Gateway-Laptop MD2614u Review: Powerful But Far From Perfect
January 13, 2009 by eurojoe
Filed under Featured, German TV/DVD, News
Gateway MD 2614u $549 Best Buy
Features
The Gateway-Laptop (MD2614u) with AMD Turion X2 Dual Core is a Laptop for people with a small budget: $549 at Best Buy. It has some features that not every Entry-Level laptop can offer: 15.6 “True 16:9″ (1366×768) format, which lets you watch movies without the black bars on the top/bottom of the screen. If you are planning on using this laptop as an entertainment device you will love this format, however since your screen is now wider but shorter, web-browsing will consist of more scrolling. But Gateway has a solution for this: Vertical Scroll, which is on the right side of your Touchpad. Just move your finger up to scroll up, and down to scroll down.
Other features are the HDMI port, which lets you connect your laptop to your HDTV or newer monitors, the built in Webcam (1.3 megapixel), or the ATI graphics card which has 256MB of dedicated RAM.
Windows Vista 64bit
The AMD Turion X2 Dual Core 64 processor (compare to the Intel Core 2 Duo) is fast but doesn’t drain your battery too fast. An interesting fact is that the MD2614u runs Vista 64 but only has 3G of RAM (upgradable to 4G). Windows Vista 32bit only supports up to 3G of RAM, but the 64bit version supports 3G and more.
Also, the sales guy told me that MS Office 2003 does not work on Vista 64, which is incorrect. Office 2003 (x11) is supported. Please Best Buy, train your sales people – or go back to the commissions- based sales system. Check the Microsoft Vista Compatibility Website to check if your applications are supported.
Drawbacks
Here are some things that are not that great: It’s the keyboard, stupid. I just can’t get used to the keyboard; in order to give the laptop a modern and hip look, Gateway organized the keyboard, so that it fits exacltly into a rectangle shape. But the designers forgot to think about ergonomics. I have a hard time hitting the correct letter in the row where the letters QWERTY are located. Misspelled words are the norm. And the clicking sound of the keys is annoying.
The finish around the keyboard is glossy and you will see every finger print. The illuminated media buttons are confusing, I haven’t figured out how to use the volume button. With 7.1lbs this laptop is not really a laptop anymore, rather a desktop replacement.
Conclusion
Just by looking at the price and the specs (see below), the MD2614u seems to be a winner. But the unusual keyboard is a factor that should not be overlooked. It’s like buying a nice looking car with a powerful engine that constantly steers to the right.
After owning this laptop for about two weeks, I returned it to Best Buy, spend $200 more and own now an amazing laptop with a great keyboard. See my review for the HP DV5-1235dx
Related Links:
Gateway MD2614u
| Laptop Model | Gateway® MD2614u |
|---|---|
| Operating System | Genuine Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium (64-bit) with SP11 |
| Processor | AMD Turion X2 Mobile Dual-Core Processor RM-72 (2.1GHz, 512KB x 2 L2 Cache, HyperTransport� technology @ up to 1600MHz) |
| Hard Drive | 250GB 5400RPM SATA hard drive4 |
| Memory | 3072MB 667MHz DDR2 Memory |
| Wireless Network | 802.11b/g/Draft-N Wireless LAN |
| Application Software | Microsoft Works 9.0, Microsoft Money Essentials & Microsoft� Office Home and Student 2007 (60-day complimentary trial period)3 |
| Chassis | Chassis with ATI Radeon HD 3200 Graphics with up to 1919MB of HyperMemory� and AMD M780G Chipset |
| Digital Media Software | Microsoft Windows Media Player 11, Cyberlink Power2 Go�, & Cyberlink� LabelPrint� |
| Dimensions (Box) | 13" (H) x 17" (W) x 6" (D) or 330mm (H) x 431.8mm (W) x 152mm (D) |
| Dimensions (System) | 1.3"-1.70" (H) x 15.2" (W) x 10.4" (D) or 32.9-44.3mm (H) x 387.2mm (W) x 264.6mm (D) |
| Display | 15.6" High-Definition Widescreen WXGA Ultrabright Display (1366 x 768) |
| Expansion Slots | ExpressCard Type 54 |
| External Ports | (4) USB 2.0, VGA Connector, v1.3 HDMI Connector |
| Keyboard and Mouse | Full-Size Keyboard, Synaptics Touchpad with Vertical Scroll |
| Media Card Reader | 5-in-1 Digital Media Card Reader (Memory Stick, Memory Stick� Pro, Multi Media Card, Secure Digital, xD-Picture Card) |
