Features - Storage Innovations:

GATEWAY SATA RAID ENCLOSURE HELPS STORE 2 TB FOR UNDER $6,000

Large multimedia files. Ballooning databases. Reams of HIPAA compliance information. More than ever before, organizations desperately require low-cost storage for their growing data needs.

Gateway announces much-needed relief for cash- and resource-strapped IT managers with the launch of the Gateway 840 SATA RAID Enclosure. A value-priced, high-capacity storage device, the Gateway 840 is a 2U rackmount appliance that attaches directly to servers. Based on Serial ATA technology -- 30 to 50 percent less expensive than SCSI drives, yet providing similar capacity -- the Gateway 840 is the ideal product for small- and medium-sized businesses wanting a low-hassle, low-cost storage solution.

Customers can now officially begin ordering the Gateway 840 SATA RAID Enclosure, which expands Gateway's direct attach storage (DAS) line. Gateway today also launches the Gateway 860 NAS appliance, a SAN alliance with Hitachi Data Systems and new Gateway System Manager software -- all part of a major new push by the company into the rapidly growing storage market.

"Much in the same way Gateway took the plasma TV market by storm with a high-quality product at a revolutionary price, we're setting our sights on the storage market to help business customers get innovative products without breaking the bank," said Scott Weinbrandt, senior vice president and general manager of Gateway's Enterprise Systems Division. "That's why we're bringing Serial ATA into external storage to help give customers greater capacity and reliability -- at a disruptively low price. Businesses now have the option to go with the Gateway 850 for SCSI-based direct attach storage or the new Gateway 840 for value-priced SATA storage."

Built to fit any rack-optimized server environment, the Gateway 840 SATA RAID Enclosure features a host of storage, reliability and expansion capabilities. Customers already deploying Gateway 955, 975 and 995 rackmount servers will find the Gateway 840 serves as excellent spillover storage or as a key component in a SAN or NAS for large-volume storage supporting e-mail, database, CRM, ERP and file-sharing applications.

The Gateway 840 supports up to 12 hot-swappable 80, 160 or 250GB SATA drives, scaling up to three Terabytes of data -- all in a compact, 2U chassis. The device uses a Ultra-320 SCSI interface to the server, minimizing the need for IT managers to deploy new cabling or interface technology. In addition, the Gateway 840 is packed with reliability features, such as a built-in RAID controller (supporting RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 and 50), redundant hot-swappable fans and dual redundant 350-watt power supplies.

Offered at a base price of $3,949 for the 320GB model (and $7,199 for the 3TB version), the Gateway 840 comes standard with three Serial ATA drives, an integrated RAID controller and built-in standard rack mounting rails at no additional charge. The subsystem will ship in mid-December and will soon support high-availability, fail-over clustering with Microsoft Cluster Server and Microsoft Cluster Service.