Notebook (Laptop) Upgrade FAQ

wand · ‎11-26-2009

Erico, thanks for this thread. What a wealth of information.

I have two Compaq/HP laptops and have upgrade questions about both.

My wife is using a Compaq Presario 715US with 512MB of memory. I've already replaced a keyboard (after vinegar was spilled on it). For a 7-year-old system it still works great. I now need to replace the DVD/CD/CDRW drive as it has given up. Do I have any options here, like a DVD Writer? I wish I could add memory and more hard drive space. I am looking at replacing the 20GB HD with a 32GB SSD. I'm wondering if the SSD can use ReadyBoost or an equivalent. This unit has a single cardbus slot and I have found a dual eSATA, dual USB 2.0 card which should work and it is a less expensive option to the SSD, but requires bulky external attachments. The cardbus has specs of 1.5 Gbps, much faster than the IDE bus of the hard drive and would really support the eSata and USB 2.0 add-ons (USB 1.1 is standard on this unit). Also, what are my processor options on this unit?

My second unit is an HP tx2120us which I love. Shortly after buying this unit the tx2500 came out and I was wondering if I could upgrade the processor to get the added cache of the new series of 45nm vs 65nm AMD TurionX2. Another problem is that I have great specs on this unit for Vista and Win7, except for the graphics processor, which is only rated a 3.0 (everything else is 4.9 and above). Is this graphics unit replaceable? It is the NVidia Go 6150 and an NVidia southbridge. Win 7 Ultimate was a breeze to do an in-place upgrade from Vista 32 Premium. Haven't tried a Win7-64 yet, but will get to that. Win7 found all the needed drivers with no problem. The easiest install I've ever had.

As an aside, I recently switched from Comcast cable to Clear Wi-Max at home and mobile unlimited for about the same money. I notice very little slowdown of downloads and have been really surprised at the speed and reliability (4 Mbps vs 12 Mbps down, but is hardly noticeable). It works great in both laptops (home network also) and gives us a mobile platform to work from also.

Thanks again!

Message Edited by wand on 11-26-2009 12:50 PM

HP Pavilion tx2120us running Win7 Ultimate
System Admin and Analyst

wand · ‎11-26-2009

Hello Asela,

I use a Visio 22" HDTV 1080p as my monitor at my desk. My tx2120us has a normal resolution of 1200x800 and the Visio is 1920x1080 and then I can also rotate the monitor to read articles in a portrait mode. I bought mine over a year ago at Costco for under $300. I saw a Samsung 23" 2048x1152 monitor at Newegg for under $200 yesterday and a Black Friday special there today for a 22" 1920x1080 monitor for $119 there today.

HP Pavilion tx2120us running Win7 Ultimate
System Admin and Analyst

Asela · ‎11-26-2009

Hi Wand,

Thanks for the reply. but by profession im a software developer. most of the time visiting clients etc ( so portability is important) so external monitor is no go at the moment. it's nice to have more real estate in your notebook so you can fit more work area to do your work (specially in coding). my requirement is, is it possible to replace the display panel (just the LCD) to higher resolution/full HD (Same matching 15.6" LED backlit LCD but with higher resolution). i know for a fact there are models got optional WSXGA, WUXGA etc. in service manual it shows how to entirely dismantle the display panel as well. my question is, does the BIOS supports the new resolution? as you said if a external monitor support higher resolutions, then internal panel should support wuxga as well?? am i correct?Thanks.:smileyhappy:

Message Edited by Asela on 11-26-2009 07:11 PM

wand · ‎11-26-2009

Sorry, I'm no help there.

The $119 special at Newegg may be interesting because it only weighed 6.3 lbs and had a tilt out stand from the back. That would almost make it portable, and cheap, if my memory serves me right. It would take a power plug, but if your developing, you can't stay on battery all the time. It would give you a display for your customer while you can watch your code on your screen. Just a thought.

