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expired Posted by RelaxedSeed603 • Sep 28, 2023
expired Posted by RelaxedSeed603 • Sep 28, 2023

Micro Center In Store Only: Gateway 15.6" FHD Gaming Laptop Computer RTX 3050 $429.99

$430

$660

34% off
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15.6" FHD Gaming Notebook Laptop Computer - Black Intel Core i5 11th Gen 11400H 2.2GHz Processor; NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4GB RAM; 16GB Onboard RAM; 512GB Solid State Drive

Specs:
Intel Core i5 11th Gen 11400H 2.2GHz Processor
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4GB RAM
16GB Onboard RAM (Not soldered, dual channel)
512GB Solid State Drive
Microsoft Windows 11 Home
microSD Card Slot
15.6" FHD IPS 120Hz Display

This was a previous FP at $400. It has been increased by $30. RAM is unsoldered. On teardown videos [youtube.com], it has 2 NVME slots and an additional slot for 2.5" SATA drive, so it has very expandable internal storage options.

IN STORE ONLY OR PICKUP. Limited to 1 laptop per customer

https://www.microcenter.com/produ...uter-black
Community Notes
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Deal Details
Community Notes
About the Poster
15.6" FHD Gaming Notebook Laptop Computer - Black Intel Core i5 11th Gen 11400H 2.2GHz Processor; NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4GB RAM; 16GB Onboard RAM; 512GB Solid State Drive

Specs:
Intel Core i5 11th Gen 11400H 2.2GHz Processor
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4GB RAM
16GB Onboard RAM (Not soldered, dual channel)
512GB Solid State Drive
Microsoft Windows 11 Home
microSD Card Slot
15.6" FHD IPS 120Hz Display

This was a previous FP at $400. It has been increased by $30. RAM is unsoldered. On teardown videos [youtube.com], it has 2 NVME slots and an additional slot for 2.5" SATA drive, so it has very expandable internal storage options.

IN STORE ONLY OR PICKUP. Limited to 1 laptop per customer

https://www.microcenter.com/produ...uter-black

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+11
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17 Comments

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Pro
Sep 28, 2023
9,392 Posts
Joined Nov 2020
Sep 28, 2023
Dr.Wajahat
Pro
Sep 28, 2023
9,392 Posts

Our community has rated this post as helpful. If you agree, why not thank Dr.Wajahat

Has been this price for around a few weeks now.
Also, it wasn't FP at $399.99 the last time it was posted: https://slickdeals.net/f/16898818-gateway-15-6-fhd-gaming-notebook-laptop-399?src=SiteSearchV2Algo
It was FP more than a month ago when it hadn't dipped down to $299.99.

It was $299.99 and that was FP. https://slickdeals.net/f/16882511-micro-center-stores-gateway-laptop-15-6-fhd-120hz-i5-11400h-rtx-3050-16gb-ram-300-free-store-pickup?src=SiteSearchV2Algo
Despite it being a price error, a lot of the stores did honor it.

Something to consider.
Last edited by Dr.Wajahat September 28, 2023 at 10:24 AM.
1
Sep 28, 2023
1,414 Posts
Joined Sep 2018
Sep 28, 2023
AmusedPlastic6071
Sep 28, 2023
1,414 Posts
Need them to make the error again Lol I'm ready to drive there for $299!
Sep 28, 2023
2,081 Posts
Joined Apr 2008
Sep 28, 2023
samuraiX20
Sep 28, 2023
2,081 Posts
Quote from Dr.Wajahat :
Has been this price for around a few weeks now.
Also, it wasn't FP at $399.99 the last time it was posted: https://slickdeals.net/f/16898818-gateway-15-6-fhd-gaming-notebook-laptop-399?src=SiteSearchV2Algo
It was FP more than a month ago when it hadn't dipped down to $299.99.

It was $299.99 and that was FP. https://slickdeals.net/f/16882511-micro-center-stores-gateway-laptop-15-6-fhd-120hz-i5-11400h-rtx-3050-16gb-ram-300-free-store-pickup?src=SiteSearchV2Algo
Despite it being a price error, a lot of the stores did honor it.

Something to consider.
Wow, 300$ is definitely slick. Will wait patiently if they slip up again
Sep 29, 2023
72 Posts
Joined Jan 2015
Sep 29, 2023
fedecape
Sep 29, 2023
72 Posts
got this one for $399 + the $25 off for first time buyers so $375 + tax. Overall, I think it's great value. I briefly booted it to download an ISO of W11 to do a clean install, and saw Norton anti-virus -- that alone should be enough to warrant the clean install.

CS2, Fortnite run great at highish settings. Not pro enough to notice any issues with the display, 120hz and is good enough for my casual use.
Microsoft Flight Sim runs great in a medium/high mix.

