Gateway LT2016U Netbook Review

Introduction:

The Gateway LT2016U is now the second Netbook to be released through Verizon Wireless, after the HP Mini 1151NR earlier this year. Both have similar features and come with an internal Mobile Broadband data card that operates on Verizon’s EVDO Rev A network while in the US, as well as quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE and tri-band UMTS/HSPA while roaming. There is also a CAT 5 Ethernet port and Wi-Fi 802.11b/g for people who have access to a WLAN.
Included in the retail package are the Gateway LT2016U Netbook, 6-cell battery, wall charger, and user guides.


Hardware:

The Gateway LT2016U is not as light and compact as the HP Mini 1151NR, as it measures 10.17”W x 7.24”D x 1.03”D and has a weight of 2.95 pounds, where the HP Mini 1151NR is only 6.5”D and weighs 2.5 pounds. This is due to the larger 6-cell battery on the Gateway. When the two Netbooks are side-by-side you can clearly see the difference in size, and when you pick them up you can feel the difference in weight. Because of this, the HP Mini 1151NR remains the more portable device.



The LED backlit display on the Gateway LT2016U measures 10.1-inches diagonal and has a resolution of 1024x600 pixels. The size and quality is identical to the HP Mini 1151NR, but the Gateway Netbook does not have the protective glass in front of the display, like on the HP Mini. This makes it easier to view outside, since sunlight does not reflect on it as much. Directly above the display are the mic and webcam, which is capable of capturing 640x480 video at 30fps.



Located on the sides are three USB 2.0 ports, wired ethernet jack, 15-pin VGA monitor output, headphone out, microphone in, and media card reader for SD/MMC/RS-MMC/xD/MS/MS-PRO. Naturally it does not come with an internal CD/DVD drive, but an external unit is available that connects via USB.



Both the Gateway LT2016U and HP Mini 1151NR use the same Intel Atom N270 processor, operating at 1.6 GHz, and come with 1GB of internal RAM. Thankfully, the Gateway Netbook has a larger 160GB hard drive, instead of the 80GB that comes with the HP 1151NR. This is a nice improvement, as you have more storage space, but we’ve read that the new HP Mini 311 and Mini 110 will also come with the larger 160GB hard drive once they are released by Verizon. While we find the Gateway LT2016U plenty fast for most web browsing and email use, we wish it came with an option for 2GB of RAM, as that would help with running larger Windows applications.



Even though the keyboard on the Gateway LT2016U takes up the same amount of space as the keyboard on the HP Mini 1151NR, there are some differences. Most noticeably, the Gateway’s keyboard buttons are smaller and closer in size to a standard traditional keyboard, instead of being bigger like on the HP Mini. When testing the two Netbooks, we found that typing was easier on the Gateway and there were fewer mistakes. Also, the touchpad on the Gateway has a more traditional look as the buttons are located on the bottom. We also didn’t have the accuracy problems with the Gateway touchpad that we experienced with the HP, which made it easier to use.