HP Pavilion tx2120us running Win7 Ultimate
System Admin and Analyst

erico · ‎11-29-2009

Hi Asela,

@Asela wrote:
Hi Wand,

Thanks for the reply. but by profession im a software developer. most of the time visiting clients etc ( so portability is important) so external monitor is no go at the moment. it's nice to have more real estate in your notebook so you can fit more work area to do your work (specially in coding). my requirement is, is it possible to replace the display panel (just the LCD) to higher resolution/full HD (Same matching 15.6" LED backlit LCD but with higher resolution). i know for a fact there are models got optional WSXGA, WUXGA etc. in service manual it shows how to entirely dismantle the display panel as well. my question is, does the BIOS supports the new resolution? as you said if a external monitor support higher resolutions, then internal panel should support wuxga as well?? am i correct?Thanks.:smileyhappy:
Message Edited by Asela on 11-26-2009 07:11 PM

Please link a reference to your Ï know for a fact"" statement. Which models with your series of laptops? Which chipset and which integrated graphics controller do they have?

regards,

erico

Message Edited by erico on 11-29-2009 04:30 PM

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erico · ‎11-29-2009

Hi Wand,

Your request is quite long. I will have to answer in chunks of information.

@wand wrote:
Erico, thanks for this thread. What a wealth of information.

I have two Compaq/HP laptops and have upgrade questions about both.

My wife is using a Compaq Presario 715US with 512MB of memory. I've already replaced a keyboard (after vinegar was spilled on it). For a 7-year-old system it still works great. I now need to replace the DVD/CD/CDRW drive as it has given up. Do I have any options here, like a DVD Writer? I wish I could add memory and more hard drive space. I am looking at replacing the 20GB HD with a 32GB SSD. I'm wondering if the SSD can use ReadyBoost or an equivalent. This unit has a single cardbus slot and I have found a dual eSATA, dual USB 2.0 card which should work and it is a less expensive option to the SSD, but requires bulky external attachments. The cardbus has specs of 1.5 Gbps, much faster than the IDE bus of the hard drive and would really support the eSata and USB 2.0 add-ons (USB 1.1 is standard on this unit). Also, what are my processor options on this unit?

My second unit is an HP tx2120us which I love. Shortly after buying this unit the tx2500 came out and I was wondering if I could upgrade the processor to get the added cache of the new series of 45nm vs 65nm AMD TurionX2. Another problem is that I have great specs on this unit for Vista and Win7, except for the graphics processor, which is only rated a 3.0 (everything else is 4.9 and above). Is this graphics unit replaceable? It is the NVidia Go 6150 and an NVidia southbridge. Win 7 Ultimate was a breeze to do an in-place upgrade from Vista 32 Premium. Haven't tried a Win7-64 yet, but will get to that. Win7 found all the needed drivers with no problem. The easiest install I've ever had.

As an aside, I recently switched from Comcast cable to Clear Wi-Max at home and mobile unlimited for about the same money. I notice very little slowdown of downloads and have been really surprised at the speed and reliability (4 Mbps vs 12 Mbps down, but is hardly noticeable). It works great in both laptops (home network also) and gives us a mobile platform to work from also.

Thanks again!
Message Edited by wand on 11-26-2009 12:50 PM

SSD drives have absolutely no need for readyboost. When installing an SSD drive both drive indexing and readyboost should be disabled to prevent degradation of the SSD's performance. Upgrading that laptop to SSD is "a no go" Older laptops like this one are limited to IDE drives. You have to have an integrated SATA interface in a laptop for it to work. Consider using an external DVD\CD burner as a replacement for the dead drive. Parts for a seven year old laptop are quite hard to come by. As far as upgrading the processor.. Sorry to say, but the cost to benefit ratio is way too high. The laptop is not worth upgrading unless you can find a source for inexpensive second hand parts (processor/RAM/DVD-RW drive). Be thankful that the trustworthy old beast still runs. It is outside of the average life cycle for a laptop. I have an old Compaq that I bought in 1996 that still runs. 🙂

On your second laptop query.

The original processor is socket S1. The newer processor you asked about is socket S1G3. Even though the pin count on the sockets are the same, they are different in a planar sense.

Pat Moorhead, Vice President of Advanced Marketing at AMD stated that the G3 is not backwardly compatible with G2 processors.

So... in my own words " it is logical to assume that G3 processors are not backwardly compatible with socket S1 processors".

I got the information from a blog at AMD. It is a nice read for the technically inclined.