Goes without saying but flies through any non gaming tasks. The keyboard's good, the trackpad is mediocre coming from a MacBook, but you'll probably have an external mouse. Battery is adequate at best too.
Sep 29, 2023
1,490 Posts
Joined Sep 2014
Sep 29, 2023
bootymonger
Sep 29, 2023
1,490 Posts
Quote from fedecape :
got this one for $399 + the $25 off for first time buyers so $375 + tax. Overall, I think it's great value. I briefly booted it to download an ISO of W11 to do a clean install, and saw Norton anti-virus -- that alone should be enough to warrant the clean install.

CS2, Fortnite run great at highish settings. Not pro enough to notice any issues with the display, 120hz and is good enough for my casual use.
Microsoft Flight Sim runs great in a medium/high mix.

Goes without saying but flies through any non gaming tasks. The keyboard's good, the trackpad is mediocre coming from a MacBook, but you'll probably have an external mouse. Battery is adequate at best too.
Can you or anyone else who got one do a quick Crystaldiskmark [crystalmark.info]? I can't get more than 350-375 MB/s for sequential write. Not sure if it's Norton or some other problem that would be fixed by your clean install or a problem with the SSD. It's supposed to do sequential write faster than 1 GB/s.
Last edited by bootymonger September 29, 2023 at 01:11 PM.
Sep 29, 2023
38 Posts
Joined Sep 2014
Sep 29, 2023
pseudogod
Sep 29, 2023
38 Posts
Got a couple of these at $399. For the price it was a no brainer. Build quality is much better than I expected. Battery is the weak point.
Sep 29, 2023
72 Posts
Joined Jan 2015
Sep 29, 2023
fedecape
Sep 29, 2023
72 Posts
Quote from bootymonger :
Can you or anyone else who got one do a quick Crystaldiskmark [crystalmark.info]? I can't get more than 350-375 MB/s for sequential write. Not sure if it's Norton or some other problem that would be fixed by your clean install or a problem with the SSD. It's supposed to do sequential write faster than 1 GB/s.
see attached -- looks on par with your results (this is after a clean install from the microsoft website)
1

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Sep 29, 2023
1,490 Posts
Joined Sep 2014
Sep 29, 2023
bootymonger
Sep 29, 2023
1,490 Posts
Quote from fedecape :
see attached -- looks on par with your results (this is after a clean install from the microsoft website)
Good info, thanks! I tried installing Samsung Magician to see if it would update the firmware, but our model PM991 isn't really supported.
Sep 29, 2023
1,490 Posts
Joined Sep 2014
Sep 29, 2023
bootymonger
Sep 29, 2023
1,490 Posts

Our community has rated this post as helpful. If you agree, why not thank bootymonger

The speakers have no bass (can't hear much below 150 Hz) but they have excellent stereo separation (wide sound stage).

This does have a 2.5 Gbps ethernet port.

This has an Intel AX201 Wifi 6 card that has decent reception but somewhat slow transmission in my case (this is somewhat far from an old Asus RT-AC68U). Still plenty to smoothly stream 4K files, etc., but transferring large files might be annoying. Wifi is environmental, so maybe this is my fault. It works better with the lid open.

Doing normal browsing, the battery only lasts around 2 hours and 45 minutes. I'll see if that improves if I uninstall Norton after the trial ends.

This Gateway has a 60w RTX 3050 but it can be set to 80w + 15w boost. The fan gets loud at full blast but it's quiet enough or silent during video playback.

The Gateway support page is pretty out of date. This is a rebadged 2021 TongFang of some kind. There's a German company, Schenker XMG, that uses the same TongFang chassis (with better parts). You can use their Control Center, which is better than the one Gateway has when you get it (and certainly better than the Gateway support page's version, which breaks the install). If you mess up and use the Gateway support version, be sure to run Uninstall because it started to eat RAM and CPU a week or two after I put the below better version over the Gateway support version. That was fixed by running Uninstall from the OEM Control Center folder and then reinstalling XMG version.

Direct link:
https://go.xmg.gg/download-cc49-2022

Detailed explanation of its features:
https://www.reddit.com/r/XMG_gg/c...e_and_neo/

There's a way to disable Optimus and force the dGPU to be used in that software, but I'm not sure that works with this model. There isn't a way to do that in the BIOS (F2 during boot).

