Gateway DX4380-UR308 Desktop (Black)

• AMD A-Series A8-5500 processor 3.2GHz (4MB L2 Cache)
• 8GB DDR3
• 1 TB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive
• Windows 8

I'm not a IT tech and I don't play games, but I wanted a desktop for photo editing and storage since we already have multiple laptops in the house. After spending a few weeks scouring the internet trying to figure out how much a computer should cost I got pretty frustrated with the complete lack of pricing structure involved. Some models look like they were destined to be on sale, while some looked kind of reasonable at their regular price. I finally found this one and was pleasantly suprised to see what seemed to be rather impressive specs for a computer in this price range (I even had an IT guy at work check it out, he gave it a thumbs up). I was able to get this computer during a "lightning deal" during cyber monday week which made it an even better deal.

I wanted:

A big hard drive (1TB) since my camera is spitting out huge RAW files

At least an ok graphics card (AMD Radeon(tm) HD 7560D) in case I start to use photoshop on top of using lightroom

A decent dual or quad core processor (AMD® A-Series Quad-Core A8-5500 Processor 3.2GHz)

At least 8GB RAM

I've had it set-up for a couple of days now and I am very happy with it. Windows 8 seems to run really fast and smooth, I've only had IE lock up once on me. This isn't a Win 8 review so that's all I'll say. As for what's in the box, very basic stuff. The keyboard and mouse are wired USB which isn't too big of a deal, especially for the keyboard. I may buy a wireless mouse at some point but they work fine with no worries about batteries. Note, the video card only has a VGA and HDMI, no DVI, so I had to order a HDMI to DVI cable for a digital connection to my monitor which does not have an HDMI input.

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For the money, this computer isn't bad but it has a few basic flaws that are very common to prebuilt computers.

1. The case it comes in is an oven for the components. Especially the hard drives. Not only are there no fans for the hard drives but there isn't even a space to add a fan if you're willing to buy your own and install it yourself.

The tool-less hard drive bay that is meant to be convenient (and is) also is directly below the DVD drive so the heat has nowhere to go. If you put a hard drive in this space and run it for a few hours, it gets very hot. To the point to where if you take it out and hold it in your hand, it is very uncomfortable to touch. How hard is it to add a fan for the hard drive?

2. The computer doesn't come with an actual restore CD and a separate copy of your operating system like computers used to. Instead, they have recovery partitions on the hard drive. Which is fine as long as your hard drive never dies or gets corrupted or somehow erased. Not the kind of chance I like to take with a piece of equipment that's useless without a hundred dollars worth of software. I don't care what their excuses are, there is no excuse for this. There is no reason you shouldn't be able to use your computer and have peace of mind that if anything goes wrong you can simply fix it with a quick reinstall.

Of course, it's rare to find a store bought PC without the same flaws. If you plan on buying one of these, plan on buying a copy of Windows just to make sure you're safe. And if you're going to spend that much money, you might as well either build your own and buy Windows or have someone build you one and get a better PC out of the deal. I was not aware that this computer did not come with a Windows CD when I bought it. I kept it anyway but I wouldn't do it again.

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I also got this during the Amazon lightning deal. I wouldn't pay the advertised price for this..it was worth what i payed for it. I too had issues with windows 8 but..found out there are apps out there to make it all look like your older windows platforms AND still enjoy the apps off to the side if you want. I wanted to get a major upgrade and get a system that my kids can game on..so far they are impressed. I have had no issues with it so far. It does have a expansion slot for an additional cd/dvd/bluray drive of your chosing. Yes, it does start up fast:)

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This one has plenty of pros:

1. AMD A8 quad core processor. It's the latest Trinity design with great built in graphics. Unless your a hard core gamer, you wont be needing more here.

2. 1TB Seagate hard drive. It's a well rated hard drive with good SATA 6 performance and plenty of room for storage.

3. USB 3.0, Blutooth 4.0, and Wireless "N" networking with dual antenna's for great reception.

4. HDMI port for using as a media center, or hooking up to a higher end monitor.

5. Windows 8....yes this is a PRO! For those willing to take the time to get to know how to use it, it's a fast, capable OS with a lot of cool features. And Gateway includes a few bits of software(including an honest to goodness "Power Button" disguised as an app to help you along). Windows 8 works smoothly and with zero slowdown on this computer, and more than that you cant ask for.

6. Acer quality. Gateway was bought out by Acer a few years ago, and their influence is really shining through here. It's well made and seems to be ready for the long haul, not the case with Gateway's before the acquisition.

7. 8GB of 1333 DDR3 ram upgradable to 16GB, most at this price class only include 4GB standard.

Con:

300 watt power supply of dubious quality....as a precaution I installed a 300 watt Seasonic. Not really a con, just a paranoid precaution of mine.

This is one of the better computers you can buy on Amazon. It's specs are great, it performs well with Windows 8, and it's very expandable(pcie 16 2.0 video card slot, extra pci slots, two extra open memory slots). Yes you can also add additional hard drives(there's plenty of room where the main hard drive is, simply move it down a notch)as well as an additional CD/DVD or Bluray drive if you want to. If your worried about heat, simply add a few fans(Amazon sells case fans as well as hard drive fans), a cheap and easy fix. I can't more highly recommend this, it's a great computer for the money spent.

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First off very easy to use. After! 3 hours of playing with windows 8 finally got used to moving around on it. Threw max 16 G memory and graphics card. Works faster than before. No problem making it dual boot with second drive and win 7 on it. Guess not too many people know how to make it work....not even the tech support from the maker. Anyways i got it working just fine. Can't beat it for the price. If you want a computer for upgrades more than what i did then buy something else.