Will advise on the graphics module upgrade viability when I find the information.

regards,

erico

Message Edited by erico on 11-29-2009 05:18 PM

Message Edited by erico on 11-29-2009 05:41 PM

Message Edited by erico on 11-29-2009 05:44 PM

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Asela · ‎11-29-2009

Hi Erico,

Thanks for the reply. The model that i saw is in a third party website not in HP site. and it's not my model. here's the link. it shows that you can upgrade into WUXGA, WSXGA etc. even in CQ61 we can connect external monitor which are higher than1366x768 resolution. that's what makes me beleive that it should work. im just asking your help, is it doable? Thanks.

And i already add the Internal Bluetooth Module as well. which is the same module that are used in DV5 series Notebooks. in my CQ61 the interface is available (I removed the DVD ROM and i could see the interface on the system board). no need to install bluetooth LED and front bezels. even in CQ61s which came with Bluetooth by default doesnt include any separate Bluetooth LED and button (It uses the WLAN button/light and through HP wireless assistant i could turn on and off bluetooth).

Regards,

Asela

erico · ‎11-29-2009

Hi Asela,

@Asela wrote:
Hi Erico,

Thanks for the reply. The model that i saw is in a third party website not in HP site. and it's not my model. here's the link. it shows that you can upgrade into WUXGA, WSXGA etc. even in CQ61 we can connect external monitor which are higher than1366x768 resolution. that's what makes me beleive that it should work. im just asking your help, is it doable? Thanks.

And i already add the Internal Bluetooth Module as well. which is the same module that are used in DV5 series Notebooks. in my CQ61 the interface is available (I removed the DVD ROM and i could see the interface on the system board). no need to install bluetooth LED and front bezels. even in CQ61s which came with Bluetooth by default doesnt include any separate Bluetooth LED and button (It uses the WLAN button/light and through HP wireless assistant i could turn on and off bluetooth).

Regards,
Asela

I have seen vague references online that state @2560 x 1600 @85Hz is the MAX resolution attainable for the GeForce Go 7150. I will try again at AMD to see what specifics I can get on the GeForce Go 7150 video chip.

The CQ61 reference you gave for your hP product information is not quite specific enough for me to chase down a compatible part number from HP PartSurfer for the discrete graphics module.

regards,

erico

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leonadro · ‎12-03-2009

Dear erico:

Please , can you give me some idea for cpu s can be suitable for upgrading on this laptop preferably a core 2 due one or ... :

CPU-Z result :

Processors Information
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Processor 1 (ID = 0)
Number of cores  1 (max 1)
Number of threads 1 (max 1)
Name   Intel Pentium
Codename  Penryn
Specification  Intel(R) Celeron(R) CPU          900 @ 2.20GHz
Package   Socket P (478) (platform ID = 7h)
CPUID   6.7.A
Extended CPUID  6.17
Core Stepping
Technology  45 nm
Core Speed  2194.6 MHz (11.0 x 199.5 MHz)
Rated Bus speed  798.0 MHz
Stock frequency  2200 MHz
Instructions sets MMX, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSSE3, EM64T
L1 Data cache  32 KBytes, 8-way set associative, 64-byte line size
L1 Instruction cache 32 KBytes, 8-way set associative, 64-byte line size
L2 cache  1024 KBytes, 4-way set associative, 64-byte line size
FID/VID Control  no
Features  XD

Chipset
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Northbridge  Intel GL40 rev. 09
Southbridge  Intel 82801IM (ICH9-M) rev. 03
Memory Type  DDR2
Memory Size  2048 MBytes
Channels  Dual (Symmetric)
Memory Frequency 332.5 MHz (3:5)
CAS#   5.0
RAS# to CAS#  5
RAS# Precharge  5
Cycle Time (tRAS) 15

I noticed that some people who do the upgrade face some incampatibelities such as just one core is used of two cores and ...

Your help is appreciated

erico · ‎12-03-2009

Hi leonadro,

It would help if you did the following.

Post the model name and product number of your HP product here in your thread. For newer laptops .... in Windows just hold the CTRL+ ALT+S keys

What is my model name and product number?

regards,

erico

Thanks for the CPU-z info.

I am a volunteer forum member. If my suggestion solved your issue, help others by marking that post as the accepted solution. Say thanks by clicking on the Yes button next to the "was this reply helpful?"

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