Need Upgrade recommendations

[S Freud]

I want to know if I it is possible to upgrade certain components in my laptop, or would it be easier/cheaper just to buy a new one?

I currently have a Compaq Presario V2000 notebook, its got the below specs. I am looking for advice on what components I can upgrade and should, I am looking for more speed for when I game so I don't lag so much, more HD space, and the fan to run a little quieter, it seems like the thing is always kicking on lately. And maybe upgrade to a CD/DVD burner if possible. I would like to find the best deals possible on these upgrades as I am sure you expected. 😀

Compaq Presario V2000 Notebook
Operating System Genuine Windows XP Home Edition with SP2
AMD Turion64 Mobile Processor 1.6GHz
768MB of RAM(1x512) (1x256) (640MB after shared video)
40GB Hard Drive
CD-RW/DVD combo
14" widescreen
3 usb ports, firewire, and memory card reader
6 cell battery
S-video out
ATI x200m 128mb
Windows XP Home
Built-in Wireless 54MB b/g

 

[simms]

RAM, HD, Battery, maybe CDRW/DVD. (in that order)

Upgrade to at least 1GB, HD to a 7200rpm, Battery to a 6-9 cell, DVD burner if you want it.

That's what you can upgrade.

 

[S Freud]

Anyone know how I would search for a replacement HD? I am going to upgrade to 1GB of RAM, but I would really like to get the HD and DVD burner taken care of also, then worry about the battery.

Anyone know where to look for Compaq presario v2000 laptop HD or DVD burner upgrades? Also, does anyone know a solution to get the fan to run quieter or less often?

Thanks

 

[S Freud]

Bump for early morning help

 

[fbrdphreak]

A new laptop in the $500-$700 range will give you about the same performance and battery life as your current one. Turion 64's had some really good battery life for their generation and is probably about equal to a current Celeron M or Pentium M. If you were able to upgrade to a cheap Core Duo (T2050 or T2300E probably) then that would give you better battery life and performance, but finding those deals in the cheap price range won't be terribly easy.

I assume the 40GB is 4200RPM. Bumping up to an 80GB+ 5400rpm drive will produce a nice performance boost, as the current model 5400rpm drives have near the throughput of a 7200rpm. The 7200rpm's will always have lower seek times due to higher spindle speed, but you spend a bit more for it. Also 5400rpm drives can be had in capacities up to 160GB, 7200rpm only 100GB.

RAM is expensive right now and you have a decent amount, if you want to make the best of your mobile computing experience I would do the following in this order:

*12-cell battery from HP: you will get 6+ hours of life from this, no joke (don't buy generic, only HP original)
*5400/7200rpm HDD upgrade
*1GB DDR333 RAM

As far as the DVD burner is concerned, you need to figure out how to remove it and then hunt for a compatible replacement. You will have to google a lot for this. I think this is your hardware manual:
http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c00636251.pdf

I like the Seagate Momentus 5400.3 160GB for tons of storage and great performance:
http://laptoplogic.pricegrabber.com/sea...masterid=16244922/sort_type=bottomline

If you don't need all that capacity, the 80GB model performs just as well and is cheaper:
http://laptoplogic.pricegrabber.com/sea...masterid=17631354/sort_type=bottomline

5 year warranty, whisper quiet, great performance, what more could you ask for?

As I said, memory is expensive:
http://laptoplogic.pricegrabber.com/sea...Results=Update%20Results/sortby=priceA
You might try to buy used on the FS forums here first, or gander at eBay; but even eBay prices aren't much below online.

The HP/Compaq 14-inch chassis in that generation just plain ran hot. You can disassemble the notebook, clean out any dust, and clean the CPU/reapply thermal material, but that may not help a lot. I'd say just deal with it, but that is your only recourse.