For other updates, just use Windows Update, Nvidia's page or Geforce Experience, and perhaps the Intel driver updater: https://www.intel.com/content/www...etect.html

If you want more pictures and discussion of the chassis quality, the below review matches the case (metal lid and area around keyboard that does attract fingerprints but a microfiber cloth solves that, keyboard layout with numpad but no far right enter key, plastic bottom), but has different CPU, GPU, SSD and screen. This Gateway is matte and 120Hz. The low quality webcam is in the top bezel above the display, unlike the 2020 version you might have seen reviewed. If you have incandescent lights, the IR part of the camera might turn you blue even when your just using the normal camera. There's a handy button near the power button that lets you switch between office/quiet/balanced mode, gamer/enthusiast mode, and overboost mode. You can configure the fan curves for each of these in the Control Center (see above links). You can also choose how fast and how much the battery will charge if you plan to leave it plugged in most of the time. https://www.notebookcheck.net/Sch...888.0.html
2
Sep 30, 2023
84 Posts
Joined Jun 2017
Sep 30, 2023
ksalmon1
Sep 30, 2023
84 Posts
Just picked this up and am very pleasantly surprised with the build quality, screen, and sound for $407 after $25 coupon. The next comparable laptop is around $600-700, so this seems like a steal for casual gaming while traveling and browsing.
Pro
Sep 30, 2023
7,802 Posts
Joined Mar 2018
Sep 30, 2023
WooHoo2You
Pro
Sep 30, 2023
7,802 Posts
Quote from samuraiX20 :
Wow, 300$ is definitely slick. Will wait patiently if they slip up again
I'm 99% sure that $300 was a price error that same stores honored and others didn't. There has been a lot of hate and discussion around the topic is why I know.
Oct 1, 2023
2,970 Posts
Joined Jun 2009
Oct 1, 2023
wildpig1234
Oct 1, 2023
2,970 Posts

Our community has rated this post as helpful. If you agree, why not thank wildpig1234

Quote from bootymonger :
The speakers have no bass (can't hear much below 150 Hz) but they have excellent stereo separation (wide sound stage).

This does have a 2.5 Gbps ethernet port.

This has an Intel AX201 Wifi 6 card that has decent reception but somewhat slow transmission in my case (this is somewhat far from an old Asus RT-AC68U). Still plenty to smoothly stream 4K files, etc., but transferring large files might be annoying. Wifi is environmental, so maybe this is my fault. It works better with the lid open.

Doing normal browsing, the battery only lasts around 2 hours and 45 minutes. I'll see if that improves if I uninstall Norton after the trial ends.

This Gateway has a 60w RTX 3050 but it can be set to 80w + 15w boost. The fan gets loud at full blast but it's quiet enough or silent during video playback.

The Gateway support page is pretty out of date. This is a rebadged 2021 TongFang of some kind. There's a German company, Schenker XMG, that uses the same TongFang chassis (with better parts). You can use their Control Center, which is better than the one Gateway has when you get it (and certainly better than the Gateway support page's version, which breaks the install). If you mess up and use the Gateway support version, be sure to run Uninstall because it started to eat RAM and CPU a week or two after I put the below better version over the Gateway support version. That was fixed by running Uninstall from the OEM Control Center folder and then reinstalling XMG version.

Direct link:
https://go.xmg.gg/download-cc49-2022

Detailed explanation of its features:
https://www.reddit.com/r/XMG_gg/c...e_and_neo/

There's a way to disable Optimus and force the dGPU to be used in that software, but I'm not sure that works with this model. There isn't a way to do that in the BIOS (F2 during boot).

For other updates, just use Windows Update, Nvidia's page or Geforce Experience, and perhaps the Intel driver updater: https://www.intel.com/content/www...etect.html

If you want more pictures and discussion of the chassis quality, the below review matches the case (metal lid and area around keyboard that does attract fingerprints but a microfiber cloth solves that, keyboard layout with numpad but no far right enter key, plastic bottom), but has different CPU, GPU, SSD and screen. This Gateway is matte and 120Hz. The low quality webcam is in the top bezel above the display, unlike the 2020 version you might have seen reviewed. If you have incandescent lights, the IR part of the camera might turn you blue even when your just using the normal camera. There's a handy button near the power button that lets you switch between office/quiet/balanced mode, gamer/enthusiast mode, and overboost mode. You can configure the fan curves for each of these in the Control Center (see above links). You can also choose how fast and how much the battery will charge if you plan to leave it plugged in most of the time. https://www.notebookcheck.net/Sch...888.0.html
The gateway battery is only 46Wh but you can put in a longer 62Wh battery that is shown in the notebookcheck review for about $50 if you want a bit longer battery life. of course you lose the space for the 2.5 in but not many people use 2.5 drive now and especially given that this has two nvme slots.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/304044873541
Last edited by wildpig1234 October 1, 2023 at 10:32 AM.
1
Oct 3, 2023
168 Posts
Joined Jun 2013
Oct 3, 2023
gravitywell
Oct 3, 2023
168 Posts
Seems like I should upgrade the nvme in this. Anyone know what gen it can use / what upgrade to get?
Oct 6, 2023
2,970 Posts
Joined Jun 2009
Oct 6, 2023
wildpig1234
Oct 6, 2023
2,970 Posts
can anyone tell me exactly how they "count" two miniDisplayPorts in this thing? lol

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Oct 6, 2023
2,970 Posts
Joined Jun 2009
Oct 6, 2023
wildpig1234
Oct 6, 2023
2,970 Posts
how do i get the keyboard backlit to stay in one color instead of cycling through several color?

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