Date: September 16th, 2004
Article by: Nathan Glentworth (Owner, Head Editor & Hardware Reviewer)
Product was donated by: Gateway
<--SHOP FOR A HOME THEATER DVD RECORDER HERE

GATEWAY CORPORATE PROFILE

Founded in 1985 in an Iowa farmhouse, Gateway has grown into one of America's best known brands with millions of satisfied customers. Starting with a $10,000 loan guaranteed by his grandmother, a rented computer and a three-page business plan, Ted Waitt turned Gateway into a revolutionary company whose innovations helped shape the technology industry.

The company — previously called Gateway 2000 — received national acclaim in 1991 when it introduced its distinctive cow-spotted boxes, a tribute to its farm heritage. In 1993, it cracked the Fortune 500 and went public, trading on the NASDAQ before moving its stock to the New York Stock Exchange in 1997. The following year, Gateway shifted its head office from North Sioux City, South Dakota, to the San Diego area.

In March 2004, the company acquired eMachines, one of the world's fastest growing and most efficient PC makers, in a transaction valued at the time of the announcement at $235 million. Details surrounding Gateway's new channel and brand strategy are anticipated soon.

Gateway, since its earliest days, has pioneered numerous industry trends and practices. It was the first PC company to offer systems with color monitors as standard, the first to offer a standard three-year warranty and the first to commercially explore convergence of the PC and television. It was one of the nation's early "bricks and clicks" retailers, and it was among the first direct retailers to sell its own branded consumer electronics with the launch of the highly successful Gateway® Plasma TV.

As Gateway pushes into new frontiers, it remains dedicated to its original objective of helping people improve their lives through technology.

PRODUCT INTRODUCTION

With DVD media and player sales booming in recent years, the mighty consumer dollar is telling electronic manufacturers that DVD audio and video is now the controlling standard in the home entertainment market and will remain in control for quite some time. Now don't get me wrong, VCRs are still very popular due to there cassette legacy, but users are getting tired of the older inferior technology. Let's just sum it up as saying they are not being kicked out of the market because of their relative bulk and poor audio/visual quality quite yet, but they are certainly being handed their hat.

Until recently, home based video recording in the livingroom has been still mired in the older VCR standard. But in the last 8-10 months, home theater DVD recorders are starting to make their way into the market in a big way and prices are falling at an incredible rate as more and more manufacturers scramble to take hold and grasp the new home theater recording standard with their specific product.

What I will be reviewing today is Gateway's foray into the affordable home based DVD recorder market with the AR-230. With every feature of a standard DVD player, a TV tuner and a DVD burner all in one neat and easy to use package, you might want to check out this review to see just how easy DVD recording can be.

I'll let you into a secret, it is even easier than recording with a VCR.....no joke.