Gateway 2000 P5-166
Towering Inferno: Big 166 Sizzles
By Janice Chen
New 166MHz Pentium systems are springing up all over, but Gateway
2000 is poised to tower over the competition with the Gateway
P5-166. Literally. This tall system stands just under 23 inches
high and casts a giant shadow over most other systems when it
comes to drive expandability.
Gateway's new behemoth houses a whopping seven internal and five
external drive bays. In my review unit, the 3.5-inch floppy drive
and the Wearnes 6X CD-ROM drive occupy two of the externally accessible
drives. Only one of the seven internal drive bays is filled by
the 2-gigabyte Seagate hard disk.
As you may begin to surmise, this system is not just big; it's
power packed. The 166MHz chip is complemented by 16MB of EDO RAM,
expandable to 128MB, as well as 512KB of pipelined burst cache.
My late preproduction system was also configured with a Matrox
MGA Millennium PowerGraphics video card with 2MB of WRAM and an
Ensoniq SoundScape wavetable synthesis sound card. A pair of Altec
Lansing ACS-400 speakers and an ACS-250 subwoofer take full advantage
of the Ensoniq card, providing you with excellent Dolby Surround
Sound. A Telepath II 28.8Kbps fax modem-made for Gateway by U.S.
Robotics-provides high-speed communications.
Despite all that drive bay potential, expansion slots are not
so abundant. The Telepath II fax modem and the Ensoniq SoundScape
card take up the two ISA slots. The Matrox video card occupies
one of three PCI slots. Nevertheless, a free, shared PCI/ISA slot
keeps expansion possibilities more flexible.
I'd like to see Gateway change the case, which is held on by eight
screws. A case that comes off without a screwdriver is much more
convenient.
Gateway doesn't cut corners when it comes to user interface: The
P5-166 is equipped with Gateway's own 104-key AnyKey keyboard.
The programmable keyboard provides good tactile response and adequate
audible feedback, and has Windows 95-specific keys for accessing
the Start menu and simulating a right mouse click. The ergonomic
Microsoft Mouse 2.0a is a nice touch. The system also includes
Gateway's Vivitron 1776, a 17-inch monitor with a 0.25mm dot pitch.
With its sharp, flat picture and convenient up-front controls,
the Energy Star- and MPR II-compliant monitor was a pleasure to
use.
The P5-166 comes with Windows 95 preinstalled and tons of bundled
software, including Microsoft Office Professional & Bookshelf
and Encarta 96.
But let's face it: The main reason to invest in a 166MHz Pentium
is performance, and the Gateway P5-166 doesn't let you down. Tested
with the WINDOWS Magazine's Wintune 95 benchmark suite, the P5-166's
CPU registered 302MIPS, right up there with the other 166MHz systems
we've tested. The video score was also just above average at 16Mpixels
per second. The uncached disk score of 3.7Mb per second was actually
one of the best scores we've seen, and the Word and Excel scores
of 12 and 10.33 seconds, respectively, were also stellar.
Bigger doesn't always mean better, but it's hard to go wrong with
this giant. The Gateway P5-166 gives you all the tools for taking
multimedia to new heights.
Info File
Gateway 2000 P5-166
Price $3,899
Pros: Performance; drive expandability; monitor
Cons: Case awkward to open
Gateway 2000
800-846-2000, 605-232-2000
WinMag Box Score: 4.0
By David Gabel
Folks with small offices have had to settle for stripped-down
corporate workhorses or underpowered home systems. Well, Hewlett-Packard
is responding to the small-business crowd with a chorus of "This
one's for you." The HP Vectra 500 Series 515MCx is the small-business
manager's dream come true. It has everything you'll need to bring
your office up to speed, such as built-in telephony capabilities,
useful software and tech support that doesn't require a systems-support
guru on your end.
