How would I go about upgrading the RAM on my Latitude D800?

I believe you have the Intel 855PM chipset (you can check by downloading CPU-Z and checking under the mainboard tab). If thats the case, then the Intel Pentium M 780 isn't going to work. You'll need a Pentium M processor with a 400 MHz FSB, so basically any Pentium M 7x5 series (the ones that end in zero, e.g. 780, have a 533 MHz FSB).

For example, I upgraded my 1.4 Banias to a 1.7 Pentium M 735, which I got on ebay for 20 including shipping. It was cheap enough, so I thought, what the heck. You do have to dismantle a portion of your laptop to get to the processor, but the upgrade isn't terribly difficult. Plus, my computer felt a bit snappier after the upgrade, so imo it was worth it.

 

Check the Tom's Hardware charts for other ATA (not SATA) HDDs with lowish power consumption.

266MHz is the clock speed. It is DDR RAM which means Double Data Rate so that there are two data transfers per clock pulse so the effective speed is 533MHz. Does that fit with what you expect?

I also expect that the slow boot was a one-off event because the hardware had changed. If the problem continues look in the BIOS for a quick boot option.

John

 

I'll keep looking around for a HDD, worst case I'll just ebay/newegg it; and yeah the slow boot was a one time thing, it's even quicker than before now. I just was having a bad flashback to my first computer which had a memory test on every bootup and would slowly count all the way up to 40,000kb. I was expecting it to be recognized as 333mhz, since it's PC-2700 memory.

Also, LiveStrong, would the Pentium M 765 be good to go, it's 400mhz FSB, or are all the 90nm "Dothan" CPUs no good?

 

The Pentium M 765 should work, although it'd be a pretty pricey upgrade, unless you can find it somewhere for cheap. You just have to make sure your bios is updated to the latest one.

 

I have the A13 BIOS, I think that's the latest. It's the normal D800 BIOS, not the M60 converted one. Should that be ok?

M 765 doesn't seem too pricey, about $110. Probably more than the PC itself is worth not counting the new memory, but the 755 is $80 and 745 is $50 - so it's not a huge jump up from the other options.

 

Yup, that is the latest Bios update for your Latitude, and that bios should be fine. Wouldn't hurt to double-check that though.

 

Where might I be able to find an internal DVD burner for it? Would I have to go to Dell directly?

Figure I may as well go all out and upgrade everything

 

No need to go to Dell. The optical drives are standard components. It's most likely a 1/2" thick "slim" optical drive with PATA interface. The face place may be special and there will be some Dell-specific mountings which you unscrew from the old ODD and fit on the new one. There are some tips here.

Check the D800 service manual and check the physical specs of your existing ODD.

John

 

Picked up a Samsung HM160HC today in the OEM bin at Microcenter for $60. Getting it imaged and installed tomorrow.

 

Tell us how it goes; with all those upgrades, your old d800 should be flying.