Possible cpu upgrades?

[nezerous]

Hey guys, I have just ordered a Fujitsu Amilo Pi 3560 laptop. 16" screen 1368x768, 4Gb DDR2 RAM, 500Gb HDD 5400rpm, T6600 2.2Ghz Core 2 Duo... etc.

What possible CPU upgrades could I consider in the future, on that motherboard? I dont know where to look to find this information out. I have been trying..

 

[nezerous]

Is it really worth upgrading the HDD to 7200rpm?

 

[Aircraft123]

Most of the time it is not worth the trouble to upgrade the CPU on a notebook.

Your Fujitsu was designed to cool only the fastest CPU that was offered with the computer.

Say it came with a 2.0Ghz Core 2 duo

Even though theoretically you could upgrade to a Q9000 core 2 quad you probably would find that the fan either ran really fast all the time or it would overheat and shut itself down

Most of the time the difference between the Proc you received in the computer and the fastest one it will support are almost negligible and it would not be worth fully disassembling the computer and possibly bricking it for a small performance increase.

If I am incorrect feel free to correct me.

Robert

 

[nezerous]

Yeah, thats a fair comment. I thought that if I got a new cpu, I could get a cooler to go with it, that would fit in place of standard cooler.

The stock cooling on this laptop is great. All copper heatsinks rather than aluminum. I would use uprated thermal paste if I did the swap too..

Anyone actually swapped out a cpu for a better one in a laptop? Results?

The difference of upgrading to an extreme cpu would be massive, so it would be worth it.. but the issue of cooling is troubling.

 

[nezerous]

Also, I would never brick my motherboard lol. And, thats what warranty is for

 

[Canuck1]

Imho, it's wise to wait until the warranty is up before you do anything like that. Unless, of course, it was getting repaired for some reason.

Warranties are usually short anyway, at least the manufacturer warranty. I think those are around 1 or 2 yrs unless you added an extended warranty.

However, sometimes we decide we want a faster machine. Also, if you wanted to use virtualization, say, you couldn't because your laptop processor doesn't support it. You might then want to upgrade the processor to one that does.

The problem with upgrading processors in laptops is that they are much more difficult to deal with than desktops. In some laptops, you have to practically take it all apart to get at the cpu. Some processors are soldered to the motherboard although many have sockets. It depends on how the laptop is designed and whether you want to do it yourself. Laptop parts are fragile and I think it's easy break some of the tiny internal components when taking things apart.

It is probably best to consider upgrading if you really want to and are willing to take the risk. If you get someone else to do it, prepare for an added cost, the labor plus the processor.

 

[Aircraft123]

Agreed for example my HP I would have to take EVERYTHING apart including removing the motherboard from the chassis just to get to the processor. I have done many repairs on notebooks but I usually stop at taking the motherboard out. It is just too fragile. If you miss one screw or post and put even a slight pressure on it you could break one of the many layers in the board and then you would have to buy a new motherboard.

I took apart my old Averatec Tablet twice trying to fix a dead CMOS battery. Both times I ended up breaking the motherboard. I was as careful as humanly possible but thus was result. I replaced it the first time but got my HP after the second time.

In my professional opinion it would be better for you to just to buy a new and better notebook than trying to upgrade the old one. Then at least you have a respectable machine for the kids to use or something.

 

[nezerous]

Both very valid responses. I have never taken a laptop completely apart, I have stripped them down quite a lot, but never to the point where I took the mobo out. Did not know that some cpus are soldered in! Mental. I have an old laptop which I am using now, but I dont think it will upgrade to anything special - so pointless.

I work with PCs, and as I have been getting into my OCing recently, thought I might be able to do something the new laptop.

Really glad I had a chat to you guys on here, to mull over my thoughts about upgrading the new laptop. And the possibility of future upgrades.

I think I will make do with this new machine, and use it for its intended purpose. But, when purchasing a new laptop, I will definitely bare in mind that I should purchase the laptop which meets all my requirements instead of thinking of upgrading in the future.

Alienware will be my shop of choice next time

 

[nezerous]

Thank you very much for the help chaps

 

[Aircraft123]

I'm not sure I would go with Alienware either. They do make very nice and very powerful notebooks but they tend to be very overpriced.

If I were you (and I am looking for a sub $1500 gaming notebook) I would go with either Sager or ASUS

Both are reasonably priced and have much the same hardware as the Alienware and much better support than Dell and better reliability too.