Gateway Computers Tower
Year First Appeared
1992
Creator
Ted Waitt, Mike Hammond
A Gateway desktop tower computer designed for general home/office use. Typically runs Windows and includes a multi‑core processor, several GB of RAM, and HDD/SSD storage in a vertical case; exact specifications vary by model.
Importance in Internet Culture
Mainstream Gateway towers like the Essential series typically shipped with a 56K modem and even a year of AOL access, putting late‑1990s households online out of the box. By the late 1990s, IDC ranked Gateway among the top U.S. PC shippers, third in U.S. fourth‑quarter shipments, underscoring its role in mass PC and Internet adoption.
Interesting Fact
In 1996 Gateway tried to merge TV and PC with the Destination “Big Screen PC”, a 31‑ or 33‑inch living‑room system with a 28.8‑kbps modem, priced between $3, 499 and $4, 699. Gateway later closed all 188 Gateway Country stores in 2004 as it pivoted after acquiring eMachines; three years later Acer acquired Gateway for $710 million.