Upgraded Acer 3680 Celeron CPU to a T5300!

that sticker is useful in so many ways

 

Dont believe in PC Wizard, its a liar!! I got scared when I thought I couldnt run a C2D. I show to have the MB.AZL YAY!! sorry to bother you I just figured PC Wizard worked lol.

 

Just upgrade to the latest BIOS version, swap CPUs (upgrades upto the T7400 are confirmed)....+ clean the heatsink and apply AS-5....!! (and bend the pins on the celeron for me, will ya..)

 

Lol I donno about bending the pins, Im poor, I'll probably sell it on ebay! I probably need to start a new thread but do you know anything about upgrading the cooling system? I love how itssetup its a cool idea but I dont hink it works very well for the chipset. I'll just start a new thread lol. THANKS!!

 

You won't be able to go much far with it, due to the limitation of space and the architecture....

 

the only way to improve cooling would be to modify the air-flow. iv been trying things out using an Aspire 7110.
and a cooling pad(home made).
drilled a few holes,ive plus also found some of the grills are not fully open.
the cooling fan on the 7110 hardly ever comes on. will be dropping in a T5xxx soon so i'm hoping it will run even cooler

 

Any links to a how to on BIOS updating or can someone give me a walk thru. Im a hardware guy, software and me dont get along.

 

download the latest bios from here....and this too, so you can use the winphlash tool in it....!! unrar them....and get back

 

Can you put afew more steps in there please lol. Do I just set the whole unzipped update folder as the new bios path? Or is there oe file in that folder that I need to select.

 

OK I ll post a few screenshots..

 

Flashing BIOS with WinPhlash....

Unzip 3508.zip



Unzip BIOS.zip



Goto the folder where you extracted BIOS.zip, and run Winphlash....





The top-right screen will be the default screen....
Specify new BIOS file - Click Browse - Select ZR1_3508.wph from the 3508 folder (where you extracted 3508.zip)
Create a BIOS backup - bios.bak in the same folder as winphlash (also backup on a USB)
Then click Advanced Settings - Check the following options in the Flags Page
Then click the DMI tab, and select as shown in the image
OK
and click FLASH BIOS



REMEMBER, HAVE NO APPLICATIONS, ANTIVIRUS, FIREWALL, RUNNING IN THE BACKGROUND, AND IF IT HANGS, LET IT RUN - IT WILL COMPLETE BUT DUE TO THE HIGH CPU AND HDD USAGE, IT WILL NOT SHOW THE PROGRESS....

 

Sweet thank you! Gonna buy me a C2D this weekend and I'll report back on how it works. Donno which Im gonna use yet, probaby the T5600

 

Yeah the T5600 is actually a good buy, but if a T7200 is within your budget, go for that because it is considerably cheaper than the T7600 but provides similar performance, even in synthetic benchmarks....!!

 

I'm doing quite fine right now. Just finished my summer Chemistry 2 class, and preparing for college in the fall.

Been off the thread for a while because I got a blackjack 2 so I've been delving into the Windows Mobile platform.

How've you been?

 

not doing much. just became a granddad
so got other things on my mind, happy things and not broken laptops lol

 

Post it here.... http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=251959

T5450 is a Socket P CPU, and is incompatible with the old i945 chipset family....!!

 

Can I put in the new cpu before doign the bios update? Reason being I've got it apart now to put in a new d/c jack and I am hoping to not have to take it back apart to putin the new cpu.

 

I just ordered a T5200 from ebay (woohoo 59 bucks!) so I'm waiting for it to come in!! Then I need some AS5 (do you think most computer places will have this? or do I have to order it online as well?)

But reading the thread and the service guide--it's clear that this upgrade isn't going to be a walk in the park. I've read all kinds of tips--from hidden screws holding the case together, to tricky removal of the upper case cover....bluetooth and WLAN switch problems....it's a bit daunting as this is the first time I'll be doing this kind of upgrade

Aside from following the service guide--are there any practical tips out there? (how to keep track of screws, deal with the wireless LAN antenna connections...that sort of thing)

thanks!

