Features & Specifications
The Gateway P-7808u FX Edition has an Intel Core 2 Quad Q9000 CPU at 2GHz. The system has 4GB of RAM and runs Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit. Storage for the system is to a 500GB 5,400 RPM HDD. Graphics are via NVIDIA GeForce 9800M GTS with 1GB of GDDR3. Power for the machine comes from a 9-cell lithium-ion battery. Other features of the machine include Bluetooth, a 17-inch 1440 x 900 resolution display, and an express card slot. The machine also has integrated Wi-Fi and a modem along with a 1.3MP webcam.

Benchmarks
Now we will get into the benchmarks for the Gateway P-7808u FX Edition notebook. For this review, I will be using 3DMark06 and PCMark Vantage to get an idea of how well the Gateway P-7808u FX Edition performs.

PCMark Vantage
PCMark Vantage is an application that simulates a variety of different workloads to give an overall picture of how a computer performs overall. The Gateway P-7808u FX Edition did very well, which is to be expected considering the hardware inside the machine. The scores were as follows:

• PCMark Score: 4003
• Memories Score: 3564
• TV and Movies Score: 3526
• Gaming Score: 4414
• Music Score: 3466
• Communications Score: 3969
• Productivity Score: 4157
• HDD Score: 3197

3DMark06
The next benchmark is 3DMark06. This application tests the Gateway P-7808u FX Edition for its gaming prowess by using a series of graphics tests along with testes for the CPU. The Gateway P-7808u FX Edition scored as follows at a resolution of 1280 x 768 with all settings at default:

• 3DMark Score: 10038
• SM2 Score: 4328
• HDR/SM3 Score: 4320
• CPU Score: 2858

In Use
After the benchmarks were complete I moved on to using the notebook for movies and general computing tasks to see how well it would work in the real world of daily use. The first thing I can say is that the machine is heavy. You won’t want to carry this thing around with you for an extended period. However, despite the weight of the machine and all the power crammed inside the slick chassis, you could go mobile with the Gateway P-7808u FX Edition for a good bit of time.

In real world usage, the battery for the Gateway P-7808u FX Edition lasted about 3 hours and 20 minutes. I honestly didn’t expect that, powerful gaming machines usually have very short battery life. The large size of the Gateway P-7808u FX Edition means that it also has a large keyboard, which is a good thing for a notebook. The keys are sized the same as you will find on your average desktop keyboard and the system has a full numeric keypad as well. A bevy of media control keys are arranged around the keyboard. Typing feel is good and the keys offer a nice click when pressed.

The screen of the Gateway P-7808u FX Edition isn’t as lush as a 1920 x 1200 resolution screen, but the 1440 x 900 display used on the Gateway P-7808u FX Edition is one of the reasons the machine is priced so reasonably. The screen offers good color reproduction and has no smearing or tearing when playing video games.

Overall, the Gateway P-7808u FX Edition is a fantastic gaming and multimedia notebook that is a bargain at the $1,799 asking price when compared to similar gaming machines form Alienware or other boutique computer makers. The Gateway P-7808u FX Edition offers lots of bang for your buck.