Gateway M405XL (Pentium M 1.5 GHz, 256 MB RAM, 40 GB HDD)

Features of Gateway M405XL (Pentium M 1.5 GHz, 256 MB RAM, 40 GB HDD)

The Gateway M405XL has a nonremovable combination 8X DVD-ROM and 24X/10X/24X CD-RW drive on the right side. The left side holds headphone and microphone jacks, the two USB 2.0 ports, and a combo Type II/Type III PC Card slot--a bit of a novelty, as most laptops today support only Type II PC Cards. In addition to Ethernet, modem, and monitor ports, the back also features a parallel port for the old-fashioned printers that require it.

Slots on the M405XL can accommodate both Type II and Type III PC Cards.

The Zen simplicity of the Gateway M405XL's design continues on the Windows XP Home desktop, which contains only the My Computer and Recycle Bin icons and is free of the shortcuts for applications and services that clutter many a rival notebook's screen. Gateway does provide some extras under the Start menu, however. The collection of bundled Gateway utilities includes Ink Monitor to keep tabs on your inkjet's precious fluids. It also features PC-Doctor's eponymous application, which combines its own diagnostic programs with a streamlined interface to Windows' haphazard collection of utilities and control panels, allowing you to easily investigate and troubleshoot system components grouped under intuitive headings such as Audio, Video, and Storage.

We also liked the Gateway Driver and Application Recovery utility, which guides you through reinstalling software contained on the system's recovery CDs. It also pings Gateway's servers to look for updated drivers or new programs.

Aside from utilities, the M405XL has a basic software bundle consisting of Microsoft Works 7.0 and, for playing movies, InterVideo WinDVD 4.0. This entry-level suite does not include Microsoft Money or Microsoft Word, though it does provide a basic word processor. An extra $40 buys an upgrade to Works Suite 2004, which includes Microsoft Word, Money, Encarta, Streets & Trips, and Picture It Photo Premium. Upgrades to three versions of Microsoft Office are available for prices ranging from $130 to $330.

The integrated Intel 802.11b/g network card was easy to configure for a wireless network, including setting up WEP encryption, and it reliably established a connection every time we powered it up.

The standard 40GB hard drive is an adequate size for most users. But if you collect a lot of digital music or photos or both, consider upgrading to a 60GB drive for $90 or an 80GB model for $210. You can also access the RAM to stoke it as high as 1,024MB. (Our review unit came with 256MB.)