Customer Reviews

Gateway 610XL Media Center PC (3.0GHz Pentium 4, 512MB RAM, 200GB Hard Drive, DVD Burner)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I've had the same problems as everyone else. My computer dies and won't reboot, as a result of a bad power supply. I, also, have talked to everyone in India working for Gateway about this issue with no resolution except "sending my computer to Gateway to be fixed" for approx. $400 (give or take), and there's no telling how long it would take to even get fixed. Anyway, I've talked to Gateway, Gateway's supplier of power supplies (Skyline Engineering), and even the original manufacturer of the power supply (Delta Electronics, Inc.). I have successfully taken apart my Gateway media center and extracted the power supply, and once they begin manufacturing the newly revised power supply, I will purchase it and re-install it myself. This will easily save me atleast $300. If you find yourself in this same situation, please e-mail me so that I can provide you with the detailed description of how to do this, along with ample pictures so that you don't have to go through what I did. DO NOT SEND YOUR COMPUTER TO GATEWAY, AND GIVE THEM YOUR MONEY!!! It's not hard to get to the power supply, especially after you read my directions. Gateway is not owning up to their mistakes on this design, and I'm considering pursuing a class-action suit as a result. Their ethics are unacceptable, by charging such a horrendous amount for what probably takes them about 10 minutes to do, maybe less. Don't be a sucker! E-mail me and let me help you out! No catch. stepwebb50@hotmail.com

I bought this a couple of months ago, and at first, got a lemon. It crashed continuously, and when I was on the phone with the tech guy "Larry" (who was obviously in India), it crashed when scanning the disk for errors. And the tech guy offered extremely simple advice that most people with any kind of computer experience would've tried before calling.

However, my replacement has been relatively pain-free. The only problem was that it crashed when I was trying to install the software for Verizon DSL service. You may run into problems there as Verizon said it was a problem with the system registry of the PC (I did manage a way to get around the problem and am happily using DSL today).

A primary reason for buying this computer was for its DVD-burning capability, and for the possibility of capturing VHS tapes onto the computer, and creating DVDs out of them. I was under the impression that I would be able to plug my VCR directly into the computer and capture the video into the computer and create DVDs. You can't do that however. You can plug the VCR into the 610XL, and watch the video in the media center under the gaming device section, but why anybody with a TV would do that is beyond me, as the video shows in a small 3X4" window. Converting VHS to DVD requires a capture device (I suggest the Canopus ADVC-100), and some editing software (ULead Video Studio 7.0 SE and DVD Movie Factory 2.0 have done the job for me). That means an extra $400.

The documentation/instruction booklet is not that great. It spends an inordinate amount of time discussing the TIVO-like qualities of this computer, which unfortunately at this time I'm not using. But I can't imagine a better, more compact PC for my purposes (Video capturing/editing, DVD burning) than this machine.

I purchased this pc, even though some of the reviews have been less than stellar. Going with the Gateway name along with some very glowing reviews I decided to take the plunge and I can say that it has lived up to my expectations so far. And for the TV quality, I can say from experience, that in general TV quality over cable to LCD displays isn't that good unless an HDTV tuner is used. I have had three lcd TVs now, and I can say the 610xl is on par or better than all of them. No regrets so far!

This is a great PC. It sports 200 Gigs of hard drive space which once you start recording shows, is not excessive at all. It also has a TV tuner and PVR, which enables you to record shows, but the quality isn't as good as a standalone TV, even when you set it to best. Another thing is that even though is has a 7200 rpm hard drive, 1/2 GB of RAM, and a 3 gHz processer, the computer gets slowed down after on the computer for hours and if stuff is being downloaded or tv is being recorded, the computer easily slows down. The burning software is good for Audio and Data CDs but not for Video CDs and DVDs. You can't create interactive menus and often times, the disc can get messed up for whatever reason. All in all, this is one of the best PC for a cramped space with the convienience of laptops and the power, RAM, and hard drive of a desktop, this is a great PC if you have limited space or you're short on cash. For $2,000, it's not cheap, but considered its specs, it's pretty cheap compared to other PCs that have that power, hard drive, and features.

