Gateway debuts FX notebook, updates FX desktops

Taking the same philosophy it has applied to the original FX, Gateway today used CES to introduce an FX edition of its P-series 17-inch notebook as well as to freshen the desktop line. The portable both adds the cosmetic touches of the FX series and offers far stronger 3D performance courtesy of a 512MB GeForce 8800M GTS. It also supplies HDMI video out for HDTV connections and an external SATA connector for fast external storage. It becomes one of the first notebooks to sell with Intel's Penryn 45-nanometer processors, up to and including the range-topping 2.8GHz Core 2 Extreme.

Through Gateway's online store, the FX notebook starts at $1,600 with an older-generation 2GHz Core 2 Duo, a 1440x900 resolution display, 3GB of memory, and a 250GB hard disk; it tops out at $3,000 with the 2.8GHz Core 2 Extreme, a 1920x1200 screen, an HD DVD combo drive, and dual 200GB hard drives. Retail versions start out at a lower $1,350 by dropping the CPU speed to 1.66GHz but leaving the rest of Gateway's base online system unchanged. All models should be available later this month.

For desktops, Gateway has introduced the retail-only FX7020 tower. It stands as one of the few current systems to ship with an AMD Phenom quad-core processor and comes with a GeForce 8800 GT card standard that provides unusually quick 3D for a retail desktop. It should come with 3GB of memory standard and will ship to stores later this month for $1,100.