The Vectra boasts a 166MHz Pentium microprocessor, 1.6-gigabyte
hard disk drive, 16MB of RAM, 256KB of level 2 cache, a 4X CD-ROM
drive and a 15-inch monitor with up-front controls that make adjustment
a breeze. The Vectra also offers full telephony features, including
voice mail and autodial, using a 28.8Kbps, simultaneous voice/data
modem and an Mwave-based sound system with included headphones.
The case has two levers in the front that you flip up, freeing
the case so you can pull it forward and off. The cavernous mini-tower
has lots of expansion room: one free internal 3.5-inch drive bay,
two free external 5.25-inch bays, two free PCI bus slots and two
free ISA slots. All but one of the slots can accommodate full-length
cards. Even the motherboard is easy to upgrade: Pull on a lever
and the motherboard slides out of the chassis.
Bundled software includes ClarisWorks, Lotus Organizer, CompuServe,
America Online, remote-control software for HP tech support and
more. There's also a clever power management package that shuts
down the computer and monitor after a preset period of time. A
touch of the spacebar awakens the system.
With a 166MHz Pentium, this Vectra is no performance slouch. Measured
with the Wintune 95 benchmark suite, the CPU racked up a score
of 302MIPS, equaling the ARM P166 Terminator III reviewed last
month. In fact, compared with the systems listed under the WinLab
Recommended Desktop Systems in the April issue, that CPU score
ranks this machine fourth among systems over $3,000. Uncached
disk performance was 3.3MB per second, also among the best we've
seen, and the video scored an impressive 13Mpixels per second,
thanks to the S3 Trio 64 video accelerator on the motherboard
with 2MB of video RAM. The machine's Word macro score was 19.8
seconds, a bit slow given its excellent low-level scores, and
its superior Excel score was 14 seconds.
Overall, I liked this machine. If the price seems steep, keep
in mind that I reviewed the Cadillac version. HP thinks most of
these machines will sell at about $1,800, sans monitor. Such a
machine has a 100MHz processor, 8MB of RAM and a 1.2GB disk, but
is otherwise identical to my fully loaded review unit.
Info File
HP Vectra 500 Series 515MCx
Price Without monitor, $3,017 (street);
monitor, $409 (street)
Pros: Performance; software
Cons: Keyboard
Hewlett-Packard Co.
800-752-0900, 415-857-1501
WinMag Box Score: 4.0
By James Alan Miller
The latest multimedia monster from Quantex Microsystems will help
you scare up some serious savings. The QP5/150 SM-2 is a powerful
150MHz Pentium system that provides an awe-inspiring feature set
at a price that won't intimidate you.
My mid-size tower review unit came with a total of six free drive
bays: three 3.5-inch internal and three 5.25-inch external bays.
A massive 2GB Seagate hard disk was installed below the power
supply alongside the two empty internal bays. Now, the bad news:
If you want to add drives to the empty bays, you'll have to move
the hard disk to a lower bracket. Poorly arranged power supply
wires also block these empty bays, making upgrades even more of
a hassle. Fortunately, the third free internal bay stands vertically
to the right of the others and is easy to access.
The floppy drive and speedy Aztech 6X IDE CD-ROM drive are located
underneath the three free external bays. The CD-ROM drive has
its own headphone jack, volume control, play and skip buttons,
as well as the standard button to open and close the tray. The
front of the case offers distinct power and reset buttons that
are clearly marked. There are also LED indicators for hard disk
access and power.
The Biostar motherboard incorporates Intel's Triton PCI chip set
and 256KB of pipeline-burst cache. Nestled under a heat sink,
the 150MHz processor keeps its cool, while a large fan further
dissipates heat. The four SIMM sockets are situated in the rear
right-hand corner of the motherboard. In two of these sockets
sit a total of 16MB of EDO RAM, which you can upgrade to 128MB,
though the awkward internal wiring makes accessing the sockets
a bit difficult.
