olsen@XN.LL.MIT.EDU (Jim Olsen) (05/09/89)
I would appreciate hearing any experiences people have had with
Gateway 2000 ("Computers from Iowa?") and their systems,
especially the '386 systems. Thanks.scholten@cpsvax.cps.msu.edu (David Scholten cps) (05/10/89)
I am also very interested in finding out any information about these computers. Please post to the net since more people than I are interested in finding this out. Thanks Dave Scholten
moe@aati.UUCP (Moe Bradley) (05/10/89)
From article <1375@xn.LL.MIT.EDU>, by olsen@XN.LL.MIT.EDU (Jim Olsen): > I would appreciate hearing any experiences people have had with > Gateway 2000 ("Computers from Iowa?") and their systems, > especially the '386 systems. Thanks. I have one of their '286 machines, and I am completely satisfied with the machine and with Gateway 2000. Their people are concerned and helpful, and have always gotten back to me with an answer for any questions or problems I have experienced (most of which are based on "operator errors"!). Their service people (oops, excuse me) Their technical support people are very courteous, and take the time to help you through whatever the problem is. In fact, I have even had calls back from them after receiving help, just to make sure that things were still okay. This was after one or two weeks had passed after receiving assistance. Do you know of anyone else that does this? I don't. A friend of mine has one of their '386 machines, set up with a VGA, a digitizer, and some other stuff, which he uses for CAD. He loves his system, and has not experienced even a minor problem with it. Hope this helps. If you want further info, please E-mail to uunet!hsi!aati!moe.
usenet@cps3xx.UUCP (Usenet file owner) (05/12/89)
In article <2918@cps3xx.UUCP> scholten@cpsvax.UUCP (David Scholten cps) writes: >I am also very interested in finding out any information about these >computers. Please post to the net since more people than I are >interested in finding this out. > >Thanks >Dave Scholten When I first got my Gateway 2000 I was posting aboutn my likes/dislikes and got flamed for posting useless articles. Well, I'm glad to see that statement was wrong. Anyway, I have had my 286 MHz machine for about 3 months now and it is running great. I had a little bit of a rocky start but after the first week it's been smooth sailing. ..the good points and the bad points 1) It took 4 weeks for them to ship the computer to me after I had orderd and after they had said two weeks. (Not that big of a deal) 2) 6 hours after I got the computer the hard disk crashed for good. Frustration set in. 3) Gateway 2000's tech support is pretty good if you can get a hold of them. It took me about 36 hours to get my representative on the phone. However, Once I got him on he was great. He didn't even bother trying to figure out what was wrong with my disk, he had a new hard disk to me 48 hours later (yes...to my door). 4) I had accidently deleted some files from my DOS Installation disk and Gateway had the disk recopied for me in a very short time. 5) For the money, I think I got a hell of a deal. My brother paid the same amount for his computer two years ago and it has only half the features (speed, color, etc.) Well, that's my point of view. If anyone has any specific questions please let me know! Greg Cook cook@frith.egr.msu.edu gcook@horus.cem.msu.edu A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A
smith@cos.com (Steve Smith) (05/12/89)
In article <1375@xn.LL.MIT.EDU> olsen@xn.ll.mit.edu (Jim Olsen) writes: >I would appreciate hearing any experiences people have had with >Gateway 2000 ("Computers from Iowa?") and their systems, >especially the '386 systems. Thanks. I have a system on order from them. It should get in sometime next week ("Your check ... er ... computer is in the mail ...." :-). I plan on posting a full report after I get my hands on it for awhile. My preliminary opinion is that they're nice guys, but not too well organized. Am I the only person buying a mail order computer?? Let's hear those experiences, both good and bad! -- -- Steve (smith@cos.com) ({uunet sundc decuac hqda-ai hadron}!cos!smith) "Truth is stranger than fiction because fiction has to make sense."
mms00786@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (05/13/89)
I just ordered my 386 - 20 from Gateway, after reading their review in the November (?) issue of BYTE magazine. I did some shopping around, but surprizingly, none of the other companies I called appeared to be a least bit interested in having my business. On the other hand, the people at Gateway were extremely courteous (sp?). But I sure hope they don't take four weeks to deliver. If this discussion is still going on when I get my machine, I will post any further experience with Gateway. Milan. .
