Gateway SX Series SX2800-01 Desktop PC Core 2 Quad Q8200(2.33GHz) 4GB DDR3 640GB HDD Capacity Intel GMA X4500 Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit

Pros: Tiny footprint; Screamin' fast quad-core Intel processor at under $500; 4GB RAM included, expandable to 8GB; Plenty of I/O connections front and back.

Cons: Tiny footprint presents obstacles to upgrades - though not insurmountable; The optical drive's eject button requires Medieval violence to activate - truly the stuff of legend; The 200w power supply is needlessly underpowered; The one PCI-E slot's space is needlessly cramped - I think an additional inch of height wouldn't have broeken anyone's bank; Compounding the previous is the fact that there is no cooling port in the top panel, something of which Gateway's not uniquely guilty in omitting, but something that's become a peeve of mine ("Heat rises" is the very first fact of basic physics that every kid learns in elementary school, so why...)

Other Thoughts: I got this just before the Oct '09 Windows 7 rollout - since the Win7 upgrade wiped out 100% of the stock bloatware, the total time from entering my login to fullly-booted ready status is less than 30 seconds. The thing has run flawlessly for me.

I found a company called KDM Power that builds a 400w power supply that not only fits the Gateway SX2800-01 box but is significantly smaller in physical size than the stock 220w supply. I got it installed - along with an upgrade graphics card - literally yesterday (05-18-12.)

The screw holes don't match, but I had to break out the Dremel to cut the sunroof anyway. The P/S model I used is KDM-MFX9400-80+; 400w opens up a number of great graphics card options, even with the size restrictions. I bought a Sapphire model 100326LP, a Radeon HD6670 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 - about $90 right here at NewEgg. I've been playing Tomb Raider Underworld, a game notorious for outrageous system requirements, without a hitch.

Mischief managed.

Pros: Have owned for over 1 year and haven't had any problems. I mainly use it for day-to-day web browsing and document creation.

Upgraded the video card without issue. If you decide to upgrade cards, make sure they are low-profile so they fit. Power supply is not as powerful as the graphics card recommended but I haven't had any issues. I played S.T.A.L.K.E.R. and Oblivion on mid-range settings fine.

Runs Vista/Windows 7 quickly. Programs open quickly.

Cons: Two trivial notes:
- CD-drive eject button requires ridiculous amounts of pressure to eject tray. On the plus side, you don't have to worry about someone accidentally bumping the eject button.
- If you want to insert a mini-CD, you will have to turn the computer on its side so the mini-CD doesn't fall out of the tray.

Other Thoughts: Small size of tower is nice.
Plenty of USB ports on both front (5) and back (4).

Pros: NEAR SILENT my psu doesnt make a noise at all onlything I hear is the fan pushing air, no vibration!

suprisingly good onboard gpu

lots of usb drives

Cons: gpu is VERY limited and may overheat since it's at the very top of the case.

No wireless card - I bought an usb wireless card and it works fine.

DVD drive is loud when in use

Other Thoughts: Moving it to a antec 300 case buying and going to buy a new psu and gpu.

Why a modem card?

I used to have a SPARKLE SFPX95GT512U2L GeForce 9500 gpu in it but the gpu did break after a year and I was a idiot and pulled the serial number off when working on it (can no longer rma :/ )

It has some flukes no doubt, but it's a near perfect computer and WILL recommend to friends.

Pros: Slim size, Core2Quad speed, Price

Cons: Noisy (CPU fan is quiet, but PowerSupply is noisy.)

Other Thoughts: Some people blame OnboardGraphic, but I disagree. As far as you don't play a game for college kids you won't notice it.

Pros: Excellent PC for the price. No problems in setting up.

Cons: Inbuilt graphics is a setback. But we can buy a low profile video card later on when you feel the need.

Pros: It only takes about 10 min to set up it is fast I can run Different Programs at the same time and thear still run faster then my old pc

Cons: I had problems making backup /recovery discs but I got in contact with Gatway and theay sent me a link that fixed this http://support.gateway.com/s/issues/ery4update.shtml# It took only a few seconds to fix then the disc burnd fine

Other Thoughts: I like that i can have this pc on my desk and off the floor

Pros: Quad core, 4 GB of RAM, with 2 RAM slots empty for upto 8 GB.
HDMI with audio.
Very quiet.
very well build

Cons: None for the price.
Would be nice to have a wireless NIC,
No blue-ray.

Don't expect too much for graphics - it's not a game machine.

Other Thoughts: I bought this machine and an Acer AX1300-U1802A over the weekend from a local reseller. The Acer was installed to my brother's house as a back-to-school gift for his kids, and I keep this machine. I like them both, very happy with them. I think the Acer AX1300 is a little better in graphics.

Pros: very small, very quiet, fast enough for some photoshop and office work I do

Cons: internal expansion possibilities? forget it, no space, low power (220W).

Other Thoughts: This one replaced my 5 year old Shuttle system. Since I have 2 Screens I put in a GIGABYTE GV-R435OC-512I (replaced its loud fan though)

Pros: Not a bad little package. Except for graphics, it gets a 5.9 on the Vista Experience rating. I'm not using it for any gaming or graphics intensive work, so it's fine. I have it connected via HDMI to a 32 inch Samsung LCD TV running Vista at 1920x1080. (Slackware 13 64bit just came out, so I may be changing the OS soon.)

Cons: None yet.

Pros: For the price it's definitely a solid desktop. Not high end, but certainly better than average.

Cons: Could use a better gpu, and theres really not alot of options if you want to add one later. The power supply is only 220watts.

Other Thoughts: If you're looking for an everyday computer thats very fast and quiet, you can't go wrong with this one.