Specs and Features
The Gateway MD7826u uses an Intel Core 2 Duo P8400 CPU running at 2.26GHz with a 1066MHz FSB. Storage for the machine is to a 320GB 5400 RPM HDD and the machine has 4GB of RAM. To allow the machine to see all 4GB of RAM it uses Vista Home Premium 64-bit. Other features include a 6-cell lithium ion battery, 802.11n Wi-Fi, and ATI Radeon HD 3650 graphics. My test machine is an early sample that is maroon in color, but the final product is only available in black.

PCMark Vantage
To get an idea of the performance the Gateway MD7826u brings to the table I tested the machine with PCMark Vantage. The benchmark simulates different types of workloads form productivity, to movie watching and gaming. The Gateway MD7826u scored 3215 PCMarks, which is a decent score.

MobileMark 2007
The other synthetic benchmark that I ran on the machine was MobileMark 2007. Mobile Mark tests the battery life of the notebook by running a looping video repeatedly in the DVD test until the computer runs out of power. The total runtime for the Gateway MD7826u was 154 minutes. That is pretty good considering that the machine offers discrete graphics and a dual-core processor.

Video Encoding
To get an idea of the real world performance of the notebook I used it to encode an HD video into a DVD quality video suitable for downloading from the Internet. I used Windows Media Encoder 9 to take a 1080p video and encode it to DVD quality video at 2Mbps CBR with CD quality CBR audio. It took the Gateway MD7826u four minutes and 23 seconds to perform the encoding.

In Use
After the dust settled, from the benchmarks it was time to see how the computer worked for general use. The machine has a nice 15.6-inch display that does a great job reproducing colors. The display has nice contrast and decent black levels making it work well for movie watching. The biggest drawback to the screen is that it has a high-gloss coating that has some serious issues with glare. In any bright room with lights or windows, you will have glare issues. This isn't a problem specific to the Gateway MD7826u, but something that you must contend with on any glossy screen notebook.

The keyboard used on the Gateway MD7826u has well spaced, but odd looking keys. The keys are beveled on the edges. The keyboard has decent tactile feel and offers audible feedback with a slight click when keys are pressed. The track pad was also a bit odd with large beveled edges that place the buttons further below the track pad area than you expect. I ended up hitting the beveled edge frequently when trying to hit the mouse buttons.

The Gateway MD7826u is an attractive machine, and while the test unit I received is maroon and the retail units are only available in black, the paint quality is very good. Around the keyboard on the right side are touch sensitive multimedia keys that allow you to control the volume, mute and forward/rewind/pause functions for movies. Under the left corner of the keyboard are the icons for hard drive usage and battery power.

One of the best features of the Gateway MD7826u is that it sells for $999, and you can get it online from Newegg for $899. The machine offers lots of performance and usability at that price and will be a great machine for a user who wants something that can play movies and games when needed.