It's slightly misleading to call the Gateway MD7801u ($800 street) the budget version of the MC7803u, as they're both priced under $1,000—inexpensive for media center laptops. Their frames are beautifully designed, their features are ample, and their performance is more than satisfactory. The differences are subtle: The MC7803u has more bells and whistles, like a bigger glass screen, an illuminated keyboard, and a 3D graphics card. The MD7801u justified leaving those things out with a $200 lower price, so either one is a good choice.
Gateway Inc
http://www.gateway.com
- Price as Tested: $800.00 Street
- Type: General Purpose, Media, Value
- Operating System: Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium
- Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo T6400
- Processor Speed: 2 GHz
- RAM: 4 GB
- Weight: 6.7 lb
- Screen Size: 15.6 inches
- Screen Size Type: widescreen
- Graphics Card: Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
- Storage Capacity: 500 GB
- Networking Options: 802.11n
- Primary Optical Drive: Dual-Layer DVD+/-RW