 

I wouldnt stress about taking it apart. I've takin mine apart twice before without any guide and its really self explainatory. Watchout for the keyboard connection though, allmost ripped it out

 

take seperate pieces of DUCT TAPE for each section of the laptop...

place the screws for each section on the tape labeled for that part...

take lots of pictures

 

Im running my T5200!! Its awesome. Im not sure if this is ok but I didnt update the bios yet... I figured since I have it apart I'll just try to go ahead with the swap and it works. Well worth the money. Thanks for the great info.

 

Congratulations

 

OK I have read through all 93 pages of this and I have some questions

Right now I have a Acer 3680-2633, motherboard stamp on the bottom is MBAZ so that means I have the 943 i guess.

SO will the T7600 work or not, if it works I'll try it. Which brings to mind, why hasnt anyone tried it yet?

I am unhappy with the battery life is there a higher capacity battery out there for this the one thats in here is 4000mah?

1280x800 res sucks, any way to swap lids or something for a higher res monitor? Anyway to upgrade the video card, it blows

Hard drive and ram, I got that figured out I'll go with 160 or something and 2GB of the DDR2667.

Bluetooth I need A2DP otherwise this is worthless to me, is that 34 dollar wire one on ebay have that?

CD/DVD burner - This is a major complaint I had about this, the fact it doesnt have one, theres some on ebay that claim to be for this 3680 any way this can be upgraded if you didnt already have one. Yes I know I can do external , I dont want to

Wireless N - anyway to replace the internal with something that supports this, yes i know i could do external but i dont want to

 

The T7600 will work, but the T7200 is much better, since it is cheaper than the T7600....A 333MHz increase in clock speed won't give you alot of boost in your daily work, but will perform better in CPU intensive tasks. (Go for the T7200, if not doing much of video encoding and photo-editing - stuff.)

There is a 9-cell battery out there, I'll give you the part no. a bit later.

HDD, go for the WD3200BEVT (or WD3200BEKT)....or if you want to stick to 160GB, go for the WD1600BEKT [They are fast]

And 2GB DDR2-667 is the max ram that notebook will support (But the ram will work at DDR2-533 speeds, i.e. 533MHz)

The Optical Drive can be upgraded to any standard slimline ODD.

I am unaware about the screen and wireless upgrades, but I guess you might be able to fit in the 4965AGN....

 

well pretty much all i do is dvd burning and converting video formats back and forth so i need the power

update: I wussed out and got a T5600 off ebay 110 shipped prob not a bad deal

I am still interested in updating those other things i mentioned

 

Just a quick update. I upgraded my 3680-2682 to a c2d 5200 which is running stable at 1.86Mhz. (vs 1.6Mhz "standard")

Still with a 533 fsb, though. Can't seem to get it to 667. Since I got it new at Microcenter for less than $400 including a 1GB memory stick, I think I've done as much as I can afford to for this year. The T5200 cost $39.50 including shipping. So I have ~$430 sunk. Maybe if I find a really cheap 160GB HD......(sigh)

 

A bit high, but fine - if it works well..

Jumping up to 667MHz in XP using OCing software shouldn't be hard. (Most OCing software are a bit unstable in Vista)

You should check out the Hitachi 200GB 7K200, I remember one user buying it for ~ $90-$100 Retail with a 3 year manufacturer's warranty. It is a fast HDD and will complement the performance of the new CPU.

 

anybody ever heard of magicjack? i just got that soldered into my usb port pin joints and its using the internal port for the data/fax modem. who uses these modems anyways?! lol! so anyway...im proud of that. im getting prety handy at soldering. the flux does most the work but its an art! I got a t5300 that should be here tomorrow and will be the perfect upgrade that will be making me and my laptop happy for a long time down the road!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

im not looking forward to another bloated windows version...i.e. "7" im going to have windows xp for a very long time!

