Irvine (CA) – Gateway introduced its third 17” FX notebook, bridging the gap between the $1600 entry model and the $2700 flagship laptop. The company has also a new 15” FX laptop that will be sold through Best Buy stores.

Introduced earlier this year, FX systems are positioned as Gateway’s premium brand that aims to attract enthusiast users willing to spend a bit more on their computer than what the average notebooks are going for. On the high-end, Gateway is now offering the 172X model in its 17” P-series lineup, which comes with a 2.4 GHz Core 2 Duo T8300 CPU, Nvidia’s 8800M GTS graphics chip, 4 GB of memory, a 1920x1200 pixel display and two 160 GB hard drives in RAID 0 configuration. The system is available only on Gateway’s website and is priced at $1999.

The company said it is also offering a FX version of the P-series notebook in retail. However, this version will include only 3 GB of memory, a Core 2 Duo T5450 CPU and a 250 GB hard drive for $1349.99.

The first 15.4” FX notebook will also be limited to retail (Best Buy) and include a Core 2 Duo T5550 chip, ATI Radeon HD 2600 graphics, 3 GB of memory and a 320 GB hard drive. The suggested retail price is $999.99.