While it may look fairly unremarkable, the Gateway DX4870-UR11P ($849 list) packs a solid punch beneath the surface, mostly due to its mighty 3.4GHz Intel Core i7-3770 processor. Given the fact that it nips at the heels of beefier, more expensive entry-level gaming desktops despite its not-as-impressive integrated Intel HD graphics processor, it comes as no surprise that the Gateway DX4870-UR11P ($849 list) towers above the rest of its mainstream desktop class. Although it had a good run as our Editors' Choice for mainstream consumer desktops, the Gateway DX4860-UB33P ($599.99 list, 4 stars), can't measure up to the performance of the DX4870. Despite a few shortcomings, the DX4870-UR11P earns its place at the head of the table, and is our new Editors' Choice for midrange desktop PCs.
Design and Features
The DX4870 comes in an unassuming and relatively modest metallic chassis. Like the Acer Aspire AM3970-UR11P ($699.99 list, 3 stars), it has a side-mounted release for accessing a 16X DVD+R/RW SuperMulti optical drive. Similarly, the release, an additional side-mounted button also releases a removable 3.5-inch bay that can accommodate an additional internal drive to supplement the system's 2TB SATA hard drive. A curved lip protrudes from the top of the tower, wherein you'll find two USB 2.0 ports, a multicard reader (SD/xD/MMC/MS), and microphone and headphone jacks. Beyond these flourishes and a silver Gateway logo on the front of the system, there's not much else to look at.
The DX4870's minimalist design doesn't scream for attention, and it's a low-key affair for the most part. As with most mainstream consumer desktops, the majority of the DX4870's ports are located in the rear. There, you'll find four additional USB 2.0 ports, two USB 3.0 ports, HDMI- and VGA- out, audio ports, Ethernet, and PS/2 ports (for mice and keyboards, even though the ones bundled with the system are USB 2.0). One of the system's three PCIe x1 slots is occupied by the built-in 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi card. The other two PCIe x slots are available, as well as a free PCIe x16 slot, bringing the total number of free PCI slots to three. As far as expandability goes, the DX4870's 10GB DDR3 RAM occupies three of the four DIMM slots on the motherboard, leaving a single vacant slot for RAM upgrades.
The Gateway DX4870 comes equipped with integrated Intel HD graphics. Although it can be upgraded with a more robust GPU in one of its available PCI slots, the DX4870 can only handle a midrange graphics card because of the 300W power supply. This is understandable, though, as the DX4870 is not a system geared toward users 3D gaming but is better suited for multimedia and everyday use in general. Naturally, true gaming rigs like the Alienware x51 ($999.99 direct, 4 stars) are better suited for 3D gaming since visually intensive applications are their modus operandi.
Unlike the Gateway DX4860-UB33P, the DX4870 comes pre-loaded with a hefty serving of software. While some of the software? particularly Office Starter 2010 and Nero 10 Essentials?is useful, the rest of it can fairly be classified as unnecessary bloatware. Among these programs are the usual suspects: Bing Bar; desktop links to eBay and Skype; Evernote, Nook for PC; Wild Tangent and Fooz game suites; and a good amount of proprietary software with varying usefulness, ranging from Gateway Games to Gateway Recovery Management. While a certain amount of bloatware is expected with a lower price tag, the amount of software crammed into the DX4870 is more annoying because its $850 sticker is higher than that of others in its class.
Performance
Although the DX4870 outperformed other mainstream consumer desktops when it came to gaming and multimedia-oriented tasks, its integrated Intel HD graphics was trounced across the board when compared with Asus Essentio CM6870, an entry-level gaming desktop that sports a discrete 3GB Nvidia GeForce GT 545 GPU that decidedly tips the scales in its favor. Accordingly, the DX4870's 3DMark 11 score of 1,460 points (Entry-level) fell short of the Essentio CM6870 (2,832 points) but it nonetheless easily outpaced the closest competitor in its class, the Acer Aspire AM3970 (944). The same results apply with regards to multimedia-oriented tasks. The DX4870 completed our Handbrake video encoding test in a brisk 1 minute 5 seconds, taking 2 seconds longer than the Essentio CM6870 (1:05) while leaving a gaping 14-second difference between itself and the next closest system, the DX4860 (1:19). Similarly, its CineBench R11.5 score (7.45) was just shy of the Essentio CM6870 (7.50) but well ahead of the Aspire AM3970's distant third-place score of 4.93. In our Photoshop CS5 test, the DX4870's time of 2 minutes 50 seconds is a virtual dead heat with the Essentio CM6870 (2:51), leaving the Gateway DX4860 (3:25) and the rest trailing far behind.
Since the Essentio CM6870 is an entry-level gaming desktop, it unsurprisingly outgunned the DX4860 in our gaming benchmark tests. Still, it remains a useful point of comparison since the DX4860 packs nearly as much muscle, and consequently comes awfully close to being a member of this class. The Essentio CM6870's screaming frame-rate in Crysis (76 fps medium quality, 11 fps very high quality) blasted past the DX4870 and the Aspire AM3970, both of which yielded the same frame-rates (27 fps in medium quality, 3 fps in very high quality). The same goes for our Lost Planet 2 benchmark test, albeit with one wrinkle: while the Essentio CM6870's frame-rates (41 fps in middle quality, 17 fps in high quality) again bested the DX4870 (21 fps in middle quality, 6 fps in high quality), nothing in the latter's class even came close to it, with the Aspire AM3970 finishing in a distant third place spot (13 fps in middle quality, 4 fps in high quality).
The Gateway DX4870-UR11P is hands-down the most formidable mainstream desktop PC, so much so that it nips at the heels of stronger, entry-level gaming desktops. It's also one of the better performing systems with integrated graphics, boasting class-leading benchmark scores and excellent multimedia capabilities. Ultimately, the DX4870 blazes ahead of the rest of its class by such a wide margin that we're willing to overlook its small shortcomings and award it our Editors' Choice.
BENCHMARK TEST RESULTS:
COMPARISON TABLE
Compare the Gateway DX4870-UR11P with several other desktops side by side.
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marianne gingrich ibooks author gabrielle union merle haggard ladainian tomlinson mark wahlberg pipa
