Yes, this is the ideal time to get ready for your Gate exam so I would suggest you to attempt it this year, also you can follow below provided preparation tips -
1. Know the syllabus very well.
2. Read standard books only as there are many books available in the market so it is advisable to use the books which make all your concepts clear and which are easy to understand.
3. Understand the weightage of topics properly.
4. Proper Revision plan should be followed.
5. Mock Tests and Practice Tests should be done as this will help you to learn time management skills and this will also make you familiar with the exam pattern.

Hope this helps!!!

It all depends on you & your preparation whether you want to drop a year or not. But You have enough time for the preparation if you are interested this year to appear the exam.Here you can also prefer some preparation tips you can follow.

1. Make a Schedule- You can make a schedule by following the steps given below.

Divide your GATE syllabus into three parts – topics you know, topics you know but you are not confident about and topics you don't know at all.

Start with the ones you know : Revise the topics you know, once for all so that you don't have to return to them again.

Now move to the ones you are not confident about: Learn the theory part first and make your foundation strong. Clear all your concepts before moving ahead and this time practice these topics till you feel confident about them.

Last but not the least; the new ones ': For practising these topics, you will have to start from the scratch, therefore, again, theory first! Read, learn and revise till you complete your GATE syllabus 2018.

What to remember while formulating your GATE 2018 Preparation plan?

• Check the past year papers and exam analysis.

• Divide the Topics broadly into Strong, Weak and to be read properly.

• Keep daily, weekly and monthly targets. Try to adhere to them as far as possible.

• Next schedule your preparation such that you revise the easy ones along with the tough ones and the “never read before” ones. This will ensure you have a clear view of what is to be studied and how you are going to do it.

• While many advise to check the weightage and study accordingly, it is really not the correct way to go. Check the weightage by all means and understand the important topics but don’t neglect to study the not so important topics

• Make Short Notes while you study as this is will be helpful during revision.

• Write down Formulae that you find difficult to remember so that they are handy for revision.

• Don’t wait for completing a portion of the syllabus. Start practising with test papers as soon as you done with a section or topic. Little steps of water make the mighty ocean.

• Keep the solved problems separately indexed so that you can refresh and revise later when required.

• Another tip for final year students is that you can match the topics that you will be studying in your graduation and club the studying part so you cover these to get a better hold on them

You can check GATE Syllabus & books for ECE with given below link.

GATE Syllabus & books

Good Luck!

If you want to apply for GATE exam you should give it in your final year you can start your preparation in your final year. Syllabus is same as in your B.tech.

For preparation you can follow below tips-

1- You should be aware of the syllabus and exam pattern

2- Make sure your concepts are clear and you build strong fundamentals

3- You should solve previous year papers for your practice and you will able to know exam pattern and level of questions.

4- Solve as many as mock test papers to analyze your preparation level and to know your weak and strong areas.

All the Best!!