Posted 09/17/09 at 12:00:08 PM by Paul Lilly

It seems as though Intel dominates every sector of the PC market, from netbooks and nettops (Atom processor) on up to ultra high-end setups (Core i7 975). But one area in which AMD seems to have the edge is in 20-inch and above all-in-one PCs.

Citing un-named sources at PC vendors, DigiTimes says vendors are shying away from Intel's Atom platform for larger all-in-one desktops due to the chips under performing graphics. And while some will end up adopting Intel's regular platform for 20-inch and larger all-in-ones, most are expected to turn to AMD, who can offer a better price-to-performance ratio.

To some extent, this is already happening. Acer's Gateway ZX2301 with an 18.5-inch display is built around AMD's Athlon 2650e processor, BenQ's nScreen i91 and i221 with 18.5-inch and 21.5-inch displays utilize the chip maker's Sempron U210 CPU, MSI's AE2010 with a 20-inch screen is powered by the Athlon 2650e, and HP's TouchSmart IQ780tw with 19-inch display comes equipped with a Turion 64 X2 TL-58 CPU.

Should all-in-ones become a bit more prominent, it will be interesting to see how Intel responds.

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Posted 06/05/09 at 10:14:10 AM by Paul Lilly

Maingear this week announced the Pulse gaming PC, the first Ion-based rig to sport upgradeable Nvidia graphics. The company also claims its Pulse is the "world's greenest gaming PC."

Built around Nvidia's Ion platform, the Pulse comes standard with an Intel 65W Core 2 Duo or Core 2 Quad processor, integrated GeForce 9300 graphics upgradeable to a discrete 9800 GT ECO card which the company says consumes 40 percent less power than a standard 9800 GT, up to 8GB of DDR2-800 memory, up to a 500GB hard drive or 160GB SSD, and an 80+ certified 300W power supply.

"The Maingear Puls with Nvidia graphics perfect for anyone who wants a small, energy efficient, and stylish PC," Maingear stated in a press release. "With its Nvidia Ion-based motherboard, the Pulse delivers the best graphics solution available for low-power, small form factor designs.

The Pulse is available now starting at $800.

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Posted 11/17/08 at 01:30:31 PM by Paul Lilly

Well that didn't take long. With Intel's Core i7's launch now official, OEM system builders are falling in line with new systems using the new processors. Such is the case with Gateway, who today announced two new FX Series PCs, the FX6800-01e and the FX6800-05.

Taking up the value end, the FX6800-01e comes equipped with Intel's Core i7-920 processor (2.66GHz quad-core), which Gateway ensures will "provide gamers with the critical horsepower to pwn even the most worthy opponents." And helping to "pwn" Photoshop and other memory intensive programs, the FX6800-01e comes with 3GB of DDR3-1066 memory. Gaming duties are tackled with a Radeon HD 4850 videocard, and you get 700GB of hard drive space to store those games. A 500W power supply, 18X DVD burner, onboard audio, 15-in-1 media card reader, ten USB 2.0 ports, four 1394a ports, two eSATA ports, and and HDMI connector (via DVI-HDMI dongle) round out the feature-set.

Settling in at the higher end, the FX6800-05 beefs up processing chores with Intel's Core i7-940 processor (2.93GHz quad-core) and doubles up the RAM to 6GB. And speaking of double, ATI's dual-GPU Radeon 4870 X2 finds its way into the FX6800-05. Storage chores are tag-teamed with an Intel High Performance 80GB SSD and a 1TB hard drive. Gateway also doubles up on the power supply, trading in the value model's 500W for a beefier 1000W.

The FX6800-01e and FX6800-5 are available now from Best Buy for $1250 and $3000 respectively.

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Posted 07/26/08 at 01:51:59 AM by Paul Lilly

Call it an end of an era or a move that was long overdue, but no matter how you label it, Gateway will soon stop selling PCs through its website. Instead, the company will transition to a 100 percent indirect sales model focusing exclusively on brick and mortar stores, e-tailers, and channel partners.

Gateway had struggled in previous years to compete with Dell and other OEMs, but their fortunes looked to change after Acer acquired the company last year for $710 million. The acquisition turned Acer into the world's third-largest PC vendor overnight, while also giving both companies a boost in the North American market.

In a press release, Gateway claims the change in its business model will "deliver significant cost savings, ultimately resulting in an improved value proposition for consumers." Exactly how much the company thinks it will save wasn't disclosed, nor was the amount of job cuts that would result from the shift away from online sales.

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