thomas-m@hockey.cis.ohio-state.edu (Malcolm Thomas) (05/16/89)
In article <2918@cps3xx.UUCP> scholten@cpsvax.UUCP (David Scholten cps) writes: >I am also very interested in finding out any information about these >computers. Please post to the net since more people than I are >interested in finding this out. > I ordered the following setup 16 Mhz 0 wait state 1 Meg RAM Seagate ST251-1 1.2 Floppy Everex EGA (It supports multisynch mnonitors up to 800x400) Samsung CT 14--- EGA monitor (w/ swivel base) 2P/2S/1Game port (25 pin seral ports) Front panel reset button. Table top case (not the tower which is $150 extra) for around $2540 including shipping to Columbus and AMEX surcharge. I only ordered 2S/1P but got the other ports at no additional cost. (They come 2S/1G on an I/O card and 1P on the video card. My only gripe with the computer is every now and then (too often for me) I get a message saying NMI interupt at "some location" S) shut off R) Reboot Any other key to continue. It's not so bad in most programs but it freezes Windows --a royal pain. They have a customer suport number (Tool free if I remember right) and a setup disk to help install the computer. Their return policy is any time withing 30 days. No reason needed. Full refund (less shipping). Someone I spoke to said that his monitor died within 2 weeks but gateway *cheerfully* and _quickly_ replaced the monitor. I shopped around for ages before purchasing looking for "that lowest price" that sometimes seems to elude us. I found them to be lowest until ~3 weeks after I had received the system. The new low price was ~ $80 less. Wasn't worth the hassle of returning it. In summary, I would recommend Gateway because I have had no problems with the equipment (and because I cannot remember the name of the cheaper place and have had no experience with the cheaper place.) -------------------------------------------------------------------- thomas-m@cis.ohio-state.edu | "Start of witty saying... Dept of Cptr/Inf Sci, CAE 239 | ...witty saying... Ohio-State-U, Columbus, OH 43210| ...end of witty saying."
karl@ddsw1.MCS.COM ([Karl Denninger]) (05/18/89)
>----- >Response 6 of 6 (3217) by thomas at on Wed 17 May 89 6:7 >[Malcolm Thomas] >(Gateway 2000 systems) >My only gripe with the computer is every now and then (too often for me) >I get a message saying > NMI interupt at "some location" > S) shut off R) Reboot Any other key to continue. That's a symptom of bad memory, or a bad memory controller on the motherboard. You should NEVER see NMIs in an application! It would appear that you have some bad (or slightly out-of-spec) memory....... or Gateway used marginally-rated chips...... Don't try to run Unix or OS/2 on this system without getting that memory problem fixed, or you'll see "Panic: xxxxx" instead and your system will halt dead -- just like in Windows. >I shopped around for ages before purchasing looking for "that lowest price" >that sometimes seems to elude us. I found them to be lowest until 3 weeks >after I had received the system. The new low price was $80 less. Wasn't >worth the hassle of returning it. If you were really going to return a system due to it not being the lowest priced, I'd say that's unwarranted and unfair. If you had a compatibility problem which was unresolvable, that's a reasonable reason for a return. That some firms allow returns without cause is no excuse for what is, in effect, bilking them out of a sale that DID meet your expectations and needs. As for buying from the lowest bidder, remember what John Stroh once said: "If you buy strictly on the lowest price, you must add something for the risk you run -- that what you bought might not do what you wanted, or that the quality might not be up to standard. If you add that risk factor in, you'll have enough to purchase something better." Computer systems are a wierd animal; if you purchase the cheapest machine you might find out that the company you buy from doesn't last as long as the warranty. And MOST motherboard (and many disk) manufacturers won't deal with you as an end user directly -- meaning if the company you buy from goes out of business, you have NO warranty. Motherboards are expensive, as are disk drives. Your system is only as good as the company that sold it. Those companies which have the absolute lowest price must have cheapened something somewhere. It could be in the disk controller, memory chips, power supply, or even motherboard. It's a fact of life that there are only two ways to lower the price of an item -- reduce manufacturing costs, or sell more units (economy of scale). Since there is little economy of scale in the AT/386 compatible business, there is only one way left to lower the price -- cheapen the unit somehow. We see it all the time in our repair business; systems with cheap disk controllers, marginal memory chips, power supplies with 200mv of ripple on the +5V rail (!), floppy drives made by some off-shore company I can't pronounce, and more. Lastly, a company which engages in price-warrior tactics (which many do) is most vulnerable in a commodity market. They have little margin to work with, and as a result are forced out of business when Joe's Computers comes up with a better price. And there is _always_ a Joe's Computers. Something to think about. Ps: We sell and service AT & 386 systems. I see machines every day come in for service that were bought "as the cheapest on the market". No system is a bargain when it breaks down a week out of warranty. --- Karl Denninger (karl@ddsw1.MCS.COM, <well-connected>!ddsw1!karl) Public Access Data Line: [+1 312 566-8911], Voice: [+1 312 566-8910] Macro Computer Solutions, Inc. "Quality Solutions at a Fair Price"