 

Yeah, heard of that, but never tried it since I am in the UK and it might not work here..
And I suck at soldering stuff..

 

would you be able to PM it to me?? It would be greatly appreciated. I purchased this laptop used and the service guide was *not* included, nor any other guides for that matter. Thanks so much!

 

success! another t5300 upgrade into a 3680-2633 w/i943 chipset...all I want now is a new keyboard, dvd-rw, and a RAM upgrade. im not going to get the HD upgrade because i don't play games...nothing else to report. practice, enjoy, and upgrade! lol

 

Well, an HDD upgrade doesn't help much with games, it is the GPU - which is not upgradable....


Anyone tried installing an Intel 4965AGN in the 3680..??

 

DONE! I've upgraded my 3680 to a T5200!!!!! The disassembly went smoothly--though I have concerns because my temps seem to still be high

After an afternoon of stress-tests (I was fiddling with undervolting) my CPU is at 53-55C while on firefox and digsby...is this problematic? (I know Krazy had his down to 45C...I didn't use AS5 though, I used evercool thermal compound...did I not put enough?) MAybe I should open her back up to fix the thermal compound..or perhaps wait for the compound to "burn in"?

 

congrats on the upgrade...

what are the HOT TEMPs you now have??

there is such a thing as TOO MUCH thermal compound, and i''m not familur w/ evercool, but AS5 can take up to weeks to cure fully... it all depends on how often you cycle the power on and off..... allowing the CPU to HEAT to normal temps,, shut down,,, allow to cool to room temp and then let sit for a bit... then reboot and do it all again...

 

Don't forget that my temps came from idle temperatures. Meaning the computer wasn't running any programs.

When I'm typing a paper or surfing the internet on a desk, so that the computer has good airflow, I get avg temps of about 50.9 C.

 

I'm surfing the net and typing right now--and coretemp reports that both cores are at about 53-55C. Have you guys noticed that the temperature can spike/fluctuate extremely quickly? Running Orthos for 10 minutes or so, my temps skyrocket to 83C, with the CPU automatically throttling to keep the whole thing from melting =/

Maybe it's because I'm looking for super low temps, and I DID use evercool vs. AS5 (which may account for a couple of degrees difference right?) Plus I'm paranoid at my thermal compound application skills

 

temps aside though, I want to thank everyone on this thread--my 3680, which I bought new from another student for $250, added 2 GB of RAM for $25 (from another student haha) and then now the T5200 for $59--it runs like a dream now--so much more responsive, USABLE on "powersave" in vista..now to do something about this vista basic....

 

Thanks for letting us know how things are going.

Cheers,
Phil
+Rep

 

sounds like time to upgrade to XP

 

"Upgrade" would definitely be the correct choice of words BigO.

Also, imcanadaian, if you do decide to switch to XP make sure to apply this hotfix: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/896256 to increase the performance of a Multi-Core XP.

 

just so you know KRAZY... if you install SP3 if has a newer version of that fix included in it...

i just downloaded the file and tried to run it but it refused to let me because my service pack supersedes the hotfix...

but the REGISTRY EDIT still needs to be done manually (I JUST TESTED IT TOO)

 

XP is still the most tested out there. That is why it works properly too.

It is gonna take Vista around Seven or Six or Five or Four or Three or Too many Years to get anywhere close.

2000 Pro was excellent. XP was better. Vista is untamed. And quite frankly, I use a computer for functionality. Not beauty. So, I prefer beautiful women to dumb computer screens. That just look beautiful with naked chicks pasted on them in Vista style. In 3D maybe?

XP for getting the job (work) done. Vista for fooling around.

End of story. Please no discussion from Vista lovers.

Heard enough..