| Modem | 56K ITU V.92 ready Fax/Modem (RJ-11 port) |
| Multimedia Buttons | Illuminated Multimedia Touch Controls |
| Network | 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN (RJ-45 port) |
| Optical Drive | 8x Multi-Format Dual Layer DVDRW and DVD-RAM featuring Labelflash� Technology6 |
| Security Software | Symantec Norton 360 2008 (60-day trial)5 |
| Weights | 7.1 lbs. (3.2 kg) system unit only |
I.Ramirez on Mon, 16th Feb 2009 11:06 am
Although I do agree with you about the RAM specifications and that BestBuy employees do need better training as most of them cannot tell one computer form the other it is starnge that you would consider that everyone like the same things as you. The reason why you returned your computer: the keyboard is one of the things I love most about it. Plus I have a question: how can the keyboard be stupid? Since when do keyboards have a brain? If your only complaint is the keyboard then that is just fine by me.
eurojoe on Wed, 18th Feb 2009 12:17 am
I.Ramirez. Thanks for your comment. My review is a “critical evaluation” of the Gateway MD2614, which means it is my opinion – and my opinion only. I am not expecting everybody to agree with me about the keyboard, maybe I am the only one who doesn’t like the keyboard; it’s ok to be different. But maybe there is somebody out there who reads this article and takes a closer look at the keyboard – and realizes that the keyboard is horrible.
The comment “It’s the keyboard, stupid”, is borrowed from a similar term used during Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential campaign: “It’s the economy, stupid”, and does not try to humanize the keyboard.
I understand it is hard to buy a computer that others don’t like, it’s called buyer’s remorse. Sorry that you got so offended, but compared to the HP DV5-1235, the Gateway’s laptop is stupid, or just a plain ergonomic disaster. Oops – too much opinion…
Steven on Thu, 26th Mar 2009 6:58 pm
I hate the keyboard on this laptop. If I don’t hit the key in the exact center it doesn’t recognize it. The end key should not be right next to the backspace key either, since I hit it about half the time and have to use my mouse to get the cursor back to the end of the text. Grr!
lololololololol on Sun, 5th Apr 2009 11:20 am
ok so real quick, i have this computer and it works great of course as you mentioned the browser issue is probably the most annoying, i just wanted to ask real quick, is it me or is it when you go ahead and accidentally hit 2 keys it seems to not get the second key that you accidentally hit? i love this P.O.S mainly cause it does what i want it to do. in fact i feel more comfortable with the key although they are set pretty oddly and are stiff. I find that this computer is ok for someone who isnt looking to do some really fancy stuff like hardcore gaming or graphics design. also about the volume bar. its simple. place and hold finger on the arrows to increase the volume or decrease it. you can also slide you finger but thats just really in accurate. i was originally gonna go with a toshiba with the same specs but they sold out. this one is working great though im glad i bought it. i rant alot too so real quick, the people you talk to at best buy differs from store to store. i use to work at the best buy in houston off of 45 on the west rd exit. i was computer sales then geek squad. usually we knew about our computers what made the good and what sucked about them. of course either way they are gonna try and sell you some stuff. just be careful about the sales guys some of them are shifty, you may end up with and acer when you really need a HP.
Mark Tapscott on Mon, 27th Apr 2009 8:46 am
I bought an MC series Gateway about six weeks ago after five years with another Gateway laptop that I was quite satisfied with (but it was beginning to have aging issues, like a cracked case that resisted repairs).
I like virtually everything about the MC except the keyboard, which as the reviewer here wrote of the less expensive model, you have to hit the key exactly right or it doesn’t register. That means lots of typos and I am daily newspaper journalist, so that’s a major problem for me.
Bottomline: Jury is still out, but the keyboard issues is a BIG problem for me.
