Upgrading CPU/HDD

[vano90]

I have a Compaq Presario CQ50 laptop currently with its stock Intel Celeron 585 processor. I am getting a new laptop very soon and plan to give this one to my best friend. I want to make sure of any possible upgrades I could do to this before I give it to him.

I am upgrading the ram from 2gb to 4gb. I was already told I can do that. I want to upgrade to a dual core if possible (also, if worth it).

Also, last but not least, I wish to upgrade the hard drive too. It's sitting at the stock 160gb hard drive. What can I do with that as well?

Any information in regards to the processor as well as the hard drive is helpful. Thank you.

 

[VirtualLarry]

I don't know about the CPU, if it's a standard socket type (and is not soldered in), then in theory you should be able to upgrade it, BIOS revision permitting.

As far as the RAM, def. upgrade that. That should be easy.

Another upgrade you could do, is replace the HDD with an SSD, that would really speed things up. SSDs are coming down in price rapidly. I would look for at a minimum a 128GB SSD, for around $80 or so. You might be able to catch a deal on a larger one for not much more if you watch the sales and the Hot Deals forum, and/or aren't afraid of rebates.

 

[Denithor]

Memory: Go to www.crucial.com and use their memory matcher tool. It will tell you the maximum RAM for your laptop and offer suitable (and guaranteed to work) memory for your needs.

HDD : Larry is right on the money here, pick up an SSD, this will make that laptop downright peppy. Best makers are Intel, Crucial and Samsung. Look for a sale/special on a model from any of those and you'll end up happy. You should also look for a drive that comes with a migration kit included, you will hook up the new drive by USB to the laptop and clone the existing drive onto the new SSD then swap drives.

CPU: Can you provide the full laptop model number? With that we can locate a cpu compatibility chart and tell you exactly which replacements you can consider. Be aware, replacing a cpu is a lot more intensive than just dropping in more RAM or a different HDD. You're going to have to disassemble half (at least) the laptop, pull the old chip, put in the new one, apply new thermal paste to the new one, clean the heatsink of the old thermal paste and then put it all back together. Not exactly easy but doable.

 

[vano90]

Thanks for all the info in regards to the upgrades. I will take all into consideration. I'm not the best with computers so any info is helpful again. As to the model number, where would I find that?

 

[gmaster456]

4gb of ram and an SSD will breathe new life into that machine. It would be grand for normal day to day tasks such as email, web browsing and word processing. The CPU would limit most other things though.

 

[JWade]

as per compaq's website the cq50 (intel version not A<D version obviously) will support the following processors:

Intel® Core&#8482;2 Duo T9600 2.80-GHz processor (6-MB L2 cache)

Intel Core2 Duo T9400 2.53-GHz processor (6-MB L2 cache)

Intel Core2 Duo P8600 2.40-GHz processor (3-MB L2 cache)

Intel Core2 Duo P8400 2.26-GHz processor (3-MB L2 cache)

Intel Core2 Duo P7350 2.00-GHz processor (3-MB L2 cache)

Intel Core2 Duo T5900 2.20-GHz processor (2-MB L2 cache)

Intel Core2 Duo T5800 2.00-GHz processor (2-MB L2 cache)

Intel Pentium® Dual-Core T3400 2.16-GHz processor (1-MB L2 cache)

Intel Pentium Dual-Core T3200 2.00-GHz processor (1-MB L2 cache)

Intel Celeron® 585 2.16-GHz processor (1-MB L2 cache)

Intel Celeron 575 2.00-GHz processor (1-MB L2 cache)

 

[Denithor]

P8600 for $70
http://www.primelec.com/intel-core-2-duo-processor-p8600-slb3s?___store=default

T9600 for $98
http://www.serversupply.com/products/part_search/pid_lookup.asp?pid=155254

These are your best bets for CPU from the list above, also best prices I could find in a few minutes with Google Shopping searching.

Like I said before though, CPU upgrade is much more involved than RAM or SSD upgrade. If you choose to go this route be sure to find the service manual for your laptop and review the process for replacing CPU before you get into it. Might change your mind.

Good luck either way!

 

[frozentundra123456]

If he upgrades to an SSD, would the cloning mentioned get rid of the need to have another copy of windows? I have been thinking of upgrading to an SSD, but dont want to have to get another copy of windows.

 

[VirtualLarry]

If he upgrades to an SSD, would the cloning mentioned get rid of the need to have another copy of windows? I have been thinking of upgrading to an SSD, but dont want to have to get another copy of windows.

Cloning should work, but you can also install fresh using the OEM key sticker stuck to the laptop.

 

[Sable]

Buy a new computer. Seriously.

Edit.

Ah, laptop. Okay, as you were.

 

[frozentundra123456]

Buy a new computer. Seriously.

Edit.

Ah, laptop. Okay, as you were.

Even though it is a laptop, I am not sure it is worth upgrading the CPU. I know he wants to just give it to somebody, but you can get a dual core SB pentium for around 300.00 if you watch sales carefully. I suppose for 300.00 you could upgrade CPU, ram, and get a SSD, so you might be still ahead since you have the SSD. OTOH, if the CPU upgrade goes badly, could be wasted time and money.

 

[vano90]

Yeah. I've got a friend who was a computer technician for 13 years doing the work for me. Just wants me to find out what to get. He has an idea, just wanted to get a second opinion. He was saying it might not be worth the hassle to upgrade the CPU either. Thanks for all the help.

 

[Denithor]

If it was my machine I would go for the RAM and SSD updates and skip the CPU. It's honestly a lot of hassle for minor returns. The RAM and SSD will each in their own way be larger improvements than the CPU would be.