laptop cpu upgrade

tadcan

This may not be the most sensible idea I've ever had. Have an old Extensa 5220, which has already had a ram and harddrive upgrade. It generally performs well, except sometimes the cpu is maxed out. After doing some research I should be able to go from a 1.73Ghz to a 2.4Ghz, which will give the laptop another 3/4 years of life.

This is what I was thinking of buying.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Intel-Core-2-Duo-T7700-2-4-4M-800M-SLA43-/130496628608?pt=UK_Computing_LaptopMotherboards_CPUs_CA&hash=item1e62348780

Based off this thread

http://forum.notebookreview.com/hardware-components-aftermarket-upgrades/319758-acer-extensa-5220-upgrade.html

According to CPU-Z the machine is a GL960 and a socket 479 mPGA. Good idea, bad idea?

Solitaire

Theoretically it would work, but there could be additonal compatibility issues caused by the chipset or BIOS. Also bear in mind that most upgrade options have a higher TDP than the Pentium M which means more heat for the tiny cooling system to deal with.

tadcan

Would a paste such as this help with the cooling.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Arctic-Cooling-MX-3-Thermal-Compound/dp/B002EHIJP0/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1300231843&sr=8-8

I suppose there would be a hit on the battery life as well, even if it worked.

Solitaire

Yup. Then again newer CPUs tend to have more aggressive power-saving and also do the same amount of work in a shorter space of time before dropping back down to idle, so if you were doing some CPU-intensive tasks the T7700 could theoretically improve battery life over the current CPU

That paste could improve the speed at which heat is transferred to the cooler, but if the cooler can't shift that heat... it should be okay, but (as with any hot-chip portable) be wary of dust buildup!

tadcan

I always try and have the laptop on a flat surface to reduce dust build-up.

So is there any way to determine if the Bios and chipset compatibility. It would be an expensive mistake if I got it wrong.

Solitaire

See if you can dig up any success stories. I've seen a lot of peeps say they're upgrading their old Ex5220 to a T7*00, but I see neither failures nor success stories afterward...