James Shopshire on Fri, 14th Aug 2009 1:56 pm
Other good features notwithwtanding, the keyboard issue is huge in the MD2614u laptop. The failure of various keys to register without the exact same pressure every time is insurmountable, seriously discounting the value of an otherwise good computer. The design of the keyboard needs to be reworked. Having bought and recommended over ten Gateway computers in recent years, without problems, I am taken aback that Gateway allowed this one, that I am told cannot be repaired, to get to market with no apparent follow up solutions. There are numerous complaints about the keyboard that can be viewed on line. I need another computer that will work, period.
James Hoyland on Wed, 19th Aug 2009 6:26 am
Generally like it. Good looking machine. They keyboard is indeed rubbish. Most imortantly there is no numeric entry keypad – not even a virtual one through use of a function key. This is actually a big problem for me because I use Blender which relies heavily on the numpad.
cza ann gagan on Sat, 12th Sep 2009 3:24 am
my illuminated multimedia keys on the right part is not working
how can I make it work? thank you
Len60517 on Tue, 15th Sep 2009 10:12 am
I can’t help but chuckle and shake my head when I read reviews about fingerprints showing up on laptops. Who cares? To me that says you got nothing else to complain about technically w/ the machine.
A real concern to me is more like the 3GB of RAM on a 64-Bit OS. Which to me is like having a 6.0 liter engine in a sportscar, but the transmission will only allow the car to top out at 100 mph. Such a waste.
To me, the design of the keyboard was a little bit of getting used to. The key probably should’ve been put right under the key and the page up and page down keys could’ve been shifted down over the arrow keys. But to me that’s no biggie. GET USED TO IT! And the clicking noises the keyboard is hyper-critical.
To me everything seems great except I would’ve liked another Gig of RAM along w/ the machine. But that can be solved by purchasing a 2GB module and swapping out the 1GB chip to get this laptop up to a moderately respectable 4GB like nature intended.
OH!!! I almost forgot. If you expect to get decent sound out of this laptop, you’re sadly mistaken. The itsy-bitsy speakers on this machine have bad “canny” sound to them. If you want to watch a Movie on this laptop, I suggest a nice set of headphones or a pair of external speakers.
Fingerprints? Pffff!!
Best Buy on Fri, 9th Oct 2009 9:13 pm
Well I bought this computer 6 months ago…, I regret it because of overheating, it has deformed the plastic above the f1, f2 , f3 keys and where the shiny plastic meets the non-shiny plastic above the Windows Vista and Amd stickers is beginning to separate, other than that my back up drive says Acer for some odd reason?…., wait, does gateway make Acer….?
Marlo on Mon, 19th Oct 2009 8:22 pm
I don’t know about you’ll, but this computer really sucks. I’ve only had it for 3 months (Brand new)and have already experienced multiple problems. For example: The keys get stuck, the PC makes loud noises inside, the mouse arrow freeze occasionally and now the computer freezes every ten to fifteen minutes after turning it on. But, the worse part of it all, I had to take it back to Best Buy 4 times. The Geek Squad people said that there was nothing wrong with it and that it past all the tests. But, every time I took it home, it would freeze again.
If you are planning to buy one, DON’T! I would never buy another Gateway computer in my life.
Chicka Bow Wow on Sun, 1st Nov 2009 3:36 pm
Well, to those of you out there who arent hyper opinionated and like an honest non rant, here is my review of the MD2614u. First off. I am typing on it right now, yes the keys are really annoying but you get used to the keys missing every now and then. U can replace the keyboard too you know. I use this computer for Photoshop and stuff like Unreal 2004 and Diablo 2. Get used to hitting the keys more than a slight tap, and this computer is a bargain for the price. I got mine refurbished so it was even cheaper (around $400). Dont listen to these people trashing it cause they arent satisfied. I couldnt really afford much more than this so I have found it a decent laptop. Great for movies and such especially. Overall: Great laptop: subpar keyboard. I recommend it to anyone on a tight budget. It gets the job done.
Chip Fernandez on Thu, 10th Dec 2009 5:12 pm
Wow, I’m amazed. I thought I was the only one with these problems with this same exact laptop model:
-keyboard is unresponsive. For every sentence typed, it won’t register 3 characters. If you hate typos, don’t get this computer. It’s very frustrating!!!!