Cheers,
Theo

 

So here's another thing that I'm thinking about with my T5200 upgrade--when I removed the heatsink, there was a blue-ish looking pad which I presumed was a thermal pad....it looked like it was for the big square chip next to the CPU (chipset? maybe its the GMA 950). Anyway, do you guys think my high temps are due to the thermal pad maybe not being on right since the upgrade? Or is it more because of my cheap thermal grease Keep in mind, when running a stress test for about 10 minutes, I got up to 83C on both cores, fans screaming, and an OVERHEAT warning from RMclock!! Though idle temps seem decent now (I guess there is a bit of a burn-in time)

Haha nice comments on XP/vista. I'll have to say, the smoothness of vista, and the few little things it has in terms of dumbing down networking, mobility settings, etc--does help...plus I'm too lazy to deal with a software overhaul to upgrade to XP pro at this point

 

Honestly your not that bad off. When I used to play WoW and Halo 1 on my 3680 I had temps of about 78C as my core temps. It really depends on what your using.

If you are using a graphics intensive program because of the GMA950's limitations the CPU has to do all of the work, which adds stress and heat.

Your choice of thermal paste could also be a factor.

 

Mmm thanks for all the input Yes, I was really excited to do my upgrade, so I didn't want to wait to find better thermal paste haha--just used what I had

oooh so anyone else hating acer's fan control in the BIOS? I read (I think from this thread) my 3680's pretty loud...whenever the fan's on, its on a low to medium speed whir, but when you're sitting in a quiet office, you can definitely hear it if you get near the desk =/ With the T5200, the fan does stop once in awhile while the computer's idling...but anytime I'm working on the machine (typing, email, etc) the relatively loud whir returns

 

Use RMClock and HWMonitor to monitor and report the temps.

 

i assume you cleaned the fan and exhaust out good while it was apart...
how old is the laptop... it may be getting on in age and be close to retirement age for your fan

 

if anyone has doubts about thermal compound for the CPU or whatever...keep in mind its totally at your discretion...if you gunna be playing games or overclocking with your CPU then use thermal compound....i don't do either so I just used some radioshack silcone white compound i bought cheaply for like less than $3USD. Just to play it cool! lol !! don't use to much...just cover the service of the heat sink pad lightly. eveyrthing is awsome with my new upgrade...i can broadcast video, audio, and have all my usual application open at the same time while chatting! totally satisfied until I get my 2gb CL4 RAM upgrade!!! then it'll be like buttah !!!

 

Hey everyone, I read every Single Page of this forum! I was thinking about turning my computer into a gaming computer so im thinking about getting a T7400(2.16 Core2DUO). Ive read that the T7400 is compatible with i943GML chipset. I ran the everest utility and it said that I also have 943GML. Does this mean I can get to upgrade??!!!!

Ive recently upgraded to a core Duo T2060 and it diddnt do justice for Team Fortress 2. Note: I have BIOS : 3.50

I know this disscusion is about Acer Aspire 3680, but read something this guy said on this forum asking about the 3690 upgrade. Someone told him to upgrade bios, and ive never seen him write on the forum again...I think you guyes gave him the wrong info and turned his computer into a paper-weight >_>

Acer Aspire 3690-2050

 

your problems with gaming on this model or any laptop with an intergrated GPU is the lack of performance of the GPU... that is the bottleneck....

you can only get so many frames a second and you must compromise the quality, lighting, shading and textures inorder to get achieve passable frame rates when using an intergated GPU solution.

even a T7600 won't make an extreme difference in your game's FPS or quality.. you will see some but IMO it's not worth the cost,,, just get a T5600 or T7200 those should be cheaper than the 7400 or 7600.. and you won;t see or feel much if any change between a T7200 and a T7600 (except in the wallet)

that guy needs to get a USB FLOPPY DRIVE and find a PC to get back on here long enough to ask for help...
i'm having tremendous success reviving dead laptops as long as a corrupt BIOS flash is all that is wrong..

i'm sure i could find him a CRYSIS recovery disk... and if you notice many come here,,, do an upgrade and never come back until something is screwed up then they find a way to get on here!!!