HP Pavilion 17-E067CL Upgrades?

[chkpnt]

I have an older Pavilion 17-E067CL I use for work as a graphic designer.  I usually run products in the Abode Creative Suite including Illustrator and Photoshop at the same time so my performance requirements are quite high.  I've already upgraded to a 1TB SSD primary drive (100% dedicated to the OS) and removed/replaced the stock CD drive with a 2TB secondary drive I use for all of my data storage.  I have been very happy with the overall performance of my machine and even though it's older it can hold it's own against newer laptops. 

There are two things I would love to have though...  First, it would be great if this laptop had a backlit keyboard and, second, it would be wonderful if I could actually use the second memory slot for an additional 8GB of RAM (only 8GB is currently supported - but there is space for 16GB).

So my question is; what other computers in this line could I retorofit parts into my computer from?  Is it possible to swap in the motherboard from a different machine that shares the same chassis/case to give me the ablility to have a backlit keyboard and a full 16GB of RAM?  Or is there any other way I can get these two features with my currrent hardware?  

Any other advice on other modifications I can make to this machine to further increase performance? 

Thanks for any help!  

[Huffer · Accepted solution]

Well good news and then. Here is the Service Manual.

Manual

The laptop does have 2 memory slots and both are enabled. The Manual says 12 gigs is the maximum but in reality it has been shown by other users that it will support 2 x 8 = 16 gigs of DDR3L-1600 SO-DIMM. Try to find another module of the same configuration as the one you have now. I see some online specifications say it maxxes at 8 gigs but this is not true. Also, there is a backlit keyboard and your motherboard will have the header for the backlight cable, if so. 

720670-001 Keyboard with backlight in black finish for use on all computer models in the United States (includes backlight cable and keyboard cable)

In fact, this is the only keyboard for US mentioned in the Manual so it appears your keyboard should be backlit. I did look at the keyboard map images in the manual and it does not mention a backlight key so perhaps this information is not correct. If you keyboard is not in fact backlit then there is no alternate part or motherboard to install. 

If in fact your performace requirements are quite high, this laptop is getting close to obsolete. AMD A8-5500M would not be considered a platform for design work. You say your laptop keeps up with current hardware and I appreciate you are fond of your daily workhorse, but computer performance is based on measurable statistics, not sentiment. Its not sports where we admire the scrappy little point guard who has a big heart and out-hustles the bigger stronger players. You can see the benchmarks here of an A8-5500 vs an i3-8100 which is a pretty basic current processor. 

https://cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-Core-i3-8100-vs-AMD-A8-5500-APU/3942vsm3432

No contest, to continue the sports analogy. If you have the budget to consider a new motherboard and keyboard and more RAM for it, you may want to think about upgrading. You would be well served by something with at least an i5 processor and 16 gigs of RAM is a necessity for what you do. Your SSD and HDD would be transferrable very likely. You could even look into say a 4th to 6th generation Intel Core refurbished machine. 

Post back with any more questions and please accept as solution if this is the info you needed. 

[chkpnt]

Thank you very much for the great info!  I apprecaite the help!

I do agree with you regarding new technology, but until I start noticing any sort of processing lag I'll stick with my current machine unless I can find a good deal on something new.  The SSD definitely sped it up a lot but I will look into the RAM a bit more since it's a pretty cheap/easy thing to add. 

That said, I am looking for a new laptop for my wife's photography so I'll look for something like you are recommending.  I've been really happy with my HP so we will be getting another one.  My 17" is great for working around town, but something smaller would be nice to take when I'm traveling long distance.  The requirements for editing photos are similar to design so it we'll use it for multiple things. 

Thanks again!