Gateway updates ultraportable notebook, Tablet PC

Gateway is preparing new notebooks and a Tablet PC refresh for launch this week, as the company updates some of its mobile hardware with Intel's Centrino technology.

Gateway will release the updated Gateway 200 series and Gateway Tablet PC through its Web site and retail stores on Thursday. The products will be available in the U.S. only.

The updated Gateway 200 series is a range of ultraportable notebooks, replacing the older Gateway 200 discontinued a few weeks ago, said Ajay Gupta, vice president of notebook products for the Poway, Calif.-based company. The new notebook is about 0.5 pounds heavier than the old model, at 4.3 pounds. It has a larger, 14.1-inch, display and comes with a built-in optical drive. It also has increased battery life as a result of the upgrade from the ultra-low voltage Pentium III-M to the Pentium M processor, he said.

The 200 is designed as a mainstream notebook for consumers or mobile professionals interested in obtaining the most performance possible in a small package, Gupta said. It comes with Intel's Pro/Wireless 2100 chip for connecting to 802.11b wireless networks, but consumers will be able to choose a chip from Broadcom that can access faster 802.11g networks in six to eight weeks, he said.

The low-end model, the Gateway 200E, will come in a base configuration with a 1.4GHz Pentium M processor, 256MB of DDR (double data rate) SDRAM (synchronous dynamic RAM), a 20GB hard drive, a built-in DVD-ROM drive, and a three-cell battery, for a total of $1,599. The three-cell battery provides a little more than two hours of life on a single charge, and a six-cell battery provides about four hours, Gupta said.

Gateway also plans to refresh its Tablet PC product with a new Intel Pentium M processor. Gateway doesn't produce its own Tablet PC, preferring instead to resell Motion Computing's designs. Motion launched its Centrino Tablet PC in May, and Gateway is now offering a model with a 1.0GHz ultra-low voltage Pentium M processor released earlier this month.

Gateway's Tablet PC costs $2,399 and comes with the 1.0GHz Pentium M chip, 256MB of DDR SDRAM, a 40GB hard drive, and Intel's Pro/Wireless 2100 chip for 802.11b networks.

Gateway also released the new 500M notebook Wednesday, which is designed specifically for consumers who will use it as a multimedia system or secondary PC, and are therefore less concerned about portability, Gupta said. It will be available on Monday through Gateway's Web site and retail channels, he said.

The notebook comes with a 15.2-inch widescreen display that provides a better experience than traditional displays for watching movies, Gupta said. Gateway also included a built-in subwoofer for listening to music or movies, he said.

The 500M will be available in a fixed configuration with a 2.2GHz Mobile Intel Pentium 4-M processor, 512MB of DDR SDRAM, a 40GB hard drive, a DVD-ROM drive, and a 802.11b wireless chip from Agere Systems for $1,599. It will be available for only two to three months, after which it will be taken off Gateway's active products list and relaunched around the fourth-quarter holiday season with updated specifications, Gupta said.