Customer Reviews

Gateway DX4300-17 Desktop PC (Black)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Had to get a new computer to replace my 4-yr. old WinXP machine. Did a lot of research on many models and configurations, decided to go with this Gateway model. It seemed to be the optimal choice for features, given I didn't want to go much over this price but still wanted a new, powerful machine.

Read good reviews about the PhenomII-X4 CPU. As far as RAM, wasn't convinced it was worth the extra money (at this time) to go DD3, so went for more gig (6 G) & DD2. I liked the 1-TB HD, and the TV tuner also seemed OK (you're not paying much extra for it) as well as the number of USB ports and the wireless capability (some customers didn't realize you have to attach the two small screw-on antennas on the back that come in an envelope in the box, and may have to enable the wireless in the control panel/devices section).

After studying many models finally took the plunge and ordered this one.

Went with std. shipping, arrived in 6 days or so. It fired right up out of the box no problem, though had to reset the cable modem. This was a big increase in speed, power, and memory from what I had been used to (it was total "I give up" time with the old XP machine), so far have been very impressed.

LOVED the keyboard and mouse. Have been very impressed with how sweet this thing runs. To test its capability, ran three separate comprehensive virus scans with Comcast, Spybot, and Advanced Spyware Remover, all scanning at the same time. No problem running other programs, surfing the web as the three scans were running. No way could I do this on the old machine, it was [almost] like the scans weren't running at all. Nice.

Like the TV tuner also, it runs in Windows Media no problem (there is a male cable input on the back as well as HDMI). You can pick up a lot of free shows, Hulu, Netflix, etc.


Am not happy with the fact that Win7 does not run the old and very comfortable Outlook Express. You have to use Windows Mail, and so far I dislike Windows Mail a LOT. But as far as this machine itself, I give it high marks, though have not yet had to try Gateway's customer service.

Wish the DVD had a simple pushbutton eject on the front panel like the old machine. Instead, you have to push the thing on the side to get it to eject, sometimes repeatedly and fairly hard. Gateway should come up with something better than that, though not a dealbreaker at this price.

Also, doesn't have a firewire port, wish it did (maybe I overlooked it?). However, the speed of transfer for my USB Accomdata external drives is more than satisfactory, so can get along fine w/o firewire.


Am not into gaming, but do run Google Earth on a regular basis. Does a very decent job handling that, though
would say if you need super-intense gaming graphics like this all the time, maybe go to a more powerful CPU (and more $$$). For me, it does just fine.


The unit is super-quiet, don't even know it's on. Also very lightweight, compact, cool exterior as well.

I do tons of research, and here's what this unit will do. Might have 8 or more internet windows open to Wiki, Brit, search engines, news, etc., along with 4 MS-Word docs, Powerpoint, spreadsheet, Mail, Google Earth, and maybe running a scan and/or downloading a new program. No problem. If IE crashes, reopen it, "restore last browsing session", and in about 3 seconds--presto--all 8+ IE windows re-open quickly. (I think it will take the reincarnation of Einstein to finally fix the IE crash syndrome once and for all. Until then, get a machine that is relatively faster than the old one)

Also comes with HDMI, you might have to play around with it to get the connection from the machine to your bigscreen via HDMI 1.4 cable to work properly (wireless HDMI is still pretty exp., and not convinced those units work well thru walls, only line of sight). To answer the question some have asked, yes, the HDMI carries sound as well as video. But you have to (a) click the volume icon/"mixer" and disable the Realtek Hi-Def speakers for your computer (but leave the Realtek Digital audio output enabled), and make sure HDMI sound is enabled (sound icon in the tray, "mixer", etc.), and use the "control panel"/vid-devices to "enable duplicate display". Shouldn't have to re-boot to do the audio/vid reconfig, takes less than a minute to do this. Be sure to set your video program on your computer (wMedia, etc) to "fullscreen" so it comes across fullscreen on the TV.

When you're done watching TV, re-enable Realtek Hi-Def speakers, and can leave HDMI audio enabled also (since the Hi-Def speakers are the default audio setting) to resume sound to your computer, and reset the video "duplicate" to "extend". Though this configure/reconfigure process only takes a minute or less, it took me a few hours to figure that out so am including FYI. Also, if you have both WinMedia and (say) Itunes pulled up, you might have to close one or the other or else Win7 might shut off the sound unless you reconfigure. Win7 tends to want to cut one, or the other, off. Thus, if you have been playing Itunes, and stop the playback, and then pull up WinMedia, Win7 senses a conflict with the two programs. Just close Itunes down, should be no problem. Again, FYI.

