Gateway T-6836

Pros: Very Fast, 4gb RAM, 64 bit, runs very cool, great display, long battery life

Cons: Weak graphics card, weak speakers

Summary: I'll have to disagree and say first off that the volume controls are great. They're completely touch and in a very convenient location. The sound is quite weak from the speakers, but if you have any other speakers to hook up you'll be happy. It is annoying that the fn key and ctrl key were switched around, but I got used to it very quickly and barely notice it anymore.

The laptop runs extremely cool and quickly. While the computer can't run new games it can run a little bit older ones perfectly fine. The computer will get luke warm for me, and I don't even have a cooling pad for it yet. I haven't seen many computers run Vista as smoothly as I would want, but this one certainly does the job. 800 is a great price, but I got it on sale at Best Buy for 650, so this was a steal.

I'm not sure about CNET's testing for battery life, but I did my own playing with video, gaming and just surfing the net. With just normal surfing and Microsoft Office use, I pulled out over 4 hours on this thing. Video- 3 hours. Moderate gaming-3 hours.

Everything about the computer is very appealing, and the case is sturdy to boot. It is one to get smudges and fingerprints very easily, but who cares?

All around a great laptop- perfect for a college student like myself!