Design
Instead of chintzy plastic, the 9 by 13 by 1.1-inch (HWD) ID47H07u flaunts a handsome aluminum-alloy lid and keyboard deck, the latter setting off the metallic chiclet-style keys. You won't find the backlit keyboard seen on our Editors' Choice Dell Inspiron 14z (Core i5) ($750 direct, 4 stars), but you'll appreciate the smooth, precise typing feel. One odd design choice: There's a rightmost column of full-sized keys just screaming to be Home, End, PgUp, and PgDn, but Gateway opted to make them volume control, mute, and social network—a button that launches Facebook, YouTube, and Flickr—keys instead. Home, End, PgUp, and PgDn are doubled up on the cursor arrows.
Instead of chintzy plastic, the 9 by 13 by 1.1-inch (HWD) ID47H07u flaunts a handsome aluminum-alloy lid and keyboard deck, the latter setting off the metallic chiclet-style keys. You won't find the backlit keyboard seen on our Editors' Choice Dell Inspiron 14z (Core i5) ($750 direct, 4 stars), but you'll appreciate the smooth, precise typing feel. One odd design choice: There's a rightmost column of full-sized keys just screaming to be Home, End, PgUp, and PgDn, but Gateway opted to make them volume control, mute, and social network—a button that launches Facebook, YouTube, and Flickr—keys instead. Home, End, PgUp, and PgDn are doubled up on the cursor arrows.
Similarly, the ID47H07u's plus-size touchpad has integrated (lower left and right corners) rather than dedicated mouse buttons. Normally a turnoff for yours truly, they worked well enough, but the pad's plastic surface puts up a little more friction or resistance than I'm used to. Of course, touchpads that glide too smoothly can lead to accidental cursor movements, but subjectively I felt the ID47H07u's went a bit too far in the opposite direction.
The laptop's 14-inch display offers the 1,366 by 768 resolution that's familiar in this size and price class; it's not dazzlingly bright but delivers crisp text and vivid colors. The "Professionally Tuned" (according to an inscription above the keyboard) speakers work with Dolby Home Theater software to pump out pretty good sound, if not a ton of bass.
Featu
The optical drive on the ID47H07u's right side is a dual-layer DVD burner, not the Blu-ray drive found in the pricier Sony VAIO VPC-EG27FM/W ($779.99 list, 3.5 stars) or Toshiba Satellite P745-S4320 ($869.99 list, 3.5 stars). It's joined on that side by a USB 3.0 port, along with an Ethernet port. At the left are two USB 2.0 ports, headphone and microphone jacks, and VGA and HDMI video ports. A memory-card slot occupies the front edge.
In addition to the Wi twins (WiFi and WiDi), the ID47H07u offers Bluetooth, but not the Wi triplet WiMAX—as seen in the Toshiba P745-S4320, Sony VPC-EG27FM/W, and Asus U46E-BAL5 ($699.99 list, 4.5 stars)—or other mobile broadband. In addition to a one-year parts-and-labor warranty, Gateway provides a modest software bundle led by Microsoft Office Starter 2010 and a 60-day trial of Norton Internet Security.
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