Digital Trends

Gateway NX570 February 18th, 2007 | by Justin Whitaker

Graphics Performance and Display Quality

Unfortunately, the graphics portion of the testing was limited to just watching video clips on the Internet and DVD movies. The integrated graphics processor just doesn’t have enough power to handle any of the current generation 3D games such as F.E.A.R., Quake 4 or Far Cry. The 15.4-inch WXGA display handles video clips, pictures and DVD movies sufficiently. No dead pixels, clear image display and smooth video playback are the minimum requirements to be expected for a mid-range laptop display, and the NX570X provides all of the above.

Battery Life

Testing of the battery life showed that the NX570X carries plenty of juice in its 6-cell lithiom ion battery. However, if you want to go 5+ hours before needing to recharge the battery, you’ll need to spend the extra money to upgrade to the 8-cell or 12-cell battery.

DVD playback with the display brightness turned up all the way, wireless enabled: 3 hours 10 mins.

DVD playback with the display turned to 25%, wireless disabled: 3 hours 50 mins.

General use with display turned to 50% and wireless enabled: 4 hours 15 minutes.

Keyboard Feel

The tactile feedback of the full-sized keyboard is excellent, and extended typing sessions were a breeze. I spent a full 45 minute session working through email, interrupted by a few IM’s from friends, and the keyboard response was crisp and solid throughout the session. The NX570X keyboard was a little louder than other laptop keyboards I have used, but it is well worth the bit of extra noise for such a comfortable typing experience.

The keyboard of the NX570

Sound Quality

The integrated SigmaTel audio chipset and the two integrated speakers provide sound quality that is on par with other mid-range notebooks. While watching movies I had no trouble hearing the dialogue or following the action during fast sequences. The speakers offer essentially the same dynamic range as other notebook speakers, with very little bass and high frequencies that are overemphasized. Mid-range is acceptable, but not as smooth or well defined as you will find with a decent pair of headphones.

Heat and Noise

The NX570X uses a single exhaust vent on the left-hand side of the laptop to keep the internal components cool. While I typically prefer laptop designs that place the exhaust vent on the back of the laptop, so that the air is blown away from me, the single exhaust of the NX570X does a fine job of keeping the laptop cool without creating too much noise. The fan is noticeable, especially under heavy loads, but it is negligible and is no louder than similarly configured laptops from other manufacturers.

Conclusion

In summary, the Gateway NX570X does an impressive job in both the style and performance departments. Enough horsepower to easily run multiple applications and a long-lasting battery highlight the capabilities that the NX570X has to offer. This laptop will clearly differentiate itself from previous models with updated design and styling, and the sleek look is sure to stand out from other run-of-the-mill laptops. At a very competitive price, the NX570X offers an outstanding overall package for a mid-range laptop.

Pros:

• Outstanding application performance
• Long-lasting battery
• Sleek styling
• Durable build quality

Cons:

• Unimpressive out of the box experience and setup
• Limited graphics power
• No option to upgrade the video card.