To the left of the SIMM sockets are three empty PCI slots. A fourth
PCI slot contains the video card-an STB Powergraph Trio64V with
2MB of EDO RAM. The Powergraph driver utility appears in the taskbar
on bootup and is well designed and useful. While the Powergraph
is a solid card and more than adequate for most business and multimedia
needs, Quantex offers the Diamond Stealth 64 card as an upgrade.
Unfortunately, one of the PCI slots is unusable, because a bracket
for the serial and parallel ports is installed in the slot. Installing
the ports in the case's back panel would have been a better design
decision. Two of the four ISA slots are occupied by a SupraExpress
28.8Kb-per-second modem and an Ensoniq 16-bit wavetable sound
card. The CD-ROM's audio plugs directly into the sound board.
Altec Lansing speakers and a sub-woofer round out the multimedia
components.
The QP5/150 comes with MAG Inno-Vision's DX1795, a 17-inch monitor
with a 0.26mm dot pitch. The Plug-and-Play-compatible monitor
has a user-friendly on-screen menu for controls, with 13 preset
and eight user-configurable display modes. The DX1795 has an admirable
range of controls and handles resolutions up to 1280x1024 pixels.
Controls include standards such as brightness, contrast, degauss,
and horizontal and vertical position and size, as well as pincushion,
trapezoid, rotation and a color manager. The color manager extends
three preset color temperatures and lets you manipu-late red,
green and blue gain individually. The monitor is compliant with
the Swedish MPRII emissions and VESA DPMS energy-savings standards.
Its overall picture is very good-excellent, in fact, for a system
at this price and configuration.
You'd expect the QP5/ 150's blazing 150MHz Pentium processor to
leave tire marks on your applications, and it does. Measured with
WINDOWS Magazine's Wintune 95 benchmarks, the CPU maintained a
speedy throughput of 273.33MIPS, right up there with the very
best 150MHz performers. The uncached hard disk score was also
among the best, coming in at a fast 4.33MB per second. The solid
video mark of 12Mpixels per second was average for a similarly
configured system. The unit performed exceptionally on applications
benchmarks, with scores of 15 seconds for Word and 13 seconds
for Excel, falling just short of our highest 150MHz marks.
Like other Quantex systems I've seen recently, the QP5/150 SM-2
arrives configured with plenty of software. The bundle is centered
around Novell's PerfectOffice, which features WordPerfect, Presentations,
Quattro Pro, InfoCentral and Envoy. Other applications include
Quicken, Mindscape's Reference Library, the Grolier Multimedia
Encyclopedia and Al Unser Jr. Arcade Racing. There's also plenty
of software for catching the online wave, such as America Online,
CompuServe, Prodigy and NetCruiser.
The QP5/150 SM-2 bundles many excellent features at a price that
is almost too good to be true. For excellent performance and high-quality
multimedia, this system is a brute that will keep the competition
on its toes.
Info File
Quantex QP5/150 SM-2
Price $2,899 (direct)
Pros: Hard disk; sound card; price
Cons: Internal wiring
Quantex Microsystems
800-632-5022, 908-563-4166
WinMag Box Score: 3.5
By James Alan Miller
You'll feel mighty with a QUIN on your side, especially one with
a speedy 150MHz processor. DTK's QUIN-54M/P150 arrives in a roomy,
midsized tower case and features excellent performance as well
as a superior Diamond Stealth video card.
The simple, elegantly designed case comes with the floppy drive
at the top and the power button immediately to the right. You'll
appreciate this placement if you put the system under your desk.
A blazing TEAC 6X CD-ROM drive sits underneath the floppy drive,
and below that are three free 5.25-inch external drive bays. There's
also a reset button and two LED indicators for power and hard
disk access. A set of Lasonic speakers is also included.
Conveniently, you can open the case without a screwdriver: Just
pull the front bezel off the case by grasping the bottom of the
bezel and the rest of the case comes off easily. I discovered
this by trial and error since the manual doesn't describe this
relatively easy procedure, showing a case with screws rather than
one without.
Inside, the QUIN-54M/P150 has three available 3.5-inch drive bays.
