How upgradeable are ASUS laptops? G-51

How much can be changed to the laptop once it has been bought. I am mainly talking about the ASUS g-51 and I would like to know just how much (CPU, RAM, Graphics Card, etc) is upgradeable and which parts are not. I mainly want to know this to decide whether I should try and get the best model, or upgrade a lower model with better parts later on.

 

If your talking about the good ole'
G51VX (Montevina (chipset)/ Penryn (CPU)
You can upgrade the CPU to a QX9300(2.53GHZ Quad), though I'm not 100%
RAM: up to 8GB
Graphics card: Not upgradable unless you can get ahold of a 280 that would fit in the custom MXM connector thing, which I don't think anybody ever has.

Hard drives: both are removable.
Wireless NIC: Upgradable


G51j (Calpella / Clarksfield i7)
I have no idea about the CPU, though i'd venture a guess that it could interface with the new Arrandale 32nm chips in Q1 of 2010.
RAM is up to 8GB right now, don't know if it would ever support 8GB Modules in the future, when they are developed. The G51 has 2 Module slots .. as does the G50V(t)
GPU: See above.
Wireless , hard drives = see above

 

Also don't forget that CPU/GPU upgrades/modifications will render the warranty useless... You have to remove the "warranty void if removed" sticker to be able to access the CPU and GPU.

RAM and HDD upgrades should be fine...


--

 

Only the non-Worst Buy G51 models can upgrade to the QX9300.

The 32nm Arrandale CPU's will be dual core only, so the only quads we will be seeing are the three Clarksfield CPU's that are out right now. Intel may refresh Clarksfield with something like a 2.26GHz 925XM or something, but don't count on it.

 

dude why dont you just make one thread and ask all your questions there. not a new thread for each question.

 

So then what you are saying is that whatever graphics card and CPU I get for either the G-51vx or G51j I am stuck with, and the only thing I can upgrade and change is the hard drive, RAM and Wireless card?

 

I kinda figured that if I posted a new thread, then there would be a better chance of me getting the answer I wanted, sice I keep changing questions. Although I see your point and I guess I can ask whatever other questions I have here and see if I still get responses. I have noticed that my questions are being answered by some of the same people, like Soviet Sunrise.

 

Again, it depends on where you get the G51. If you got it from Worst Buy, denoted by the RX05 suffix, you can't dump a quad in it and the highest you can upgrade to is a X9100 or T9900. If you get your G51 elsewhere like Newegg or XoticPC, then you have the option to upgrade to a quad up to the QX9300 later on.

Asus uses proprietary GPU's so you're stuck with the GTX 260M. Even if Asus releases the GT200 cards using the same connector, the system BIOS would not support them as I doubt the BIOS contains the microcode for the GT200 architecture, and I doubt for a fact that Asus won't release an updated BIOS to support the GT200 cards in legacy notebooks.

Everything else on the notebook you can change; RAM, HDD, wireless card, gender, color scheme, etc.

 

generally just put g51 in the title its getting hits

 

So then it would be a much better idea to get a laptop from a site like xoticpc rather than buy one from best buy? I was thinking of getting either the G60 or G72 from best buy, but since I have some extra cash I will probably look into buying a G51j or and x1a.

 

The question you should be asking is whether you plan on buying the notebook with a quad or plan to upgrade to a quad, and whether you want the full Asus warranty. Aside from the other little accessories, that is pretty much the only two factors that a prospective buyer like yourself should consider when deciding to buy an Asus from Worst Buy or from a reputable seller. If I were you, I'd go with the latter, no questions asked.

 

The G72 from WB is pretty decent though. The 1 yr warranty sucks but it also opens them up to experimenting with mods a bit more since the warranty isn't 2 yrs. I suspect Newegg and other retailers will probably have i7 based G72s though.

 

Well in that case it's really between the X1a, x2a and the G-51j. I like the specs of the X2A, but from what I've heard, the 51j is better than the x2a because of the i7 processor but I'm not entirely sure. Also why is Best buy known as worst buy?

 

the X3A seems to be your choice atm. last I checked the X1A and X2A were deactivated. its known as WorstBuy because of its horrible warranty and gimped PC specs.

 

Wait, was it confirmed the x1a/x2a can upgrade to quad core?

 

No, it has not been confirmed that I know of.

 

Also gimped prices, you know...

 

does the G51VX-RX05 have any internal PCI-E to add a tv tuner, bluetooth or another sound card for example ? It has another free slot for a 2nd HDD right ?

 

Hey soviet whats the best wireless card that you can throw in the BB edition G51.

 

Intel 5350

 

What he said.

 

Is the X2A being discontinued and replaced by the x3a because it shows up as deactivated on newegg. Also is the X3A that much better than the x2a or x1a?

 

X3A is exactly like the X1A except with Win 7 installed. X2A comes with a better CPU.

 

So is the X2A discontinued for good, or is it being switched to Windows 7 like the X1A?

 

I have a question, I have the BB version G51VX-RX05, I know from previous posts that this can not take a quad proc. But I got the laptop for such a good deal from a friend that I thought to just upgrade the proc and it will be a much better system.

My question is I know that it can not take the quad and that it will handle X9100 or T9900. But I have a hard time finding them except on ebay. Will it take the T9550 or the P8700? Any help will be greatly appreciated. If it wasn't for the price I would have went for the better model on Newegg and not the Worst buy version.

 

yes it will take the T9550 and P8700.

 

Anyone know about the X2A?

 

Yeah, I know about it.

 

Well do you know if it is being deactivated for good on newegg?

 

Ask Newegg.