Gateway 7405GX: The new Emachine 6805 - Page 6

I came across the 7405GX in BB yesterday while shopping for a new laptop. I had no idea they were brand new and so difficult to get ahold of (really great value). I have so far been to three BB stores with the first two being sold out and the third receiving shipment tonight. So we shall see if tomorrow holds more luck in my hunt or if I have to break down and order one. My main interest is exploring the potential of the 64-bit processor as far as what applications are available, how fast they work, and how difficult it will be to write programs that take advantage of the 64-bit chip. What have you guys heard or seen as far as sales rates and/or speed differences with the 64-bit chip?

Also like Longfury, I'm curious to hear how long the battery life tends to be if anyone knows. If not, I'll hopefully be back to tell you myself soon.

On Edit: that is a great tip about extending service plans.

I bought me one today for my birthday!! wohooo!! I also bought a 512 ram chip to bump it to 768 but I didn't get the extended service... I thought $250 was a bit too much. Do I really have a year to do it? They told me I had 14 days to buy it.

Was just joshing around a little. Was feeling light on my toes

So should I install the 64bit version of XP Pro on this? Or should I stick to the normal XP Home/Pro?

Don't use XP 64 for your primary OS. It is still Beta. From my latest research into it, the latest build (not public, private beta testers only) is supposed to have the wireless drivers built into it finally. We shall see.

Is there another one coming, based on the 11?

The new laptop interests me, looks to have more bang for buck than dell, but...

is there another one coming soon based on the 11 or is that it as far as the rewrapped emachines goes?

Anyone heard any rumours?

I can wait till the xmas market if need be.

Thanks in advance and keep it up, lots of great information here

cheers!

I don't see why they would market the new machine under both the Gateway and eMachines names. My guess is that this is the m68xx line's replacement. Mechanically, it is basically an m6809 with a different LCD and faster DVD burner (and probably different modem). Or you can look at it as an m6811 with a slower processor, faster DVD burner, and different LCD.

Battery life and good buy

Well, playing Mp3's from the HDD while on battery using internal speakers, I got about an hour and a half with the wireless turned off. At that point I was down to about 47% battery so I closed the lid to dim the screen and got another 2 hours out of it before the alarm went off at 10%. That was set at "home office/always plugged in" settings...I dont go mobile much so I keep it set to that. Setting to max battery saving wouldnt have worked as it was playing off the HD AND was unattended in the back seat of my car on a road trip LOL (it turns the HD off in 3 MINUTES on that default setting!).
I also saw the 7405GX at BB today listed at $1399 minus -150 in mail-in rebates making it (maybe ) 1249 US plus tax. Since I got my M6805 for $999..and it has the Gateway start-up LOL...I am still happy with it. The "UltraBrite" screen just seems glossier to me..not sure if it really makes all that much difference. It may actually hurt side-viewing, which I have noticed is pretty wide-angle on these laptops...
Now OT a little...I just installed a HP Proliant DL320 1U rack server today for a contract. With a P4 at 3.06 Ghz with 128 MB DDR and a 80GB 7200 rpm IDE HD for $1299, I BET the M68xx series is FASTER and easier to carry! LOL

More stuff should appear on Black Friday I do know that...

Glad I asked about XP 64-bit, as I was going to install it tonight.

One more question: where do I find video drivers? Since it isn't on the Gateway site & you can't get them from ATi, what are the options? And any good sources for info on overclocking the video card?

Thanks-

Has anyone who bought the new 7405 had any issues with the lid and lcd? I messed with one in the store and it seemed flimsy. Any pressure on the top would distort the lcd. I've thought of getting one, but that worries me. I don't plan to beat up my machine, but I wonder how little it would take to damage the lcd, which would be hard to get covered under warranties.

Funny you should mention that, when I bought mine last night the demo was right beside an m6811, I scrutinized the hinge situation, and also tested opening and closing stiffness. I actually couldn't really tell much difference at all, although I can attest to the fact that these hinges are really stiff. The display doesn't move at all.

Yeah, that seemed okay to me. I'm not so concerned with the hinges as I am with the actual plastic panel that is the top of the lid, forming the backing for the LCD. It just seemed like it would take very little pressure on it to do damage to the actual LCD. Like if I put the same pressure on both sides while I opened it, it might warp and crack or something.

I'll keep an eye on the forums to see what people say about theirs. And I'll see what comes out on black Friday. I'm not in a hurry, but that machine matches well with my wants/price.

mine already has two dead pixels (or two blue dots...) at the bottom of the screen! I've only had it two days and barely used it a couple hours... Just installed extra ram and partitioned the hd and installed winxp pro. Now I have to return it to factory spec to return it!

Got my 7405GX and so far I am happy. Would you guys advise the BB warranty? They continue to say I need to pick it up within 14 days of buying the laptop. They also say they will replace if I get ANY dead pixels. I build my own desktops, so I never have to deal with extended warranties. Any advice?

Yes, definitely get it. I work at Best Buy, but I am not in any way biased into forcing people to buy a service plan for no reason. A notebook is an all-in-one unit. I build desktops too, but take into consideration that to repair a notebook would cost you, the end-user, a fortune (to put it simply). An LCD screen costs $400 alone to replace. So at $250, the service plan already has you covered for the LCD screen and then some. I would definitely suggest it. And yes, if you have any problems with the LCD screen, Best Buy will cover it for you. I don't really advise the service plan on a desktop if you're a professional user and can handle building your own units. Desktops are easy to repair and replace parts. Notebooks are not.

Or check if Gateway offers an extended. With Millions of transistors and scads of small moving parts a laptop is a good gamble on extended warranty. I opted for the eMachine extended because it cost a lot less than BB's, and covers everything but the battery.

I called Gateway about getting an extended warranty through them. They said that since it's a store-only promotional item, they don't offer it. You can only get it for things they offer online.

That's what Joe-support on Sunday afternoon told me, anyway.

Yeah, I noticed that, too. I also just noticed that the link to the 150.00 MIR is no longer on the BB website...


Can someone confirm this possible 'store-dependent,' "post 14/30 day BB PSP option"?


Does that mean possibly more AMD-64, Gateway-branded notebooks BEFORE the holidays??
(envisioning a Gateway 6811 clone ...or possibly an AMD 3700+ CPU!!!)

That would be too sweet, since I cannot scrounge $$$$ fast enuf
to get in on any of this week's BB rebate action.

Anyone have any idea what speed hard drive the 7405GX is shipping with?


Ultimatetone

4200 RPM Fujitsu. Same drive as m6811