All the empty bays are easily accessible, and DTK bundles brackets
and screws to keep new drives in place. Another drive bay holds
a massive 2-gigabyte Seagate IDE hard disk.
DTK pulls out the stops to keep the CPU cool and running smoothly.
The 150MHz Pentium processor sits directly beneath a heat sink
and a small fan; a larger fan is attached to the front of the
case. The four SIMM sockets stand in the rear right corner of
the motherboard. My review unit came with 16MB of EDO RAM, which
you can expand to 128MB. There's also 256KB of secondary pipeline
burst cache, expandable to 512KB. The motherboard incorporates
Intel's Triton PCI chip set. The system's internal wiring and
the position of one of the internal bays make accessing the SIMM
sockets troublesome.
Things get even messier when you examine the PCI and ISA slots,
as well as the placement and cabling for the serial and parallel
ports. Although two PCI slots appear to be free, neither is usable.
Connectors for the parallel port and two serial ports, a DB-9
and DB-25, block each one. The impressive video card, a Diamond
Stealth 64 with 4MB of VRAM, sits in a shared PCI/ISA slot, while
a Creative Labs 16-bit Sound Blaster, FM synthesis sound board
is in an ISA slot. While the Diamond video board is one of the
best you'll find in a desktop PC, the sound card is at the bottom
of the 16-bit audio range-PCs of this price and configuration
usually offer a wavetable audio solution.
The worst system component is the monitor. My review unit came
with DTK's own 15-inch model. Not only does the picture lack focus,
but it also appears splotchy with a slightly dark tinge. You can't
even adjust the picture to fill up the whole screen horizontally,
as it maxes out with about three-quarters of an inch to go before
bending abruptly at the four corners. Controls are limited to
the most basic functions. Similarly configured and priced systems
typically offer much better quality 17-inch monitors.
DTK is attentive to ergonomics relative to your hands, though.
First, you get the excellent and comfortable Microsoft Mouse 2.0.
Second, the QUIN bundles the ergonomic Microsoft Natural Keyboard.
This large, sleek device is designed to prevent typing-related
disorders like carpal tunnel syndrome, and is also ideal for those
already afflicted. There's a comfortable wrist rest and the keys
are placed so your hands fall in a more natural position when
typing.
Performance is where the QUIN-54M/P150 really excels. Tested with
Wintune 95 benchmarks, the CPU landed in the upper range for 150MHz
systems with a score of 274MIPS. Though the hard disk and video
scores were not as remarkable- at 3.6MB per second and 10.33Mpixels
per second, respectively-they were still admirable. Most notable,
however, were the QUIN's marks of 14.67 seconds on the Word macro
and 10.33 seconds for the Excel macro. The Excel score is competitive
with 166MHz system scores.
Oddly, the system arrived with no bundled software other than
Windows 95 and the Diamond Stealth 64 In Control Tools 95. The
In Control Tools are perhaps the best video card utilities available
for Windows 95, letting you change resolution and color depth
on the fly. Nevertheless, other systems of comparable power and
price offer much more software.
At $2,850, the QUIN-54M/P150 offers excellent performance. Unfortunately,
when it comes to features, the system falls considerably short
of other similarly priced 150MHz systems.
Info File
DTK QUIN-54M/P150
Price $2,850 (street)
Pros: Performance; case; video card
Cons: Monitor; software
DTK Computer
800-289-2385, 818-810-0098
WinMag Box Score:: 2.5
By John J. Yacono
Walking the tightrope balancing cost and features is never easy,
but the Micro Express MicroFLEX-PCI/P133 teeters only a little,
adding a few perks to an otherwise typical 133MHz Pentium.
There's plenty of expansion room, with two 3.5-inch and two 5.25-inch
drive bays ripe for the taking, and many free card slots. The
memory slots are behind some cabling, but the motherboard rests
on a panel held by just two screws, making any major mother-board
upgrade easy. The floppy cable was unattached when I received
the system, and cables for the CD-ROM and hard disk were attached
to the drives but not to the motherboard.
