Two 650MHz notebooks with SpeedStep compared
- — 10 February, 2000 11:47
The 650MHz Pentium III SpeedStep notebook supplied by Gateway for this review offers a strong set of features as well as blistering performance.
The system includes a massive 15.7in active TFT SXGA display, driven by an excellent ATI Rage Mobility-P 3D VGA adapter. Storage is provided by the 18GB removable Ultra ATA hard disk drive as well as the LS-120 Super disk drive. Multimedia is delivered via a 6x DVD-ROM drive combined with a 16-bit stereo full duplex PCI audio accelerator with hardware wavetable audio and built-in stereo speakers. Other features include a Dolby AC-3 Digital Audio output port and support for full-screen video capture via the composite video-in port and TV display capability via the composite video-out port. The Solo 9300xl Deluxe weighs just under 4kg, in a slim design only 42mm thick. Expandability and versatility are excellent, with the modular design of the option bays allowing you to mix and match a second battery, CD-Burner, CD drive, DVD drive, second hard disk drive, floppy disk drive or LS 120 drive. Battery power is provided by a 12 cell Li-Ion unit.
Performance in the PC WorldBench 98 suite of benchmarks was impressive: the notebook returned a score of 245, which is roughly a 10 per cent improvement over the Pentium III 500MHz Solo 9300 which appears in our Best Buys section. Price for this model is $7999 and Gateway includes a three-year parts and labour warranty.
Gateway Solo 9300xl Deluxe
Price: $7199
Distributor: Gateway
Phone: 1800 500 731
URL: www.gw2k.com.au
