It has been a while since I’ve had a desktop PC at my house. My wife and I have been laptop users for the last 10 years or more. We have two desks at home, but neither desk is used for computing unless one of us is working from home.
I’ve been using one of the desks to test the new Gateway 23.8-inch All-in-one Desktop computer, which has a budget-friendly price of $399.
Unfortunately, to meet that price point, it has some specs that I’d find hard to recommend to many people.
Let’s see what it has inside, how it feels to use and see if we can figure out who should buy it.
Specs
The 23.8-inch All-in-one (model GWAP42424) looks just like any other monitor on my desk, but this one has the PC built-into the back of the screen. The ports face the bottom and side.
The entire assembly is mounted to a height-adjustable stand and the screen can rotate 90-degrees for a vertical orientation. The stand is solid and easy to adjust. The computer can also be removed from the stand and mounted on a wall.
There are two stereo speakers behind the screen, facing downward, but don’t count on them to provide any more than the minimum acceptable sound.
They’ll be fine for a Zoom call or YouTube videos, but they are not suitable for listening to music. Luckily there is a headphone jack on the side of the screen. Almost any external speakers will be an improvement.
The 23.8-inch IPS FHD display has a resolution of 1,920 x 1,080 pixels. The panel is very bright and clear.
Inside, the computer is powered by a quad-core Intel Pentium Silver J5040 CPU running at 2.0 gigahertz. The processor was introduced in late 2019.
The PC has four gigabytes of RAM and a 128GB solid-state drive and it comes with Windows 11 Home.
I want to stop here for a minute to say this RAM and storage configuration is less than I would recommend to anyone buying a new PC.
I recommend a minimum of eight gigabytes of RAM and 256GB or 512GB of solid-state storage if you want a reasonably speedy system.
This one doesn’t meet those specs, so you can expect slower response, but you may be willing to put up with that for the price.
There is a 2-megapixel camera for attending video conference calls.
The camera housing is hidden behind the screen, and when you want to use the camera, you grab it and slide it up. When you are finished with the call, you can slide it back down out of sight.
The camera quality is good, not great. If you are working from home, you’ll look just fine on camera.
Ports include four high-speed USB 3.1, HDMI, VGA, Ethernet, and audio in/out.
The side panel includes two USB 2.0 ports, audio in/out and an SD card slot.
The PC has 802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5) and Bluetooth 4.2.
It ships with a wireless keyboard and mouse.
Product dimensions are 21.2 inches by 12.8 inches by 2.1 inches, and it weighs 11 pounds.
It is available in black or white and is exclusively sold by Walmart, in stores and online.
Design
This is a good-looking computer. I have it on my desk next to a 24-inch Dell monitor and they look exactly alike.
The ports are easy enough to reach, especially since the screen rotates to for easy access.
This is basically a laptop computer built into the back of a monitor.
The electric cord does have a power brick, which is to be expected.
The included wireless keyboard and mouse don’t weigh very much, and they seem cheap, but they work well enough.
Who is it for?
This PC is for the user on a serious budget.
The $400 price is hard to resist for someone looking for a cheap computer.
If you need to buy a computer for your kid to do some schoolwork, this one will do the job. If they try to install games, they’ll likely be disappointed with the results.
If you just need a PC for browsing the internet, reading email, social media and perhaps the occasional video call, this PC will do, with some caveats.
Working in programs like Microsoft Teams seemed to bog down the computer. Resizing windows or moving between tabs was noticeably slow.
If you buy this PC, you will not be blown away by the speed, and I doubt the CPU and RAM will be viable in three or four years.
Conclusions
I hate to be hard on a product that is clearly not aimed at me.
I realize there are PC buyers who are on a limited budget, and this PC might be a good choice for them.
I really wish Gateway offered a configuration with 8GB of RAM and a 256GB solid-state drive. I also wish it had a more viable processor, but it does not.
I can’t recommend the Gateway All-in-one for many users, but I do understand why it exists and if this PC meets your needs and fits your budget, it’ll do the job.
Pros: Inexpensive, nice design, sharp screen.
Cons: Slow CPU, RAM and storage are lacking.
Bottom Line: Most will buy this one based on price, not specs.