I bought this unit probably about six months ago. At first, I must admit I was nervous about the purchase. At $2,000, it wasn't cheap and being a poor worker drone, it was a big decision to go with Gateway--a company on the verge of becoming bankrupt with a bad reputation. Gateway bought E-machines and the stock dived and the numerous reviews of the company as a whole stuck at a variety of online stores. But, this was before I bought the beautiful, sleek 610XL.

I was captivated by its compact design at first sight. And all the capabilities it had..wow! It was only after I bought it that I started to worry.

Turns out, I worried needlessly. Yeah, since I bought the PC, Gateway closed all its brick-and-mortar stores which is kind of worrying since the 3 yr warranty that comes with it might be moot if the whole company goes under. But, the customer service I have had with it since is encouraging. My brother loaded some software on it that killed it and it wouldn't turn on but the guy I called was wonderful. They shipped me the box to ship it back in two days and I got the computer back fixed and in tip top shape within a week. Can't beat that.

All in all, a good buy..if only I had waited to buy it =( It's now priced at 1,699 at Gateway I believe.

Good:

+ Awesome screen - it's like a little TV
+ Powerful PC - works great with Cable internet
+ Compact, sleek, space-saving design
+ Good warranty

Bad

- Awful manual that does not even begin to help you explore what this PC can do
- Awful customer support on software questions --like figuring out how to use the capablities of the PC such as recording VHS to DVD which it can do but I haven't figured out how)
- Wireless keyboard and mouse's range is limited -- more like 2 feet rather than the advertised 6 feet
- CD and DVD writer inexplicably fails from time to time wasting CD or DVD discs

This computer is just amazing. I got it about a week ago and I love how I can watch TV and use the TiVo like features that it offers. It's so simple and convenient because there's 1 cord!!!! (Unless if you add the cable TV cord too). The specs on it are great for gaming, although if you are a hardcore gamer it might be a turnoff because upgrading it requires you to send it in, although with 128 megs of video and the other great specs you won't need another computer for a long time. The wide screen I'm adjusting to for gaming because it stretches out everything just a bit although it's not too noticeable. It's great for watching DVDs though. This computer basically can serve as everything: as radio, cd player, dvd player, and gaming system. I bought a Logitech Mx900 because the supplied mouse is ok but I need the extra features of the Logitech, although the standard keyboard is great.

Gateway helped me in replacing power supply on my ALL in ONE 610 Computer at no cost. Gateway Inc. once again has stepped up to the plate. WOW. What good PR. Thanks, Gateway!

P.S. I bought my 610 four years ago.

Ray,
in Colorado

It sounded really cool to have all-in-one computer especially to someone who has a little living space. However, do not buy this.
It won't take much of your living space but it will take a lot of headahes and fighting with gateway customer service. and they are not nice.
My first problem was the screen would start blink.(screen to completely black and to screen thing) It didn't shut off or anything but it got worse and worse everyday that I couldn't even see anything.
I sent it in to Gateway and they charged somewhat $250. ridiculous amount.
About 10months later? it started to blink and the problem repeated.
This computer had seaten in my closet for about 1yr but I saw some kind of solution online saying about power supply.
I bought it and it worked for about 3 days. But now, this would have some kind of scary blue screen show up then completely shuts off and repeat it.
This problem was even worse than before.
I believe that Gateway knows the problem but wouldn't take the responsibility. it sux.

I bought this system about four months ago and I agree with a lot of the reviews I've read, both with the positive and the negative. If you're looking for a compact system that does a lot this is it, but keep that in mind in practical terms as well. This is a small unit but also very powerfull, and it requires a lot of "juice." I would advise anyone who'll be using it often to buy a UPS (power supply) if they don't have one already. For $50-$100 they can be life-savers, especially if you're like me and have the AC going a lot. It's also rather fragile because of how compact it is, so if you have young kids be carefull, especially with the DVD drive. The last drawback is upgrading, people should know that the 610 is not user upgradeable, or at least not for the average home user. You'll have to send it into Gateway to add more memory.

As others have said though, the size and the picture can't be beat. There's one wire to worry about, and that's a major victory in itself. I wish Gateway would be more lenient as far as allowing customers to configure their own systems (see the upgrade issue) like Dell and HP are, but neither of them offer anything comparable to the 610 yet. I really wish this type of system was around when I was in College, it's a bit expensive, but it's the dream system for any dorm.

All I can say is I love It!
I'd give it 10 stars if I could.