Overall, great unit for the price. This is the eighth computer I have owned over more than 25 years, and each has been a significant improvement over the previous one. This unit is no exception.

I've had this computer about 2 weeks and I am VERY happy with my purchase. Super fast, lot's of storage capacity, plenty of room for expansion. Thought I was going to have to buy a dedicated video card to play FO3 but it plays the game seemlessly. Beautiful graphics and my machine does not lock while playing. I do lots of other stuff on it and it does everything quickly. Very quiet too. I have ahd only one problem witht the machine. The DVD bay door was hanging off when I received it. It took awhile (mostly because I'm a clumsy oaf) but I got it back on and have had no problems since. I am VERY happy with this purchase.

Had this for a little over a week.. this computer is fast!
I purchased it to record podcasts and general use..
a great machine for the money...
needs a more powerful Video card, but it is cheaper to buy one than
get one at purchase..
My laptop is a gateway as well, and I love it.

The computer is excellent except for a few problems with the USB ports. When I plug in my printer into a USB port, I get a message that it would run faster if it were plugged into a 2.0 port. I called tech support, and their response was to restore the computer back to factory default and it would fix the problem. I asked them if there are any of the 8 ports that are not 2.0 and I got a fairly long answer which I could not understand. They then repeated to do a complete restore so I did - it did not change anything but since every thing worked okay other than the printer, I let it go for awhile. I kept getting the messages about USB 1.1 and that my equipment would operate better on 2.0, then I purchased a usb external drive which worked well for a few days then I got a message that Windows 7 could not load drivers for this device and it became useless. I then took the drive and plugged it into my old computer where it worked fine. I called tech support back and they had me take my usb mouse and plug it into all of the available usb ports and since it worked, their response was that this proved that there were no hardware problems. I know that usb mice are not as fussy about usb 1.1 or 2.0 as some other devices, so I asked them how this proved that my external hard drive was faulty. The answer to that was to restore the system to it factory defaults again (it seems that is the only thing they know). I have done this so many times now that when I try to reinstall Microsoft Office, and then activate it, I cannot since I have activated it too may times already. I am still waiting to see how the latest restore works -- already I have messages that I should be using 2.0 instead of 1.1.

I'm a tech guy and I have built several computers on my own without having any issues like I have had with this Gateway. I did not buy it from amazon, but I can tell you not to buy it anywhere. The model worked well with windows Vista but after being upgraded to Windows 7 which came with the purchase the PC started acting up. I clean installed the OS several times and got the blue screen of death several times afterward. Now the computer won't even start up properly and will bluescreen immediately if it does. It is extremely underpowered for it's specifications and the power supply was one of the first items I had to replace. Now it's probably going to be a videocard replacement or an entire motherboard.

This computer is an absolute piece of junk which ended up breaking just a few days after the warranty was up. Congratulations to gateway for producing such a piece of utter trash that breaks right after the warranty runs out, how efficient of them. So I've been trying to resolve the issues myself to some avail but usually another hardware failure occurs. I have a feeling that some of the problems have to do with the new Microsoft patches being released but I've rolled back constantly and still receive failure. I guess I'll build my own again and support it myself since I've done it with this at least I know if I build it myself the quality will be there.

Do NOT buy this PC

Pros: This PC is very quiet. Compared to the one it will replace is like running an electric car next to a jet engine. It is fast and, with the exception of a few software programs, runs what I want it to run. The price is right, too, especially if you're not particular whether you own an Intel or AMD fast chip.
Cons: Two things bothered me. First, the HDMI port is in DVI configuration, which meant having to buy new cable. Second, the PC comes equipped with a TV (only) tuner. The entertainment center has an option to play FM radio, but there is no FM card installed. Trying to find an FM card without a TV tuner has been an impossibility and Gateway tech support has no idea what may happen (conflicts, errors) if I try to install a TV/FM tuner card to use the FM feature. Besides, buying another new TV tuner when one is already installed seems dumb and a waste of money.

I bought this machine and it worked fine but recently the machine would go to sleep mode and never wake up. The power button or keyboard would not wake up the PC. The only way to restart the machine was to unplug it and plug it back in. After fighting with the computer for weeks, I called Gateway, they tell me warranty just expires. I wonder if Gateway really meant for a computer to stop working shortly after the warranty expires on purpose or just a coincidence? I'll never buy a Gateway PC again.