-deformed plastic above the function keys
Don’t listen to the folks saying it’s “good for the money”. If you like buying POS laptops that makes you waste time correcting your typing, then go ahead and buy it. There’s other laptops out there now especially during the holiday sales that HAS to be better than this one.
Sure, it looked pretty at Best Buy but once you get it home it will show it’s true colors.
Signed,
An irritated typist.
P.S. I should’ve listened to the Best Buy employee who was trying to steer me away from this POS to a Toshiba. Shoulda, coulda, woulda.
Chip Fernandez on Thu, 10th Dec 2009 5:16 pm
Oh, I forgot to mention, this laptop also has a noisy DVD player and the battery no longer charges.
Wow, this POS I bought only 4 months ago acts like its 4 YEARS old! WOW!!!!! WHAT A FREAKIN’ DEAL!!!!
Omen on Sat, 26th Dec 2009 10:17 pm
I’ve had this laptop for a while, Best Buy purchase, and the main problem has been drivers and the preinstalled OS,Vista 64 bit, i promptly installed a 32 bit version, seeing as how drivers for XP were very rare, and i only have 3 gigs of ram so it didn’t matter. At first the keyboard made me VERY angry, but now i’m used to it and i kind of like it. For the price i’d get a different laptop, but now there’s no OS pain because i got Windows 7 and it works GREAT. It also is a huge fingerprint magnet but i dont mind that all too much. love the Synaptics touchpad, though i mainly use a mouse. the display is GREAT but another problem (drivers) is the ATI Catalyst drivers that seem to not be able to recognize another display connected into either the VGA or HDMI. I’ve tested both out with many cords and displays and it always seems to give me problems, not even the build in windows configuration will let me detect a second monitor. But the video card DOES have a very nice kick to it, the HD capability. with this i am able to play graphically intense games, granted at low resolutions, with relative ease. Web Browsing is something you get used to and with the touchpad it’s made EASY. the SD Micro Card Reader works very well and i’ve had no problems, same with the PCI slot card extender. USB works fine except for one port on the far top right hand side, it seems to connect weird, but then again i don find myself using more than 3 ports at a time. the media hotkeys could work with more media players but all in all they work with enough, and i like the option to turn them off along with the power icons. with those few drawbacks it kind of makes this a bad deal but if it’s something like a gift or for someone who isn’t all that tech savvy and doesn’t care too much about this pickey stuff it’s great, and has a good visual appeal. I’d give it a 6-7/10, and if anyone can help me on the display problems it would be much appreciated.
Patrick Patch on Wed, 24th Feb 2010 9:23 am
Hello I wanted to lay down some more possitive comments… This laptop Went to Iraq with me its been thrown its been dropped and still tickin without any cracks… Down side about 3 months of having this laptop the power button dont work propperly I have to do some fancy stuff to turn it on….
I put another stick of ram in it to boost it a hair and it works great… its not Awsome for gaming but it works fine with games like wow.
My only real problem is updating the graphix drivers they dont realy keep up with the times. But other then that I like my little laptop its strong shell and I got used to the keyboard pretty fast….
Sincerely Spc Patch.
Bruce on Wed, 19th May 2010 6:41 am
I don’t know about you’ll, but this computer really sucks. I’ve only had it for 3 months (Brand new)and have already experienced multiple problems. For example: The keys get stuck, the PC makes loud noises inside, the mouse arrow freeze occasionally and now the computer freezes every ten to fifteen minutes after turning it on. But, the worse part of it all, I had to take it back to Best Buy 4 times. The Geek Squad people said that there was nothing wrong with it and that it past all the tests. But, every time I took it home, it would freeze again.
If you are planning to buy one, DON’T! I would never buy another Gateway computer in my life.
Bruce on Wed, 19th May 2010 9:12 am
Hello I wanted to lay down some more possitive comments… This laptop Went to Iraq with me its been thrown its been dropped and still tickin without any cracks… Down side about 3 months of having this laptop the power button dont work propperly I have to do some fancy stuff to turn it on….
I put another stick of ram in it to boost it a hair and it works great… its not Awsome for gaming but it works fine with games like wow.
