeon graphics chip, a unit more suited for gaming graphics than the Intel IGP found in the Acer Aspire One 11.6" and many other true netbooks. But one of the most glaring indicators is that this system is equipped with Vista, the OS not typically ascribed to effective netbooking.
so when is a netbook not a netbook?
when it is a krapbook.
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|Resolution on both is 1366x768, the same as most 720p televisions and those laptop computers with 15.6 inch displays.
I thought the resolution bad in those bigger machines but with an 11.6 inch display, the machine is so much more portable. Still, a lot of stores don't advertise resolution and people are still stuck in the "bigger is better" mentality.
Call them what you will but this size seems a nice compromise and the specifications on the Gateway machine a bit better than the Acer machine.
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|The claimed battery life appears to be better for the 1.2 GHz Athlon 64 rather than the Neo processor. Of course, I would need to see some actual benchmarks.
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|Error to note under the gateway specs: 2048 MB DDR2 SDRAM (upgradeable to 2 GB)
Should that last part say it's upgradeable to something higher than 2 GB? (since the darn thing comes with 2 already!).
I'm surprise by the inclusion of Vista, instead of XP or a Linux variant. Guess we'll see how it runs once it's out in the wild.
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|lol, good eye, that was an accidental duplication.
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|Of course Acer had to include the crappy Z520.. No one wants to use the infintely better z530 in their netbook, its rare. If they use the z line at all. My opinion, if your going to use the z520 then why not just put the same old N270 or the new N280..
Anyway, dracodos.. Alot of people bag on Vista for netbooks but my netbook with a N270 Atom and 2GB ram can run Vista just fine. Now them using the 520 might make a difference, it being a slower processor and all.
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|I own both the Acer and Gateway.. The Gateway comes with a 6 cell battery, and does weigh a bit more than the Acer, plus it also last longer than the Acer. The setup was a lot faster on Vista than the XP version. Gateway seems faster, but has a lot less bloat ware to it. Acer had McAfee but the Gateway does not.
Both run Microsoft Office just ducky, and also accept my laser printer, but had to look up drivers for the Acer to work. The gateway was plug and play for my HP 3050..
While they may seem similar, I don't feel that they are anywhere close in comparison. I will keep the Gateway, andI think I will return the Acer to Costco...
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