Once I connected the cables appropriately, the 1.28-gigabyte Quantum
Fireball hard drive and HiLite quad-speed CD-ROM drive were up
and running. The hard disk performed well, clocking in 3.27MB
per second uncached throughput on the Wintune 95 benchmarks, average
for a system with this configuration.
One noteworthy feature is the 17-inch Smile monitor, which produced
a sharp image and had easy-to-use controls. The horizontal-size
setting is limited though, leaving 0.25-inch black mar-gins on
the left and right sides.
Another plus is the system's enhanced-capabilities parallel port,
which was not activated in the system BIOS and Windows 95. Setting
up the BIOS correctly and reinstalling the printer port in Win95
unleashed the power of this data spigot, which cranked out an
impressive 481KBps.
The audio system was also a dichotomy. The excellent Creative
Labs AWE32 sound card was limited by a mediocre speaker system
(sans subwoofer). The standard keyboard was pleasant to use and
had a noticeable tactile click. The comfortable Microsoft Dove
bar-type mouse was a serial model, which left me with one less
external port.
Micro Express doesn't provide much of a software bundle; there
is no office suite or other productivity package. Communications
programs for faxing and data were included to accompany the 28.8Kbps
fax modem.
Low-level benchmark performance measured with Wintune 95 was standard
for a 133MHz Pentium; the CPU scored 245MIPS. The exception was
an outstanding video score, thanks in part to the Matrox MGA Millennium
video card with 2MB of video memory: 16.67Mpixels per second.
Provided my experience with the cable assembly was a fluke, this
is not a bad system for the price. Its performance and video quality
will please anyone, and it provides nice perks like the AWE32
sound card and room for expansion.
Info File
Micro Express MicroFLEX-PCI/P133
Price $2,499
Pros: Video; BIOS; sound card
Cons: Software bundle; speakers
Micro Express
800-989-9900, 714-852-1400
WinMag Box Score: 3.0
By Marc Spiwak
The phrase "multimedia on a shoestring" conjures up
images of stripped-down PCs in my skeptical mind, but Quantex
is out to prove me wrong. Its new QP5/75 M-1 is a 75MHz Pentium
system that sells for $1,449-less than a 486 DX2/66 cost only
a year ago-but it comes loaded with plenty of multimedia juice.
My QP5/75 M-1 review unit was configured with 8MB of EDO RAM,
a 1.08-gigabyte Seagate hard drive and a Toshiba 4X CD-ROM drive.
The installed STB PowerGraph 64 video card came with 1MB of EDO
DRAM. The 2MB version of this card is a barn-burner, and this
1MB sibling is no slouch either: The QP5/75 M-1 scored an impressive
6.77Mpixels per second on the Wintune 95 video test, better than
any other P75 I've tested. And you can add more memory to the
video card.
Topping off the system are a 16-bit FM synthesis sound card, a
14.4Kbps fax modem and a 15-inch MAG InnoVision monitor. The unit's
Win95 keyboard and ergonomic Microsoft mouse are nice touches.
The mini-tower case has one internal and two external drive bays
free as well as one PCI and two ISA slots free. As in the Quantex
QP5/150 SM-2 also reviewed this month, one of the P5/75's PCI
slots is unnecessarily blocked by a bracket for a serial and parallel
port.
With the exception of the stellar video performance, the QP5/75
M-1's benchmark scores were comparable to other 75MHz systems
I've tested: 136MIPS for the CPU and 2.03MB per second for the
uncached hard disk.
The Quantex QP5/75 M-1 provides a comprehensive multimedia feature
set at a price to please the penny-pincher in all of us.
Info File
Quantex QP5/75 M-1
Price $1,449 (street)
Pros: Price; features
Cons: Blocked PCI slot
Quantex Microsystems
800-632-5022, 908-563-4166
WinMag Box Score: 3.5