My only real problem is updating the graphix drivers they dont realy keep up with the times. But other then that I like my little laptop its strong shell and I got used to the keyboard pretty fast….
Sincerely Spc Patch.
Steve on Fri, 28th May 2010 12:12 am
I can’t help but chuckle and shake my head when I read reviews about fingerprints showing up on laptops. Who cares? To me that says you got nothing else to complain about technically w/ the machine.
A real concern to me is more like the 3GB of RAM on a 64-Bit OS. Which to me is like having a 6.0 liter engine in a sportscar, but the transmission will only allow the car to top out at 100 mph. Such a waste.
To me, the design of the keyboard was a little bit of getting used to. The key probably should’ve been put right under the key and the page up and page down keys could’ve been shifted down over the arrow keys. But to me that’s no biggie. GET USED TO IT! And the clicking noises the keyboard is hyper-critical.
To me everything seems great except I would’ve liked another Gig of RAM along w/ the machine. But that can be solved by purchasing a 2GB module and swapping out the 1GB chip to get this laptop up to a moderately respectable 4GB like nature intended.
OH!!! I almost forgot. If you expect to get decent sound out of this laptop, you’re sadly mistaken. The itsy-bitsy speakers on this machine have bad “canny” sound to them. If you want to watch a Movie on this laptop, I suggest a nice set of headphones or a pair of external speakers.
Fingerprints? Pffff!!
Steve on Fri, 28th May 2010 4:10 am
I’ve had this laptop for a while, Best Buy purchase, and the main problem has been drivers and the preinstalled OS,Vista 64 bit, i promptly installed a 32 bit version, seeing as how drivers for XP were very rare, and i only have 3 gigs of ram so it didn’t matter. At first the keyboard made me VERY angry, but now i’m used to it and i kind of like it. For the price i’d get a different laptop, but now there’s no OS pain because i got Windows 7 and it works GREAT. It also is a huge fingerprint magnet but i dont mind that all too much. love the Synaptics touchpad, though i mainly use a mouse. the display is GREAT but another problem (drivers) is the ATI Catalyst drivers that seem to not be able to recognize another display connected into either the VGA or HDMI. I’ve tested both out with many cords and displays and it always seems to give me problems, not even the build in windows configuration will let me detect a second monitor. But the video card DOES have a very nice kick to it, the HD capability. with this i am able to play graphically intense games, granted at low resolutions, with relative ease. Web Browsing is something you get used to and with the touchpad it’s made EASY. the SD Micro Card Reader works very well and i’ve had no problems, same with the PCI slot card extender. USB works fine except for one port on the far top right hand side, it seems to connect weird, but then again i don find myself using more than 3 ports at a time. the media hotkeys could work with more media players but all in all they work with enough, and i like the option to turn them off along with the power icons. with those few drawbacks it kind of makes this a bad deal but if it’s something like a gift or for someone who isn’t all that tech savvy and doesn’t care too much about this pickey stuff it’s great, and has a good visual appeal. I’d give it a 6-7/10, and if anyone can help me on the display problems it would be much appreciated.
Emily on Wed, 2nd Jun 2010 11:13 am
Well, to those of you out there who arent hyper opinionated and like an honest non rant, here is my review of the MD2614u. First off. I am typing on it right now, yes the keys are really annoying but you get used to the keys missing every now and then. U can replace the keyboard too you know. I use this computer for Photoshop and stuff like Unreal 2004 and Diablo 2. Get used to hitting the keys more than a slight tap, and this computer is a bargain for the price. I got mine refurbished so it was even cheaper (around $400). Dont listen to these people trashing it cause they arent satisfied. I couldnt really afford much more than this so I have found it a decent laptop. Great for movies and such especially. Overall: Great laptop: subpar keyboard. I recommend it to anyone on a tight budget. It gets the job done.
Lawrence on Sun, 2nd Jan 2011 1:39 am
Hello i have this Model of the Gateway laptop…and there was wine spilled on the keyboard…and i guess even after it was cleaned out with air spray it still was too late when i sent it to Gateway they said they would have to charge me because something burned out due to the spill. Now they Keys dont all work and its a bummer….Any ideas on how i can fix it…cheap?
Laurisxy@gmail.com Any tips, ideas, or thoughts would be appreciated. Thank You.